The recent wave of layoffs orchestrated by Microsoft has hardly struck the videogame development studies, but it is within Zenimax that some of the most dramatic moments of this crisis are being lived.
The remaining employees describe an apocalyptic situation, where the loss of thousands of jobs has left deep scars not only on the dismissal, but also on those who survived what is called a real “company humanitarian disaster”.
The testimonies collected reveal a disturbing picture of how one of the largest technological corporations in the world has managed one of the most massive reduction operations of the history of gaming.
About 9,000 Microsoft employees have been cut out in what survivors describe as an unprecedented organizational carnage. Page Branson, Employee Zenimax and member of the Zenimax Workers United – Cwa union, says he has witnessed strainth scenes:
“It was so sad to see people so anguished and confused, without knowing if they would still have had a job at the end of the day.”
The mode chosen by Microsoft to communicate the layoffs has left their mark: many employees were removed from Slack and company emails even before the human resources contacted them officially.
The Blackbird project, a MMO not yet announced in development at Zenimax, ended up among the illustrious victims of this operation.
Together with other promising titles such as Everwild by Rare and the Reboot of Perfect Dark of The Initiative, it represents one of the broken dreams of this corporate renovation that has privileged the budgets to creative ambitions.
Autumn Mitchell, Senior Qa Tester and trade unionist, does not use the least terms in describing the Microsoft approach:
«I don’t care how many times do it to try to make it seem normal: it is not. The way they do is inhuman. “
His criticism focuses on the procedural coldness with which human relationships have been managed, forcing colleagues with years of collaboration behind them to exchange hasty good guys on Slack before being disconnected forever.
The unionization at Zenimax has probably limited the damage, according to the testimonies collected. However, i \
