Age of Empires Studio Lost Almost Half the Studio and Had Its Next Project Canned, Before Being Handed Over to Activision

Age of Empires Studio Lost Almost Half the Studio and Had Its Next Project Canned, Before Being Handed Over to Activision

By Tom Phillips
Publication Date: 2026-09-24 11:35:00

Age of Empires studio World’s Edge lost almost half of all employees this week, as part of Microsoft’s latest round of job losses.

The cuts form part of the 268 staff let go across the wider Xbox business, as part of a projected target of 3,200 job losses forecast over the course of this current financial year.

It was announced on Monday that World’s Edge would now be part of Activision, though details on how the studio’s employees had been impacted remained unclear. In the days since, however, staff have now reported via social media that nearly 50% of the company was now out of work, while its next project had been cancelled.

The 100 Best Xbox Games of All Time

“I am of course disappointed that this is the way the time with World’s Edge and Age ends for myself and many of my talented teammates that were also impacted — we had some great plans for what’s next,” wrote Adam Isgreen, formerly the company’s studio creative director, who had served at World’s Edge for 16 years. “I hope…