Age of Empires Studio World’s Edge Loses Nearly Half Its Staff Following Xbox Restructuring

Nearly half of World’s Edge's staff has been laid off, while the Age of Empires studio completely transitions to Activision's control. What started as mere community rumors is now a harsh reality: World’s Edge, the studio responsible for the Age of Empires series, has experienced massive job cuts, affecting almost half of its team according to consistent reports from Eurogamer and WCCFTech.

Particularly painful: Creative Director Adam Isgreen is also among those affected. Under his well-known ResetEra pseudonym "Tempus Chaoti," he publicly confirmed the job loss and made it clear on LinkedIn how disappointed he is about the end of his time at World’s Edge and Age of Empires. Senior Software Engineer Andrew Martz also spoke out, explaining that a previously unannounced "next project" from the studio was put on hold directly as a result of the acquisition by Activision.

How many employees are actually affected at World’s Edge?

As usual, Microsoft has not provided exact figures, but several independent sources agree on the assessment: roughly half of the workforce has been laid off. World’s Edge was founded in Redmond in June 2019 to permanently serve as the guardian of the Age of Empires brand and has since coordinated external studios such as Relic Entertainment, Forgotten Empires, and Tantalus Media. Following the departure of founder Shannon Loftis in 2022, Michael Mann took over studio management – now the studio is losing a large portion of its experienced staff in one fell swoop.

What does the transition to Activision mean for the future of Age of Empires?

Going forward, World’s Edge will no longer be directly overseen by Xbox Game Studios, but by Activision – just like Rare and the Halo brand. This is part of a larger organizational realignment that we have already reported on: In our article about how Xbox confirmed 268 further layoffs and Activision takes control of Halo, it becomes clear that World’s Edge is just one of several studios that were reassigned as part of this process. It is also notable that this very consolidation had already been rumored – as we categorized with the initial rumors of a new wave of layoffs with studio consolidation, the scenario has now been confirmed in multiple waves.

For players, the uncertainty about the brand's future is the main concern. While there is currently no official confirmation that the support for Age of Empires II, III, and IV is fundamentally at risk, the loss of so much institutional knowledge – particularly a long-standing Creative Director – is likely to impact the pace and scope of future updates and expansions in the medium term. The unannounced, now canceled project also shows that the restructuring affects not only personnel but also actual game development.

Is the future of the Age of Empires series fundamentally at risk now?

A complete discontinuation of the brand is not expected at this time, as World’s Edge officially remains responsible for Age of Empires and the Definitive Editions are commercially successful. Nevertheless, this case exemplifies how deeply the ongoing Xbox restructuring now extends into individual, established studios – even those managing a thriving and popular franchise. Those following the developments around Xbox’s studio landscape should keep this case in mind, as similar cuts could also affect other supposedly secure studios.

Source: Eurogamer, WCCFTech

What do you think: Is the future of Age of Empires in good hands under Activision's oversight, or does this development worry you? Let us know in the comments!