you mean bugs? I'm not a QA expert but how would that be used, if a person needs to play the game to find out where the bugs are, if there's a problem, etc. Sure, AI can help, but I'm not sure there can be a replacement for a person. Not to mention, QA can also raise questions of enjoyability of the game, tough sections, etc.
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Microsoft is laying off 1900 Activision Blizzard and Xbox employees (8% cut from the Gaming Division)
- Thread starter saintjules
- Start date
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DaGwaphics
Member
I don't think that's the way most publicly traded companies work. If they can absorb a rough patch by reducing expenses they will do that over reducing profits. Or at the very least they will reduce profit losses with the budget cutbacks.
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Interfectum
Member
RedC
Member
No idea, I'm merely speculating based on some things I've read on AI and its potential uses in QA and Microsoft's heavy investment in it.
Granted I'm certain the vast majority of the layoffs were rooted in cutting costs, inefficiencies, and redundancies.
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I knew that. My point still stands.
Guess we'll see.
It's usually for cutting costs, and I'm sure there was a good amount of duplicate roles between all these companies. Phill has enough Yes Men.
SlimySnake
Flashless at the Golden Globes
Looks like its not just some redundant sales/hr people but a lot of devs and testers, and we know from MS's latest output, testing and QA isnt something that they are too good at.
When kotick understands the value of QA testers better than our lord and savior Phil Spencer then surely there is something wrong in this world.
When kotick understands the value of QA testers better than our lord and savior Phil Spencer then surely there is something wrong in this world.
Banjo64
cumsessed
MS should be laying off their own inept Xbox staff at every level and should try to harness the actual successful staff who turned Bethesda and ABK in to the powerhouses that they are.
Even at admin/community manager/bot level. The only thing MS should be cutting is HR roles from these external companies they buy.
Even at admin/community manager/bot level. The only thing MS should be cutting is HR roles from these external companies they buy.
AyraSutoraifu
Member
I sometimes check Timdog, solely for the fun...
SJRB
Gold Member
The head of this billion dollar conglomerate is not your friend and the naiveite of people thinking he is is killing me.
The guy is the head of a company that just spent 69 BILLION dollar while its product is dead last in pretty much every relevant metric for close to a decade now. They are undoubtedly hemorrhaging money and things aren't looking any brighter in the near future.
What the hell did you think was going to happen? Employee parties and picnics? This was going to be a ruthless bloodbath.
Kenneth Haight
Gold Member
Mibu no ookami
Member
Let's not pretend like Nintendo has never done layoffs. They have.
Executive pay cuts in most cases can't resolve the difference in pay for mass layoffs like this. You're at best saving 2-4 employees per executive who takes a pay cut.
adamsapple
Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
SF Kosmo
Al Jazeera Special Reporter
But it's a point that ignores what I was.arguing in the first place. I'm not saying Activision doesn't sell a lot of games, but they have a reputation for being a pretty toxic workplace and MS probably doesn't want that smoke.
They're also fucking gigantic on a scale that people might not be appreciating. Where all of Zenimax was like 2,500 employees, Activision Blizzard is like 17,000. They're probably as big as the rest of Microsoft's gaming division combined.
So "limited integration" might not work here. Normally in a merger like this, there's a lot of consolation of redundancies between the two companies. MS doesn't usually do that but in this case it's a bit impractical not to.
It doesn't seem like this is just a shrink, I'm hearing about whole teams and departments getting canned. That means they're getting rid of redundant operations like PR and marketing that can be handled internally.
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Agent_Nobody
Member
On the cancelled game:
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25247680/FJ93_vCVQAgJldM.jpg)
www.theverge.com
) of the regular devs to other teams.
Blizzard cancels survival game following layoffs
A rare new property from Blizzard gets the ax.
www.theverge.com
The word ”some” is worrying, but it seems they are moving (at least ‘some‘
) of the regular devs to other teams.
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FullMetalx117
Member
Whenever corporations talks about “synergies” in a merger and cost savings, 99% of the time it is because of future layoffs due to redundancies.
Tech/gaming is getting decimated right now…but also they did go on a crazy hiring spree during COVID. At this point I assume tech worker count is at pre covid levels? But do want to emphasize that there was mass hiring by the companies, so wouldn’t be surprised if it was still more. Easy money, gov benefits for hiring during covid is gone.
On a macro level, I would not want to be going in tech right now and even senior levels don’t seem to be safe. Insane level of competition from all around the world and constant need to learn with threats like AI taking your job. Will this eventually lead to a talent gap long term? Or over the past 30 years was there just a massive supply of tech workers coming out of college?
Tech/gaming is getting decimated right now…but also they did go on a crazy hiring spree during COVID. At this point I assume tech worker count is at pre covid levels? But do want to emphasize that there was mass hiring by the companies, so wouldn’t be surprised if it was still more. Easy money, gov benefits for hiring during covid is gone.
On a macro level, I would not want to be going in tech right now and even senior levels don’t seem to be safe. Insane level of competition from all around the world and constant need to learn with threats like AI taking your job. Will this eventually lead to a talent gap long term? Or over the past 30 years was there just a massive supply of tech workers coming out of college?
I'm not ignoring your point at all. I am saying their prior output is a much more reliable metric than "reputation" when it comes to suggestions that they were dysfunctional.
StreetsofBeige
Gold Member
Depends on the company, but remembering the bar charts people showed of tech worker growth at the big guys like MS, Google etc.... all the cuts theyve done lately are a fraction of the binge hiring they did all starting around the same time circa 2016-17.
Nydius
Member
I've been hearing that layoffs, especially in the tech sector, have been a "COVID course correction" since late 2021/early 2022. It's been two years, I don't know how much I can believe that current layoffs are still a post-COVID adjustment. This seems like something much bigger than the COVID era.
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Deputy Moonman
Member
The larger issue is that the economy sucks. Can't make everything cost 17% more and expect any business large or small to continue operating with the same number of staffing. Basically this is not limited to MS. I legit can't get over the fact that the current administration has made everyone basically 20% poorer and yet there are those that are still like no big deal, totally fine with that. This Activision merger began long before the economy tanked for those that are like omg MS is evil for buying them and then laying people off. Accelerated inflation due to incompetence or intentional malfeasance is a bitch.
ChorizoPicozo
Member
this specifically not. they are post-mergerI've been hearing that layoffs, especially in the tech sector, have been a "COVID course correction" since late 2021/early 2022. It's been two years, I don't know how much I can believe that current layoffs are still a post-COVID adjustment. This seems like something much bigger than the COVID era.
pasterpl
Member
This. Cuts like this are expected during `m&a
Ass of Can Whooping
Member
Could of fooled the regulators
havoc00
Member
Laying off Call of Duty developers feels so short sighted when they're already struggling with once a year and now they legally have to add a Switch port too, feels all for short term shareholder pleasing. Only thing I could see is them pivoting ABK towards outsourcing work, XGS "only" has 2500ish employees because they heavily rely on outsourcing, Zenimax as well is quite small for a publisher, they'd also be around 2500ish, with ABK at 17k. ABK has thousands of internal employees working on their games, may be that Microsoft intends to replace a lot of those with outsourcing studios which is still annoying because it's just cheap cost cutting and comes with its own issues, mainly when the engine is custom made.
digoutyoursoul
Member
Sorry if already posted, Q/A team at Sledgehammer games
Ass of Can Whooping
Member
They weren't kidding when they said the devs wouldn't be forced to make COD after the merge
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digoutyoursoul
Member
Why don’t they also change the people responsible for being dead last and put new people in place for a bit of impetus at least
If they keep failing what’s the point in keeping with the same people
Mortisfacio
Member
Not even exclusive to stocks/capitalism. If you chart out your expenses vs revenue, then forecasted expense vs revenue, you assess when cost outweighs revenue. If you think the loss will be short term, you can plan to stay the course or adjust as needed. It's a simple cost vs reward analysis most people are taught in grade school.
SJRB
Gold Member
100% agree, but you know how it is, shit always rolls downhill.
Ass of Can Whooping
Member
This excuse works for your average company on thin margins, not Microsoft
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Moriarty1889
Member
Ybarra has flown the coup I see. A sinking ship and dumpster fire all in one. Bad for those people getting let go. Hope they find jobs. MS are blatant scumbags. Where is Good Guy Phil lately??? Complete and utter radio silence from him….I wonder why?
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Ass of Can Whooping
Member
Yoboman
Member
So they fired the rest before they could unionise
mitchman
Gold Member
That response is a copy paste that dozens of people has posted unedited as some kind of protest or something.The mods on Era have gone off the goop now. Banning people for reasonable responses like this now.
digoutyoursoul
Member
Agent_Nobody
Member
While I have my own personal bad experiences with layoffs similar to this, and I feel in general for the people who lost their jobs; when I heard a chunk of their HR department at Activision got gutted…after all the harassment claims and the 35 million dollar settlement (avoiding that shit and not letting it fester is literally their job), I can’t help but hold back a bit of a smile. The whole HR department at Activision failed and so did their legal department.
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digoutyoursoul
Member
Too busy listening to the likes of DogTim and CuntEastwood on discord telling him how great things are
Tal Shiar Agent
Member
So I guess this means MWIII is fucked.
Stooky
Member
um no not at all. they are cancelling projects. this is for the stock holders.
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Agent_Nobody
Member
Yeah, it sucks since it’s bottom rung employees mostly, but Q&A was going to be the main ones from development that would get cut. A lot of it is outsourced now.
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