The fallout from the most recent wave of Xbox layoffs continues to spread, and now it’s hitting Activision Blizzard and its mobile ambitions hard. Less than a year after launch, Warcraft Rumble—a mobile tower defense spin-off set in the Warcraft universe—is being stripped of future content. Microsoft has confirmed the game will shift to a live ops-only phase, with no new expansions or updates planned.
According to an internal memo from Blizzard President Johanna Faries, Warcraft Rumble “will no longer receive any new content,” effectively ending any chance at the game reaching the long-term status Blizzard had hoped for. While a few members of the team will be reassigned to other roles within Blizzard, others are being laid off. Sources speaking anonymously to outlets like Aftermath estimate that up to 100 employees have been affected. Some staff reportedly learned of their termination when their Slack accounts were deactivated.
A screenshot from World of Warcraft: The War Within Alpha (2024), Blizzard
This marks yet another cut in what’s quickly becoming a devastating pattern for Microsoft’s gaming division. IGN previously confirmed that this week’s layoffs impact Bethesda, King, and other areas under the Xbox umbrella. Bloomberg also reported that a massively multiplayer online RPG in development at ZeniMax Online Studios—makers of The Elder Scrolls Online—has been cancelled.
Now, with Blizzard’s mobile team slashed and its high-profile 2023 title Warcraft Rumble abandoned in all but name, it’s clear that Microsoft’s vision for gaming is undergoing a dramatic shift.
“Since launch, Rumble has struggled to achieve the scale necessary to sustain its current form for the long-term, despite very good and hard work by everyone on the team,” Faries wrote in her internal email.
A screenshot from World of Warcraft: Dragonflight – Seeds of Renewal (2024), Blizzard
The game was in development for nine years and was meant to follow in the footsteps of Hearthstone, which had once proven that Blizzard could thrive in the mobile space. According to reports from Bloomberg in 2022, Rumble and other mobile efforts were part of what attracted Microsoft to purchase Activision Blizzard for nearly $69 billion in the first place.
Now, not only is Rumble effectively dead, but another Blizzard mobile game—designed to mimic Pokémon Go—was previously cancelled before release. That means both flagship mobile initiatives at Blizzard have now collapsed, a stunning reversal of strategy just months after Microsoft touted mobile growth as a key business goal.
Blizzard’s customer service and marketing departments were also reportedly impacted by this latest round of cuts. Other teams, including those working on Overwatch features, appear to have been spared for now—though they were already hit hard during the January 2024 layoffs.
Courtesy of Activision Blizzard; Trailer Frame Capture
This marks the fourth major round of Xbox layoffs in just 18 months, with over 8,000 gaming-related jobs cut across Microsoft since the Activision Blizzard deal closed. Entire studios like Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks have been shut down. And now, Blizzard’s mobile push appears to be next in line for the chopping block.
“Organizational changes like this can be difficult to navigate,” Faries told staff. “Today’s news does not diminish the hard work and dedication of talented individuals… Together, we will continue to build towards a bright and creatively ambitious future for players the world over.”
But for the hundreds of developers now out of work—and the players left behind by yet another abandoned game—those words may ring hollow.
A screenshot from World of Warcraft: The War Within (2024), Blizzard
As Microsoft marches forward with plans for next-gen consoles and a major presence at Gamescom, questions remain: What is Xbox’s real strategy now? How many more cuts can the creative side of the business endure? And when will the players finally start to see the “bright future” that keeps getting promised—while the games and teams they care about are quietly erased?
How do you feel about the Xbox layoffs impacting Activision Blizzard? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
“Do you not have jobs?”
A shame it didn’t kill the whole of activision-blizzard but I suppose it’ll take much, much more damage to their finances.
Microsoft has made its games DEI and woke. (Including its devs). Consequently, the XBox is dead. absolutely dead.
Linux is looking great for gaming. It’s usually faster. (Steam).
Rumble was Blizzards attempt to gouge users with gatcha game mechanics with abusive monetization. Just goes to show that it takes an Asian company to really extract money from users (see Netease + Diablo Immortal).