In response to the news of Hi-Fi Rush developers Tango Gameworks getting shut down, fans have taken to the game’s Steam page in droves, leaving thousands of positive reviews.
A report from IGN earlier this week revealed that Microsoft and Xbox would be closing three studios: Tango Gameworks (Hi-Fi Rush), Arkane Austin (Redfall), and Alpha Dog Games (Mighty Doom). Roundhouse Studios is also being folded into ZeniMax Online Studios.
Discontent blew up across the internet in response, with fans, journalists, and YouTubers all puzzled over the decision to close the studios. Tango was a particular standout in the pack because of how beloved Hi-Fi Rush was, even winning multiple awards at shows like The Game Awards and BAFTAs.
Things have only gotten worse from there, as during a Town Hall meeting, the head of Xbox Game Studios, Matt Booty, talked about the company’s goals by saying, “We need smaller games that give us prestige and awards.” Many were quick to point out that’s exactly what Hi-Fi Rush had done last year.
This sentiment has seemingly resonated with even the developers at the studio, as Tango Gameworks project manager Kazuaki Egashira posted a picture on his personal Twitter account of the awards Hi-Fi Rush had won, with only two words, “Not enough?”
Perhaps most incredible, however, is that Xbox management hasn’t issued any kind of public statement since the news broke on May 7. The closest we’ve gotten to any kind of official statement came during an interview Xbox President Sarah Bond had with Bloomberg’s Dina Bass.
In a segment during Bloomberg Tech in San Francisco, Bond was asked about the decision to close ZeniMax and Bethesda studios.
“You know, it’s always extraordinarily hard when you have to make decisions like that,” Bond said. “I’ll go back to what I was saying about the industry. And when we looked at those fundamental trends, we feel a deep responsibility to ensure that the games we make, the devices we build, the services that we offer are there through moments, even when the industry isn’t growing and when you’re through a time of transition. And the news we announced earlier this week is an outcome of that and our commitment to make sure that the business is healthy for the long term.”
From there, Bond was asked directly about Tango Gameworks and how it’s possible a studio that releases an award-winning apparently commercially successful game can get shut down. Here’s Bond’s full response.
“You know, one of the things I really love about the games industry is it’s a creative art form. And it means that the situation and what successes for each game in the studio is also really unique. There’s no one-size-fits-all to it for us. And so we look at each studio, each game team, and we look at a whole variety of factors when we’re faced with making decisions and tradeoffs like that. But it all comes back to our long-term commitment to the games we create, the devices we build, the services, and ensuring that we’re setting ourselves up to be able to deliver on those promises.”
The closures and response to them have undoubtedly raised concerns about the health of Xbox’s business and the company’s future.
