Diablo 4 Season 14 dramatically reworked Mythic items in Blizzard's ARPG going forward, and judging from early feedback, it's a change that isn't going over well.

Season of Death Awakening launched on June 30 and introduced what Blizzard coined Mythic Uniques 3.0, a new system where any of the game's hundreds of Unique items could be found (or turned into) even stronger Mythic versions. In theory, it would open up the game's endgame build options and give players more choices when it comes to outfitting their characters. Far from just a temporary seasonal change, Blizzard stated it intended for Mythic Uniques 3.0 to be a permanent part of the game going forward.

The downside of the new system is that it also added more randomness to Mythics, making it so even formerly best-in-slot Mythic Uniques (now called Iconic Mythics) like The Grandfather or Heir of Perdition are now, more often than not, significantly worse than before and usually not worth using. Equally annoying, crafting a Unique into a Mythic Unique using the Horadric Cube is largely random, rewarding a different item than the one originally put in the cube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nuu7aOAw0is

Mythics additionally seem to be more rare than before, with lower drop rates and the removal of the ability to craft specific Mythics. Taken all together, acquiring usable Mythics now feels almost entirely out of players' control. 

Blizzard knew the Mythic item changes would be controversial. In an interview with GameSpot ahead of Season 14's launch, Blizzard said it was trying to "split the difference" between its goals for the game's "long-term health" and feedback from the community it received on the Season 14 public-test-realm. It seems that approach isn't going particularly well, because one look at places like the Diablo 4 Reddit or at videos from various Diablo content creators paints a picture of a largely unhappy playerbase frustrated by the season's unpopular Mythic changes.

In a widely upvoted post, Reddit user Oct_ showed a screenshot of having achieved rank 1 on the Hardcore, Solo-Self Found Diablo 4 leaderboard. However, they lamented the fact that they'd played for nearly 50 hours and had not found or been able to craft a single usable Mythic yet. 

"The mechanic makes it impossible for normal people to get that chase item," Oct_ wrote.

Another Reddit user, Thirteenera, provided some data on Mythic Unique drop rates and revealed that after "days" of farming 1,400 lair boss runs, they received a total of 50 Mythic items. Of those 50 drops, none were useful for their build. While many Iconic Mythics were once universally useful across most builds, most Mythic Uniques are now niche in their purpose, meaning finding one that is useful for a given build is now far less likely.

https://www.reddit.com/r/diablo4/comments/1unouef/upgrading_to_mythic_seems_pointless_if_its_not/

Others have called out how bad and misleading it feels to put a Unique item into the cube, use the "upgrade" feature (which implies the item is being improved), and then receive a completely different, and likely useless item in exchange. Many players state the phrasing needs to be rewritten to let players know they aren't really crafting an upgrade but gambling.

It's not just on places like Reddit that players are complaining. Diablo content creators like Rhykker also don't seem happy with the changes. Rhykker said they are having fun with the new seasonal events, but that "everything I loved about Mythics is gone."

"Mythics are harder to get and weaker than they were," Rhykker said in a recent video. "I'm okay with harder to get, but it doesn't feel exciting to work harder to get something crappier than we used to have." 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEtj56ctcMI

Another content creator, Rob2628, stated in their most recent video that Season 14 is a "big step backwards," lamenting the fact players can only wear one crafted Mythic item, how difficult it is to find Iconic Mythics, and the sheer amount of RNG involved along the way. 

"I think the general consensus is that the new changes to the Mythics, especially with the crafted tag, have been very negatively received in the community, and I agree, rightfully so," Rob2628 said. "It is very, very hard to get Mythics, even for players that play a ton."

That's not to say everyone dislikes Mythics 3.0. Another popular Diablo content creator, Raxxanterax, said in their recent "The State of Diablo 4 Season 14" video that they are a fan of Uniques being able to drop as Mythic quality, even if he is largely unimpressed with the season overall and thinks Blizzard needs to change its approach to seasons.

"I think it adds dopamine," Raxxanterax said.

Season 14 is still in its early stages, so it's possible Blizzard could adjust drop rates or make changes to Mythic crafting to elminate some of the pain points players have complained about before the end of the season. Even if the new season isn't being received well overall, there have been some universally good changes, like fixes to make Diablo 4's worst grind a lot easier.

Microsoft has announced sweeping layoffs and other dramatic changes resulting in 4,800 layoffs across the company, including 3,200 at Xbox specifically. What's led to this? According to one expert, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and his "catastrophic mismanagement" of the company is to blame.

Ed Zitron, an author who specializes in covering the technology space and is the CEO of EZ Primary Research, offered a blistering take on Microsoft's management in response to the mass layoffs.

"Catastrophic mismanagement by a company run by a sub-McKinsean imbecile that hires other losers to move money around to hide how bad his AI plays are. Microsoft is a disgrace to the software industry," he said.

Zitron has been an outspoken critic of elements of AI in particular, recently appearing on CNBC to offer the bear case against generative AI.

"One of the biggest lies of the AI bubble is that Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Meta are 'growing because of AI,'" he said recently. "In reality, they're using the continued growth of their other business units to cover the meager returns from AI, and the massive waste of their trillion+ in capex."

Microsoft, of course, is massively invested in AI, and Zitron appears to be suggesting here that some of the issues that led to these dramatic cuts at Xbox are in some ways tied to Microsoft's AI plays.

In its statement today addressing the cuts, Microsoft said it is laying off thousands of people because the world is changing and Microsoft is attempting to adapt. Microsoft also pushed back against the theory that the roles eliminated today are being replaced by AI, though the company did admit that, "AI is changing how work gets done."

Investors tend to reward companies that cut costs, but that doesn't appear to be the case this time with Microsoft, as the company's stock price is down today. That continues a trend for Microsoft, as shares are down 18% year-to-date and 22% in the past year.

The cuts to Xbox include not just staff layoffs, but also Microsoft divesting of five development studios. Double Fine and Compulsion are regaining their independence, while Ninja Theory and Undead Labs are being sold. Arkane Lyon, meanwhile, is in the "consultation" process to determine its fate and the fate of Marvel's Blade.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has shared new details on the significant changes at Xbox, including mass layoffs, studio spinoffs, and more.

In an interview with Fortune, Sharma said Microsoft undertook "a bunch of bets" years ago to help grow the business, including Game Pass, going multiplatform, and beefing up its studio base. These bets did not pay off, and in the process of pursuing these new ventures, "We inherently didn't focus on the core business," Sharma said.

"The number one measure of your strategy is what you put your resources behind, and we simply spread ourselves too thin," she said.

Asha Sharma is making major cuts to Xbox.

In a memo to staff, Sharma said the Xbox business, as it stands today, is not in a healthy place. If it were, Sharma said the company would be able to "weather the shock of the hardware crisis" that Xbox is facing now due to the AI-fueled run on components and memory.

"With an unhealthy Xbox, it becomes really challenging, and it accelerates a lot of the changes we need to make,” Sharma said.

The restructuring of Xbox is part of a "reset," and a big part of that is downsizing. About 1,600 people at Xbox are losing their jobs today, with another 1,600 cuts to come throughout the next year. Additionally, Microsoft is spinning out Double Fine and Compulsion, and selling off Ninja Theory and Undead Labs, though the buyers for those companies have not been confirmed as of yet. Another studio, Arkane Lyon, is in the "consultation" process and that will seemingly determine the fate of the studio and its in-development project, Marvel's Blade.

The layoffs didn't just hit Xbox, as Microsoft is laying off staff across the entire company, with some 4,800 positions (about 2% of the company's workforce) affected in the latest round of cuts.

With the Steam Machine starting to land in some lucky buyers hands, a few of the gremlins in Valve's compact living-room PC have started to surface. But while some might remind you of infamous hardware failures of old, many of them are smartly designed errors that you can, for the most part, resolve yourself.

Last week, the Steam Machine subreddit was rocked with what the community described as the "Red Line of Death," a reference to the catastrophic Red Ring of Death that plagued early Xbox 360 units. The users in question seemed to think the Steam Machine in question was bricked and beyond repair, but a few resets and some BIOS updates later, the PC was restored. Perhaps most interesting was how it surfaced the smart way in which Valve is relaying vital hardware information when something does fail.

The error this unfortunate Reddit user encounterd was probably the worst of the lot, with the half width, breathing red LED bar indicating a GPU failure. Different bar widths with different animations point to entirely different issues, however. Our own Steam Machine usage has run into another error, where the Steam Machine displayed a full, solid red bar, indicating an overheating issue.

Steam support has a full page breaking down the meanings of different light bar colors and animations, and what they're telling you about the state of your Steam Machine. While some less crucial ones will be overwritten by your custom light bar settings, ones paired with critical errors will always be displayed. They give you an easy way to communicate what might be wrong with your Steam Machine should you need to contact support, which many of the worst issues suggest you do.

Valve's Steam Machine went on sale last month, with a starting price of $1050. It's a price that Valve itself wasn't happy with, but explained that its increase was similar to the recent Steam Deck price hike that was similarly drive by the ongoing memory crisis.

A deadly plague spread through World of Warcraft's Moonguard server over the weekend, making it the second time in WoW history a horrific virus has run uncontrolled through the game's populace.

As broken down by Wowhead, the origin of the plague in question comes from a Dragonflight dungeon, Brackenhide Hollow. Within the dungeon, some enemies cast a spell called Withering Contagion, a disease that inflicts heavy nature- damage-over-time and spreads to all players within five yards. 

Whether by accident or intentionally, a player was able to bring Withering Contagion out of the dungeon and into the heart of Alliance territory and Silvermoon City. Lower-level players were quickly killed by the contagion's damage-over-time effect, while those who survived only helped spread it even further.

Before long, areas like Stormwind and the Goldshire inn in Elwynn Forest were awash in green slime, as players started to document the pandemic on social media. The virus was brought to an end thanks to a July 3 hotfix from developer Blizzard, but not before the virus had rampaged unchecked for several hours.

https://www.reddit.com/r/wow/comments/1umpgxh/corrupted_blood_20/

Players have quickly started referring to this most recent super-spreader event as "Corrupted Blood 2.0," a reference to the previous time WoW servers were hit by an uncontrollable plague. Way back in 2005, a similar scenario played out with the release of the game's 1.7.0 patch and its introduction of the Zul'Gurub raid. The raid's final boss, Hakkar the Soulflayer, used a unique Corrupted Blood mechanic that would spread to players within the encounter. 

Though Corrupted Blood was intended to stay within the raid instance, it snuck its way out via a bug that allowed it to remain on a Hunter's pet. When that pet was summoned in a populated area, Corrupted Blood quickly spread among Azeroth's citizens, killing players and even spreading to invincible NPCs, who then passively continued to spread it to others. The in-game "event" went on to be studied by real life contagious disease experts and even has its own Wikipedia page.

https://bsky.app/profile/meggoart.bsky.social/post/3mpr5jf64bc2m

Thankfully, this new plague wasn't nearly as deadly or disrupting as Corrupted Blood, which took Blizzard weeks to handle. Instead, Blizzard was able to quickly hotfix Withering Contagion within hours, sparing players from having to quarantine in Azeroth over the July 4th weekend.

In other WoW news, Blizzard continues to take aim at private servers it alleges are making millions illegally, while an alleged leak may have revealed Blizzard's big plans for the future of Warcraft.

Microsoft is undergoing a major shakeup that involves mass layoffs, studio sell-offs, and other significant changes as part of a "reset" of the business.

While we have learned that Ninja Theory and Undead Labs are being sold off and Double Fine and Compulsion are going independent, we don't yet know what the future holds for Arkane Lyon and its long-in-development Blade game. The French studio is undergoing "consultation," but its fate has yet to be determined.

There is a lot we still don't know, but for now, here's everything you need to know about Arkane Lyon and Marvel's Blade leading up to the news today.

Entering consultation

Arkane Lyon is based in France, and due to local labor laws, the studio is entering "required consultation" with its local Works Council. This process will include a "review of potential strategic options."

But there is a lot we don't know.

Could Arkane Lyon be sold off like Ninja Theory and Undead Labs? Go independent like Double Fine and Compulsion? Shut down like its sister studio Arkane Austin before it? Also unknown is what will happen with the Blade game itself. Microsoft said in its announcement that no publicly announced first-party games are being canceled in the "reset" process, but if Arkane Lyon is sold, it's anyone's guess as to what may happen to the project. Disney, which owns Marvel, would presumably be involved in these negotiations as well.

Arkane founder jokes about buying the studio

Arkane co-founder Raphael Colantonio, who no longer works there, responded to Sharma's post to ask about how much Arkane might cost to buy.

"Regarding Arkane... how much? I'm asking for a friend," he said, with a laughing emoji.

https://twitter.com/rafcolantonio/status/2074142859666551185 Delayed and over-budget, apparently

A report from The Verge said Marvel's Blade was over-budget and had been delayed internally. The game was said to be eyeing a 2026 release but was delayed internally to late 2027. That's all the info the report had to share, but it came after Blade was a no-show at the Xbox Games Showcase in June.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wB9ye56mSfk Announced in 2023 and not much to show

Blade was announced in December 2023 at The Game Awards that year, but the reveal trailer was CG and many believed it was more of a mood piece meant to hype fans up and help developer Arkane Lyon recruit staff to work on it.

Game director Dinga Bakaba mentioned on stage that it’s a third-person action-adventure game that takes place in Paris. No gameplay footage has been released.

Prior to developing Deathloop, Arkane Lyon worked on both Dishonored and Dishonored 2. The studio certainly has a knack for world-building and level design, and it will be interesting to see how that is applied to a well-established universe.

A Blade film starring Mahershala Ali has been in the works for a long, long time, suffering multiple setbacks throughout its troubled development.

As part of the 1,600 people being let go by Xbox during its big reset on July 6, it appears that the company's Accessibility division has been hit pretty heavily as well.

According to a now-deleted July 6 Bluesky post, a senior user researcher for accessibility at ZeniMax Media shared that they were caught in the blast zone, too. They also revealed that the "accessibility staff overall seems heavily impacted," with "multiple people on the Bethesda User Research Team" getting laid off.

On LinkedIn, the researcher reshared a post by Zach Clothier, the accessibility test lead for the Microsoft gaming accessibility testing service, who announced his departure after nearly three years in his role.

It's unclear how many other people have been affected, but according to that now former ZeniMax Media senior researcher, it sounds like the team has been decimated amidst these layoffs. This comes during Disability Pride Month, which is supposed to honor the history, achievements, and experiences of the disability community.

A Microsoft spokesperson told GameSpot over email that despite the restructuring, the company plans to continue its work in making gaming more accessible for all.

"Accessibility remains a priority for Xbox," the spokesperson said. "While we've made changes across the team, creating more accessible gaming experiences for players has not changed."

Xbox's Accessibility Team is responsible for some wonderful features and technologies that make gaming easier for all players. This includes things like the Adaptive Controller and its various attachments, as well as accessibility options in games such as Forza Horizon 6 to change everything from the way it looks to the way it plays.

1,600 people will lose their jobs on July 6, while another 1,600 will lose their jobs over the next 12 months. These cuts make up about 20% of Microsoft's staff. Some studios have been cut loose, with Ninja Theory and Undead Labs being sold to a mysterious buyer. Meanwhile, the fate of Arkane Studios is still unknown, and both Id Software and ZeniMax have lost staff so that those studios could shift toward focusing on bigger franchises.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has outlined her plan to "reset" the Xbox business, and it includes mass layoffs and selling off studios.

In her memo announcing the dramatic shakeup, Sharma also talked about what led to this moment, and one piece is that the Xbox business is "not healthy" due in part to big bets that have not paid off, like Xbox Game Pass.

Xbox is undergoing a strategic "reset."

She said Microsoft bet on things like Xbox Game Pass, releasing more titles on competing platforms, and a "broader portfolio of content" to help grow Xbox. Those efforts did indeed create "meaningful value," she said, but a publicly traded company like Microsoft is focused on endless growth--and those businesses "did not grow at the pace we expected."

"As that happened, our core business weakened, and we added more teams, more investment, and more time, hoping for a better outcome. And now the industry is facing the most severe hardware crisis in its history," she said.
"We must reset Xbox."

Xbox Game Pass, launched in 2017, was a breakthrough, Netflix-like offering from Microsoft promising subscribers all first-party Xbox games and a growing library of other titles for a monthly subscription price. The membership proved popular, reaching more than 34 million subscribers. But all the while, many fans and experts like have questioned the viability and sustainability of the subscription model.

Strauss Zelnick, the head of GTA 6 parent company Take-Two, has said launching new games into a subscription service like Microsoft does makes no sense.

In 2025, Microsoft controversially raised the price of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate by a whopping 50%, bringing it up to $30/month. This price hike led to a mass exodus of subscribers, and Microsoft later brought it down to $23/month. A

At the same time, Microsoft announced a big change for Game Pass with new Call of Duty games no longer included with the service at launch. Game Pass Ultimate is still more expensive than it was a year ago, and the lower rate is not actually the discount people think it is.

In her memo, Sharma did not provide any specifics on how Xbox Game Pass could change further in the future. The executive specifically calling it out as a bet that did not fully pan out is leading some to believe further changes could be afoot. As for Microsoft's plans for releasing games on rival platforms, Sharma has backed away from that in some ways already by returning to situational exclusives like Gears of War: E-Day and Clockwork Revolution. These games are being sent out to die as exclusives, one expert said.

Finally, regarding Sharma's line about investing in a "broader portfolio of content" being a bet that did not pay off, she said Microsoft will now shift its investment on "higher priority projects" that have the best chance of succeeding (though she did not name any outright). No first-party Xbox games that have been announced have been canceled as part of the "reset."

It's a bleak Monday for Xbox, as the division is losing five of its studios and approximately 20% of its workforce will be laid off throughout the current fiscal year. These changes, referred to as "the most significant restructure in Xbox history" by Xbox boss Asha Sharma, will impact every corner of the business, including Id Software and ZeniMax Online Studios. While the two developers aren't shutting down, reports claim that they will be losing large portions of their respective workforces.

According to Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, a "significant" number of staff have been let go, as part of the initial wave of 1,600 layoffs today. Microsoft plans to shed another 1,600 Xbox employees in the months to come. Something Wicked Games CEO--and former Bethesda Studios project lead--Jeff Gardiner has also claimed that Id Software has lost 95 employees, while Bethesda Game Studios laid 35 of its workers off today.

https://bsky.app/profile/jasonschreier.bsky.social/post/3mpydldy43226

In an open letter, Sharma briefly mentioned that Xbox will focus on higher-priority projects at its studios, including Bethesda and ZeniMax. Schreier reported that the two studios won't just be focused on Fallout and The Elder Scrolls, but will also continue to work on IP like Wolfenstein, Doom, and Quake.

As the Xbox reset continues, Sharma also mentioned that none of its first-party publicly announced games or projects would be canceled as part of the reductions. According to the wording, InXile Entertainment's Clockwork Revolution and The Coalition's Gears of War: E-Day, while Senua and State of Decay 3 from departing studios Ninja Theory and Undead Labs are also still on track to be released.

The status of those games could change when the new owners of those studios take over, and the future of Marvel’s Blade at Arkane Studios also seems murky for now.

Microsoft has begun its big reset, cutting 1,600 jobs right now and another 1,600 in the next 12 months. Despite this massive restructuring, the company claimed that these moves don't involve canceling any already announced first-party games.

In a lengthy Xbox Wire blog post on July 6, Microsoft announced that some studios (such as Ninja Theory and Undead Labs) are being sold while others (like Arkane Studios) are still awaiting their fate. Tucked within the post was a line about the projects currently in the works at Xbox Game Studios, with the company clarifying that "none of our first-party publicly announced games or projects are being cancelled as part of these reductions."

This means that games such as Clockwork Revolution (an action-RPG developed by InXile Entertainment), Gears of War: E-Day (The Coalition's upcoming post-apocalyptic shooter), Senua (the third installment in Ninja Theory's Hellblade franchise), and State of Decay 3 (Undead Labs' next zombie survival game) are all still coming as of now. However, it remains to be seen what the fate of Ninja Theory and Undead Labs' games will be after they are sold. Microsoft may not have canceled any projects now, but any such decision will ultimately rest with their new ownership.

The keywords here are "first-party" and "publicly announced." If Xbox doesn't have a hand in the game's development and it hasn't already been made public, then it's unclear what that project's future holds. It's also worth noting that the company recently pulled out of several projects it agreed to fund, including 1666: Amsterdam from the creator of Assassin’s Creed, something Sigil developer Romero Games was working on, and a fantasy RPG IO Interactive had been cooking up.

It's hard to know what this means for Arkane Studios' Marvel's Blade, though, given that it's a first-party, publicly announced Xbox game. There is a fear that Microsoft could close the studio and cancel the game, but that remains to be seen. For now, the French studio is "beginning required consultation" as part of the country's labor laws so that Microsoft can "review potential strategic options."

At any rate, any first-party Xbox game that we already know about seems to be safe. It's just a shame that the 3,200 people at Xbox--which makes up about 20% of the organization--are losing their jobs.

The Switch 2 is going to get a bit heavier in Europe, thanks to a consumer-friendly change required by European Union regulations. That's because the hybrid system will be sold with a swappable battery starting this fall. Nintendo of Europe has released new specifications on how Switch 2 and various accessories will be updated with user-replaceable batteries over the last half of 2026 and into 2027. Keep in mind that this isn't a recall or safety issue, so won't affect current owners.

The revised Switch 2 will sport a 5172mAh swappable battery, which is 1% less in capacity than the current model. The system alone will also weigh 10 grams more at 411 grams overall. But once you add on the new Joy-Con 2 controllers, the Switch 2 will be about 14 grams heavier at 548 grams.

Nintendo’s Top-Selling Switch 2 Games Of All Time View Images

The updated Joy-Con 2 controllers are planned to arrive in the winter for Europe, with no changes in battery capacity. However, each one will beef up by about 2 grams with the user-replacable batteries. 

Meanwhile, the Switch 2 Pro Controller will also arrive this winter in Europe but with a more notable battery capacity dip of 16%. The swappable 897mAh battery will also mean this controller feels lighter than the current one with 7 grams shaved off to total 228 grams.

The Nintendo 64 controller for Switch and GameCube controller for Switch 2 are also receiving revised editions with swappable batteries early next year. The Nintendo 64 pad will only see a 1-gram weight increase, while the GameCube controller will have 5% more battery capacity and a 5-gram weight increase.

The original Joy-Con controllers are currently getting replaced with new models across Europe, with no changes whatsoever regarding battery capacity or weight. Last month, Switch 2 officially celebrated its first anniversary. 

The Best Nintendo Switch And Switch 2 Exclusives Of 2025 View Images

As part of Microsoft's restructuring announcement today for Xbox that is resulting in mass layoffs, the company also announced that it is selling off two of its development studios: Undead Labs and Ninja Theory.

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma said those two studios have "entered terms to join new ownership with funding" to help finish Senua (Ninja Theory) and State of Decay 3 (Undead Labs). Microsoft did not name the mystery buyers, however.

Senua is a brand-new Hellblade action game that was only just announced at the Xbox Games Showcase in June. State of Decay 3, meanwhile, has been in the works for a very, very long time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoLOzgHvKxQ

Additionally, Microsoft announced that Compulsion Games and Double Fine are becoming independent studios again and will retain their own IP and catalogs. Additionally, Microsoft is giving those teams "runway" funding for their "next games," Sharma said.

What's more, Microsoft's Arkane studio in France is "beginning required consultation" as part of labor laws in the country. This is being done to "review potential strategic options," Sharma said.

Beyond the changes to the Xbox studio structure, Microsoft announced that it is laying off 1,600 Xbox employees today and another 1,600 people in the next year. On top of those cuts, Microsoft is enacting layoffs beyond Xbox for a total of 4,800 layoffs across the entire company; that's about 2.1% of Microsoft's total workforce.

Why is Microsoft doing this?

Microsoft executive Amy Coleman said Microsoft is enacting these mass layoffs because of the changing business landscape.

"The way technology is built, deployed, and used is transforming faster than at any point in my time here. Our customers’ needs are shifting, the business models that serve them are shifting, and that means the work itself--what we do, where we focus, and how we’re organized--has to transform too," she said. "Companies don’t get to choose whether their industry changes; they only get to choose whether they change with it. That means we will need to adjust resources and roles and shift how we operate so we can have the greatest impact for our customers."

She also clarified that the jobs being cut "are not being replaced by AI." Microsoft is making significant investments into AI, with many believing it's a bubble that's set to burst, leading to further pain down the road.

For her part, Sharma said the Xbox business is "not healthy," with Xbox operating at lower margins compared to its peers. She said Microsoft made a bet on Xbox Game Pass and multiplatform releases, along with a "broader portfolio" of content, but these efforts "did not grow at the pace we expected."

"As that happened, our core business weakened, and we added more teams, more investment, and more time, hoping for a better outcome. And now the industry is facing the most severe hardware crisis in its history. We must reset Xbox," she said.

Microsoft has made billions in profit this year

Microsoft is the No. 4 biggest company on earth with a market cap of more than $2.8 trillion. That's down significantly over the past year, as Microsoft's share price has fallen, but the company remains truly gigantic, with revenue and profit levels reflecting that.

For Microsoft's latest quarter that ended April 29, the company pulled in $82.9 billion in revenue (up 15%) and made a profit of $31.8 billion (up 23%).

Microsoft stockholders might not have been happy with the company's share price falling, but for the past quarter alone, Microsoft paid out $10.2 billion to shareholders via dividends and share repurchases.

These are signs of strength and health for Microsoft. Xbox is a very small piece of Microsoft's overall business, but seeing such strong numbers coupled with the mass layoffs at Xbox is not sitting right with many.

Despite promises of a reset, the unveiling of a fancy new logo, and a charm offensive for its new leadership, the news at Xbox has been getting increasingly worse throughout 2026. Between massive price increases for Xbox hardware--and possibly another one soon--the fluctuating price of Xbox Game Pass, and the cancellation of funding on several collaborative projects, it has been a tough time to be a fan of Xbox. Can the news get any worse? Yes, if you're an employee of the company--or a fan of its studios, really.

In recent weeks, Microsoft has been talking about how the Xbox division needs to start pulling its financial weight, and it has long been rumored that Xbox layoffs will start on July 6. Following a buying spree in the late 2010s and early 2020s, Xbox amassed a sizable portfolio of studios and employees, but it looks like many of them will be in the crosshairs as the gaming division aims to slim down. Several studios are reportedly up for sale, but if a buyer isn't found, it could be the end of the road for them.

On what could be the bleakest Monday in Xbox history, we'll be keeping an eye on all changes hitting the various studios today.

Xbox is losing 20% of its employees

Microsoft has officially announced that 3,200 people at Xbox will be let go throughout the current financial year. Of that number, 1,600 layoffs will start today and the rest of the affected staff will be phased out during a "restructuring" process at Xbox.

"Our business today is not healthy. We are operating at margins that are 3-10x lower than comparable platform and publishing businesses," Xbox boss Asha Sharma wrote. "We entered Gen 9 with a smaller install base and a higher cost structure. To grow, we bet on Game Pass, multi-platform, and a broader portfolio of content. While those businesses have created meaningful value, they did not grow at the pace we expected. As that happened, our core business weakened, and we added more teams, more investment, and more time, hoping for a better outcome. And now the industry is facing the most severe hardware crisis in its history. We must reset Xbox."

Compulsion Games

South of Midnight developer Compulsion Games will be leaving Xbox Game Studios and will once again become an independent studio. Compulsion Games will keep its IP and catalog of games when it exits.

"Today, we're sharing that Compulsion Games will return to independent management following our time as part of Xbox," the studio wrote in an update.

"As part of this transition, we will retain the rights to Contrast, We Happy Few, and our award-winning South of Midnight. We're grateful for the years we spent with Xbox, for the support they provided our team, and for the opportunity to bring these games to players around the world. As an independent studio, we're excited to continue building the distinctive games that define Compulsion while taking the next steps in our journey."

Double Fine Productions

Double Fine Productions is also exiting Xbox and will transition back into an independent game studio. The studio will retain its IP, catalog, and runway for its next game.

"Once again, Double Fine Productions will be an independent studio," studio head Tim Schafer wrote. "We're thankful to everyone at Xbox for seven great years together, and for working with us to reach an outcome which preserves our history and culture, and returns ownership of our games to us. To everyone who has reached out to us these past few weeks: Thank you so much for all your kind words, we've been deeply touched by all your messages. We will share more news soon on what comes next."

Ninja Theory

Discussions for a new owner of Ninja Theory are underway, and the studio will continue to work on the Senua franchise.

Undead Labs

State of Decay 3 developer Undead Labs is also in talks to find a new owner and continue working on its open-world zombie apocalypse series.

Arkane

Microsoft says that Arkane’s management has started consultation with its Works Council in France to review potential strategic options. Labor laws could see this potential sale of the studio delayed for some time. The future of the studio's next game, Marvel's Blade, remains unclear.

Bethesda/ZeniMax

Bethesda and Zenimax will face layoffs across the companies, and investment will shift to higher-priority games. According to Bloomberg, Bethesda will be overhauled and will focus on its biggest IP--Doom, Fallout, Quake, Wolfenstein, and The Elder Scrolls.

Blizzard

Blizzard will also be hit with layoffs, and like Bethesda, Microsoft is tasking the veteran developer to shift toward producing higher-priority games.

King

King will report directly to Asha Sharma, and it will also be hit with layoffs.

Mojang

Like King, Minecraft studio Mojang will also have to deal with layoffs and will report directly to Sharma.

"These two studios have increasingly become platforms and are our largest by monthly active players," Sharma said. "They bring critical geographic, demographic, and differentiation to Xbox."

Sales of CD Projekt Red's 2020 RPG Cyberpunk 2077 continue to grow, as the game has now passed 40 million copies sold.

This counts copies sold through July 3, including sales of the base game and copies sold through the game's ultimate edition.

"Thank you all for helping us reach this amazing milestone," the developer said.

The big new sales milestone came after Steam's latest sale saw the game's price fall down to $18, representing a discount of 70%. It's on sale for that price until July 9.

https://twitter.com/cyberpunkgame/status/2073001445666734085?s=46

The game had sold 35 million copies when CD Projekt Red last made an announcement about its sales numbers in November 2025. The game is selling at a faster rate than The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, which sold more than 60 million units to become one of the top 10 best-selling games of all time.

Cyberpunk 2077 had a well-documented disastrous launch in December 2020, but the Polish developer steadily supported, updated, and improved the game over the years. Many are calling it one of the best comeback stories ever for a high-profile game. Things culminated in the Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 release in 2023 and the launch of the stellar Phantom Liberty expansion.

A sequel, Cyberpunk 2, is now in the works at the company’s new office in Boston alongside teams in Warsaw and Vancouver.

CD Projekt Red is also working on The Witcher 4, which will be followed by The Witcher 5 and The Witcher 6--all three games will release within a six-year period, according to the developer.

Following Sony's announcement that it will no longer support physical game discs starting in 2028, Microsoft has confirmed that Halo: Campaign Evolved's physical editions will include discs, including on PS5. Microsoft's announcement likely doesn't have anything to do with Sony's, however.

In a Q&A, Microsoft said people who buy a copy of the game will get a physical game case and disc "so that you have tangible items to add to your collection." This applies to the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S editions of the game.

The timing of Microsoft's announcement about Campaign Evolved coming on a disc is conspicuous given it happened just after Sony confirmed its all-digital plans. But Microsoft no doubt had been planning to release Campaign Evolved on a disc for a very long time now given the logistics involved.

Sony's announcement that PlayStation will no longer support game discs starting in January 2028 might make business sense for the company, but it's also causing much consternation. While Sony's own data shows an increasing share of digital game sales, the company still sells many millions of physical, disc-based games every year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZFVVcEM38c

A lot of people still enjoy and seek out physical media. The decision has also led to even more concerns about game preservation and fears that Sony will make gaming even more expensive by eliminating the secondhand market.

For what it's worth, some are saying the next-gen Project Helix console from Microsoft may not have a disc drive in its own push toward digital. It's also been reported that Microsoft may soften the blow with a "disc-to-digital" program that will allow people to convert their discs to digital copies.

Campaign Evolved is a remaster of Halo: Combat Evolved, and if that sounds familiar, it's because Microsoft already released a remaster of the original Halo in 2011 with Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary. Campaign Evolved is a campaign-only remaster of the original game, featuring brand-new prequel missions and a variety of graphical and technical improvements.

The game launches on July 28 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, but if you pay more, you can start playing early. For more, check out GameSpot’s Halo: Campaign Evolved buying guide.

One of Ubisoft's most underrated games, Watch Dogs 2, is on a super steep sale on Steam right now. So steep, in fact, that it seems to have inspired a new crop of folks to trawl through the technocratic world of digitized San Francisco to put an end to the surveillance state at a time when we're all under some sort of surveillance IRL.

Over on the game's Steam store page, you can pick Watch Dogs 2 for just $2.50 until Thursday, July 9. That's a 95% discount for a game that normally retails for $50. And that's just the base game! If you wanted to grab the DLC--which includes new cars, co-op adventures, outfits, weapons, world missions, and more--then you can snatch up either the Deluxe Edition for $3 or the Gold Edition for $4. Really, no matter how you look at it, this is a steal for the game.

Likely as a result of this nearly five-finger discount for a game that launched in November 2016, Watch Dogs 2's player count has soared. According to player tracker SteamDB, over 10,000 people are playing it right now, and it saw a 24-hour peak of over 16,000 people. These numbers are steadily encroaching on Watch Dogs 2's all-time concurrent high of 18,138 players. That's impressive for a nine-year-old game.

The game's surging popularity also makes a lot of sense considering the themes it tackles. As the Oakland-native Marcus Holloway, you get racially profiled and wrongfully accused of a high-tech robbery. This incident causes Marcus, an up-and-coming hacker, to join the hacker group DedSec--an Anonymous-esque collective hellbent on dismantling the technocracy ruling Ubisoft's San Francisco Bay Area. Through a series of hijinks, all meant to raise DedSec's clout, you confront the billionaires and the technology that's making life hell for the digital city's population. It's a riveting narrative with a protagonist that's very Black and very fun.

There are a lot of debates around whether we're in a surveillance state at the moment. However, given the rampant use of AI, the overreliance on systems that all communicate with one another--think of smart homes--and the infrastructure that makes all of this technology run, it's not hard to conclude that someone could be surveilling you. A cyberattack can occur in which a hacker gains access to, say, your webcam to watch you, making your "private" home much less so. In any event, it makes for good gameplay opportunities

In GameSpot's Watch Dogs 2 review, we awarded the game an 8/10, calling it an "effortless mix of covert and action-oriented gameplay [with] a likeable cast that knows how to have fun in their own way." That's exactly what you get when you play Watch Dogs 2, which is one of those games that's hard to put down despite some conflicting narrative decisions.

Now's a great time to pick it up, especially if you hate the government surveilling you.

Sony recently announced that it will stop supporting PlayStation game discs in January 2028. Even though Sony continues to sell many millions of discs, the share of digital game sales continues to rise as physical falls, and Sony cited this shift as the reason why it's going all-digital in the future. Now, Alinea Analytics analyst Rhys Elliott has weighed in with his thoughts on the matter, saying there is more to the story, and it's not necessarily a consumer-friendly decision.

"This is all about control," Elliott wrote.

He pointed out that physical game discs hold value for a company like Sony only until they're sold--rentals and resales of the same disc do not put any more money into Sony's pockets.

"Every resale and rental is value flowing to players and retailers instead of to the platform. Without discs, that converts into a fresh full-price digital sale or it doesn't happen at all, and both outcomes obviously suit Sony better than a thriving second-hand market," he said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FatSqS3VYY

Elliott went on to say that physical retail pricing is "elastic" and is based on supply and demand. This leads to an environment where pre-owned games are regularly sold for less than what Sony charges itself on digital stores. In killing discs, gamers on the fence about buying a game can no longer "just wait and buy it used," Elliott said.

"This move is all about profitability and control for PlayStation, at the expense of consumer choice," he said.

On the more positive side, Elliott said developers stand to gain from the shift away from discs. Developers need to submit "gold master" copies of their new releases for certification, and this can happen about three months before launch.

"On paper, that means a finished, cert-ready build of a game a quarter of a year before anyone's meant to play it," he said. "The reality is that already-stressed devs throw together a rough, held-together-with-tape build whose job is to survive cert, get it stamped, and then actually ship the game via a mandatory day-one patch."

"Assembling those builds pulls the team's attention onto cert box-ticking tasks that should come after the core development, like controller-disconnect handling, storefront compliance, edge-case plumbing, and all that," he said. "Polish can be the difference between a clean release and a rocky one, so technically a digital-only title can punt the 'final' build much closer to launch.
For a studio up against the wall (read: all of them…) that flexibility could mean the world. So that’s one silver lining."

Elliott also predicted that, should others embrace Sony's all-digital policy, then times might get even tougher for brick-and-mortar retailers. Rockstar's GTA 6 will be sold at physical retailers, but players are getting a code in the box, not a game disc.

"A code-in-box has none of the things that made physical worth choosing: no resale value, no lending, less collectability. The physical channel has no reason to exist, so it's the end for most dedicated games retailers. The nail in the coffin," he said.

It's not just Sony that has reported an increased share of digital games compared to physical games, as Nintendo, Capcom, EA, and others have as well.

Many expected Sony's announcement about ending support for PlayStation discs to be bad news for video game retailer GameStop, but the company's smallest business unit today is software.

A whole bunch of games are shipping out in July, but if you're in the mood for some treachery and leaps of faith on the high seas, then you're likely looking forward to Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced this month. Out on July 9, Ubisoft has revealed the official times for when you can expect to start playing, as well as the preload times in case you've preordered the game already.

Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced - Standard Edition (PS5, Xbox Series X)

$60 | Releases July 9

Preorder at Amazon View at other stores Preorder at Best Buy Preorder at Target Preorder at GameStop Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced Digital Deluxe Edition (PS5, Xbox Series X, PC)

$70 | Releases July 9

Preorder at Ubisoft Store Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced Collector's Edition (PS5, Xbox Series X, PC)

$200 | Releases July 9

Preorder at Amazon View at other stores Preorder at Best Buy Preorder at Target Preorder at GameStop Preorder at PS Direct

Xbox Series X|S players have had the option to preload the Black Flag remake for over a week, while PS5 and PC players will have to be patient until July 7 before they can prepare for the return of Edward Kenway--the wait might be worth it on PS5 Pro, for extra-realistic hair effects.

Assassin's Creed Black Flag: Resynced aims to modernize the original game with a whole host of improvements, but it might have created a few new problems in the process.

Other Upgrades include an overhauled combat system, craftier enemies, social stealth, and various options to customize the Jackdaw, Kenway's vessel for his trip across the Caribbean.

To get you in the mood for the swashbuckling adventure, you can sing along to the game's sea shanties and check out how some of the game's daredevil moves were recreated in real life.

Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced preload times

• Xbox Series X|S: June 22 at 2 PM UTC
• PS5: July 7 at 12 AM local time
• PC: July 7 at 2 PM UTC

Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced launch times (July 9)

Los Angeles

• 7 AM PT (PC, Xbox Series X|S, PS5)

New York

• 10 AM PT (PC, Xbox Series X|S, PS5)

Montreal

• 10 AM (PC)
• 12 AM (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)

Mexico

• 8 AM CST (PC)
• 12 AM CST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)

Sao Paulo

• 11 AM BRT (PC)
• 12 AM BRT (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)

London

• 12 AM BST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 3 PM BST (PC)

Warsaw

• 12 AM CEST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 4 PM CEST (PC)

Paris

• 12 AM CEST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 4 PM CEST (PC)

Abu Dhabi

• 12 AM GST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 6 PM GST (PC)

Johannesburg

• 12 AM SAST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 4 PM SAST (PC)

Shanghai

• 12 AM CST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 10 PM CST (PC)

Tokyo

• 12 AM JST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 11 PM JST (PC)

Seoul

• 12 AM KST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 11 PM KST (PC)

Sydney

• 12 AM AEST (Xbox Series X|S, PS5)
• 12 AM AEST (PC) | July 10

10 Ways Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced Differs From Ubisoft’s Original Pirate Adventure View Images

The next batch of games for Amazon Luna has been revealed, and this July, you can look forward to superhero workplace drama, turn-based RPG action, and some escape room fun. In total, there will be 12 downloadable games for PC to check out, and five games to stream through Luna Standard.

On the streaming side, the big draw for this month is Dispatch. One of the best games of 2025, the debut title from AdHoc Studio follows a down-on-his-luck superhero who takes up a desk job, where he's given control over superhuman resources. Similar to Telltale's classic games, Dispatch is a narrative-heavy experience where you're frequently tasked with making choices across branching dialogue paths, and then dealing with the consequences down the line. Other games being added to the Luna Standard streaming library this month include Sonic Mania Plus, Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures, YouTuber's Life, and Arcade Paradise.

Right now, PC gamers can grab downloads for CyClones, LoneStar, and Symphony of War: The Nephilim Saga, and each week in July will see more games made available. As a reminder, all of the free games that you claim through Amazon Luna are yours to keep forever, even if your subscription expires. If you aren't a member, you can sign up for Amazon Luna for as little as $15 for one month to take advantage of the subscription and its freebies.

Sign up for Amazon Prime Amazon Luna Free Games For July 2026 July 2

• CyClones (GOG)
• LoneStar (Epic Games Store)
• Symphony of War: The Nephilim Saga (Epic Games Store)

July 9

• Still There (GOG)
• Regular Factory: Escape Room (GOG)

July 16

• Poly Vita (Legacy games code)
• Framed Collection (GOG)
• Escape Academy (Epic Games Store)

July 23

• In Sound Mind (Amazon Games App)
• Mystic Academy: Escape Room (GOG)

July 30

• Zoria: Age of Shattering (GOG)
• Weakless (GOG)

Prime subscribers will also be able to play the following new games in July via the Luna channel:

• Dispatch
• Sonic Mania Plus
• Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures
• YouTuber's Life
• Arcade Paradise

The Steam Machine is slowly making its way into the wild, with some folks getting their hands on Valve's not-a-console console. One of those people is former SIE Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida, who called the device "meh" in some recent social media comments.

Yoshida took to X on July 2 to give his early impressions of the Steam Machine. In a long post, he not only called its performance "meh," but he also said that it's "hard to recommend" because of its high price tag.

https://twitter.com/yosp/status/2072582164898787363

"The system recommends to default to 1080p--am I going back to PS4 days?" Yoshida pondered. "Some games take a looooooong time to boot. What is it doing?"

He clarified that he'd only been playing it for "a few hours"--he posted his thoughts in the early morning on July 2--but ultimately concluded that the device just doesn't live up to its $1,000+ retail price.

It's not all bad for Yoshida, though. He did say that the Steam Machine's "small form factor and quietness" are good while commending the device's changeable faceplate, easy-to-use UI, and the ability to play Steam games on the living room TV. That last fact alone makes it "reason enough" to keep the Steam Machine, but these features appear to be where the positives end for now, as overall, Yoshida just isn't quite buying what Valve is selling.

The Steam Machine has begun shipping out to folks following its June 29 launch. It's very possible, though, that you may have to wait a while for yours, especially considering how confusing the preorder emails Valve started sending out were. You could always check out eBay, but be warned: You'll likely pay double the price.