🗝️ Bosskey Newsletter 7 - Manor Lords Solo Dev, Bethesda Studio Closures and Nintendo GOAT

# 🗝️ Bosskey Newsletter #7 1 🎮 Game news, 1 🔎 Interesting Find, 1 📱Social Post. Written by a Part Time Indie Dev.

May 12, 2024

🎮 Game news

Xbox Layoffs again. 4 Bethesda Studio Closures. Tango Game Works, Arkane Studios (Austin) makers of Redfall, Alpha Dog games

  • Microsoft is shutting down three studios under ZeniMax Media.

  • Microsoft is closing Arkane Austin, Alpha Dog Games, and Tango Gameworks.

  • Roundhouse Studios is being folded into ZeniMax Online Studios.

  • Some members of Arkane Austin are being assigned to other studios.

Games like Hi Fi Rush might not get made as they plan to focus on core franchises like fallout and Starfield. Quite sad and disappointing that despite a good few years this is still continuing.

My question 🤔 and wondering if all the industry is going through a re organisation like the tech industry where there was unbridled spending and optimism of forever growth that realities set in.

https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/microsoft-exec-calls-for-smaller-prestige-games-the-day-after-closing-hi-fi-rush-studio-tango-and-turning-down-a-sequel

🔎 Interesting Find

Manor Lords made by a solo dev?

Or what is a Solo Dev? Seems like there is debate about whether it counts as an indie solo dev game or not if you hire contractors. Perhaps it could be called solo directed project.

I do feel it does not really matter much can be used once as a good marketing thing but every game starts out solo and we buy assets or get help along the way to run to the finish line.

Link to X:

📱Social Post

The GOAT Nintendo former CEO Satoru Iwata. This post came about when I was reading about Xbox closing its studios. I am reminded this guy took a pay cut to boost morale. during the lean times at Nintendo he took a pay cut. I did read Nintendo has a high retentionrate of employees can’t say about their contractors.

Reply

or to participate.