Xbox chief addresses Bethesda studio closure, says it’s about maintaining the long-term health of the business

Earlier this week, Xbox shut down four Bethesda studios, including Redfall developer Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks, the team behind last year’s Hi-Fi Rush. While each of the four affected studios, which also included Mighty Doom developer Alpha Dog Games and Bethesda support studio Roundhouse Games, issued a statement about the closures, Xbox remained silent.

However, after four days, Bloomberg Dina Bass interviewed Xbox President Sarah Bond and asked her about Bethesda’s closures, which Bond cited as a desire to maintain the long-term health of the Xbox business, even during difficult transition periods.

Here’s what Bond said:

“It’s always very difficult when you have to make decisions like that. I’ll go back to what I was saying about the industry, and when we look at those fundamental trends, we feel a deep responsibility to ensure that the games we make, the hardware we build, and the services we provide are there during the moments, even when The industry does not grow when it is in transition, and the news we announced earlier this week is a result of that and our commitment to making sure the business is healthy in the long term.

“However, our commitment to having our own studios and working with partners on games big and small – we are a platform where you can play [Grand Theft Auto], but you can also play Palworld, or you can play Call of Duty or you can play Pentiment, and that doesn’t change. And frankly, our commitment to Bethesda and the role it plays is part of Xbox and everything we do.

“It was really cool. I don’t know if you had a chance to check it out. The Fallout TV show was on Amazon, and it was great to see people fall in love with that universe but also what was done for the games themselves, and people coming back and exploring everything within them.” There are some other great things coming from our studios later this year to check out but for now, for us and our teams, our focus is on the people affected and doing everything we can to help them through this difficult transition.

Bass then specifically asked Bond about the closure of Tango Gameworks after Hi-Fi Rush, through which Xbox Accepted MetricsIt was a huge success. Bond’s answer here was less clear – you can read it in full below:

“One of the things I really love about the games industry is that it’s a creative art form, and that means that the status and successes that each game and studio has are also really unique. There’s no one-size-fits-all for it. We look at each studio, each “A game team, we look at a variety of factors when we’re faced with making decisions and trade-offs like that, but it all comes back to our long-term commitment to the games we make, the hardware we build, the services, and making sure we position ourselves to be able to deliver on those promises.”

While it’s great that Bond is addressing these shutdowns at Xbox, it still lacks the clarity you’d expect from one of the biggest companies in the gaming industry. Neither Microsoft nor Xbox, including Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, addressed the layoffs and closures in an official capacity after that.

For more, read about how Redfall is set to receive a big offline play update this month before Xbox shuts down Arkane Austin, then read about how Xbox is reportedly considering bringing Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II to PlayStation 5. Next, check out So this story about how Xbox job cuts are on the way, then read about how the company discussed putting Call of Duty on Xbox Game Pass alongside the price hike.

What do you think of Bond’s answers? Let us know in the comments below!