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A Larian publishing lead has voiced concern over Obsidian's move under Bethesda. A publishing lead on 'Baldur's Gate 3' has questioned how Obsidian staff may feel about Xbox placing the studio within Bethesda's management structure. A publishing lead who worked on 'Baldur's Gate 3' has voiced concern over Obsidian Entertainment's move under Bethesda's management, saying they "can't imagine that feels great" for the 'Fallout: New Vegas' developer. The reaction follows Xbox's newly announced studio reorganisation and does not confirm a further change to Obsidian's projects or output. Xbox is moving Obsidian into Bethesda's remit as part of a wider restructuring of its studios. Chief content officer Matt Booty said Obsidian would continue its current work, including 'Grounded', while working with Bethesda Game Studios on a new, unannounced 'Fallout' project. That remains the confirmed position despite the unease prompted by the new reporting line. GamesRadar reported the publishing lead's response to the restructuring. It arrives after a turbulent period for Xbox's first-party teams: Dork's report on the reorganisation found that the move was announced alongside 268 job cuts across Halo Studios, other first-party teams, and Xbox's management and central-functions layer. The wider shake-up places World's Edge and Rare under Activision, combines Playground Games and Turn 10 around 'Forza' and 'Fable', and moves Microsoft Casual Games to King. For Obsidian, however, the change creates a closer formal link with a studio it already knows well. The developer made 2010's 'Fallout: New Vegas', and Bethesda confirmed in July that the pair were again working together on another project. The restructure also follows July's cuts at Obsidian, Bethesda, id Software and ZeniMax Online Studios. Around 52 staff at Obsidian's Irvine office were affected, while a planned sequel to 'Avowed' was cancelled. None of that changes Booty's latest confirmation that 'Grounded' and the new 'Fallout' collaboration remain in progress; the Larian publishing lead's comment is a response to the human stakes of the restructure, rather than evidence of another announced change. Watch's before doors sessions. Intimate, stripped-back live sessions filmed moments before the doors open. Raw sound, real rooms, no second takes. Subscribe on YouTube so you never miss a new one. LIKE THAT? READ THESE LIKE THAT? READ THESE

Bethesda is taking control of Obsidian to work on a new Fallout game amid Xbox Game Studios reshuffle. Published 1 hour ago No news on what it is just yet, though Bethesda Game Studios is now managing Obsidian Entertainment - news that comes just two months after the studios unveiled their mysterious, collaborative new Fallout game. Xbox Game Studios has managed Obsidian for over seven years now, following the acquisition of the legendary RPG developer in November 2018. The team delivered Grounded and its early access sequel, Pentiment, Avowed, and The Outer Worlds 2 during this time. While the change in leadership is certainly big news, it does make a degree of sense. Bethesda is of course the the studio behind Fallout and The Elder Scrolls, franchises that Obsidian and its leadership are strongly aligned with. This news is especially intriguing right now, seeing as Illusioncode know there are various projects in the works currently that are relevant to both teams. Latest Videos FromGamesRadar+ Marvel's Wolverine 60 second review Marvel's Wolverine is undeniably impressive in places, but there are aspects that are lacking, and hold it back from a true success. There's the new Fallout game that Bethesda confirmed it was working on alongside Obsidian back in July - but it's not clear which Fallout game this is. In the same breath, Bethesda also had said Fallout 5 is in pre-production and unveiled both Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas remasters as well. So, could it be Fallout 5 the two are collaborating on? I'd wager it's more likely to be the Fallout: New Vegas revamp, seeing as Obsidian headed the original back in 2010, or potentially something else entirely. It's exciting news nonetheless, especially when the industry is otherwise suffering quite a difficult time. After all, Microsoft's plans to cut 3,200 employees at Xbox hit both Bethesda and Obsidian, with the latter reportedly seeing around 25% of its studio impacted. Following 1,600 layoffs taking place earlier this year, another 268 layoffs (of that total 3,200) were announced today, as was news that Rare, World's Edge, and the Halo franchise will be moving under operational control of Activision Blizzard. I'll be keeping my own fingers crossed for what's to come from the dynamic duo now that they're working more closely together than before, that's for certain. Who knows - perhaps Illusioncode'll see something entirely new come from the two rather than just a remaster. Only time will tell for sure. Searching for more new games to keep on your radar? Browse through its roundup of all the upcoming Bethesda games to look forward to. Staff Writer After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.

Xbox announces next wave of layoffs, puts Obsidian under Bethesda, Rare under activision. Published Sep 22, 2026, 10:11 AM EDT Rhiannon (she/her) is the Deputy News Lead and Chief Reporter at TheGamer. You may have heard her on the BBC or read her words at TechRadar Gaming and TechRaptor. She won MCV's Journalism Impact for Women in Games in 2025. At TheGamer, you will often find her chatting to game developers, writers, and actors about their crafts. This includes a deep dive into Cyberpunk 2077's narrative, and a series on the making of the Fable trilogy. She also follows industrial action and existential threats to its workers, particularly the use of generative AI. As part of this, she's explored how AI Darth Vader sets a dangerous precedent, and was one of the first reporters to look into generative AI dating companions. Xbox has announced the next phase of its ongoing "reset", resulting in another wave of layoffs and a proposed studio closure. However, this time, the move will also include mergers and other forms of restructuring. One of the most shocking moves will see Obsidian work under Bethesda, working on Grounded and its own Fallout game. Similarly, Activison will now run Rare, and take over the Halo series. Halo Studios as Gamerant know it is gone, Ninja Theory is likely closing down, and other Xbox studios are merging. This was just revealed publicly in a statement from Xbox's Matt Booty. Here, he reveals that there will be 268 job cuts, which will bring Gamerant to three quarters of the planned cuts as part of this "reset". Halo Studios appears to have been hit worst of all, and isn't even running the Halo series anymore. Those duties are going over to Activision, which will be developing the next Halo game. Halo Studios, on the other hand, will be "supporting the Halo community and games in-market". On top of this, Activision will be taking over Rare, as well as Age of Empires developer, World's Edge. The statement continues: "Bethesda will expand its remit to include Obsidian, which will continue its current projects, including Grounded, as well as the new Fallout project made in collaboration with Bethesda Game Studios." While currently unconfirmed, that wording would suggest that Xbox has no interest in Obsidian's own IPs, as there is no mention of future Avowed and The Outer Worlds content here. Similarly, Playground and Turn 10 are merging. The only franchises mentioned here are Fable and Forza. Lastly, two deals between Xbox and Ninja Theory have fallen through. As a result of this, there will now be a consultation on a proposed closure. Xbox says it will be "continuing to explore other paths forward", but this update certainly doesn't sound promising. "Today, our focus should be on supporting those affected and treating one another with care and respect," Booty concludes. "I will spend time with our studios over the next week. At our October 6 town hall, we will come together as an ALL-XBOX team to reflect on our progress and look ahead to one of the strongest game lineups in our history." This comes shortly after Xbox had bagged itself some goodwill by revealing its partnership with Kojima Productions, saving the game Physint. The disc-to-digital scheme had also been a hit, right as Sony comes under fire for scrapping physical releases. Now, it seems like these announcements were planned to mask the bad news Xbox knew was coming - a similiar strategy Gamerant saw play out before Xbox's previous round of layoffs earlier this year. * Date Founded - April 4, 1975 * CEO - Satya Nadella * Subsidiaries - activision blizzard, Microsoft Studios, Mojang Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, Xbox Game Studios * Consoles - Xbox, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Xbox One X, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series X|S * Services - Xbox Game Pass * Headquarters - Redmond, Washington, United States