- Xbox has fired Gears of War: E-Day story director just days before the game’s early access launch.
- The developer was just celebrating the game hitting the gold status earlier this week.
- Cutting key talent from Coalition suggests Xbox may have grim plans for the studio’s future.
After multiple failures in this generation, Gears of War: E-Day has become one of those ‘do or die’ moments for Xbox. The brand even cancelled the game’s PS5 port to satisfy fans of the IP, which has made it even tougher for it to break even on the platform alone.
However, Xbox has now laid off GOW: E-Day’s story director, Juan Vaca, just a week ahead of its anticipated early access launch. This sudden cut came as part of Xbox’s recent restructuring, which saw 268 jobs being eliminated.
Why it matters: This bitter industry development has certainly soured the mounting excitement for Gears of War: E-Day, with many fans of the series and fellow developers questioning why Xbox would eliminate such a talented and essential role at this crucial time for the game.
Juan Vaca confirmed this grim development over on LinkedIn, adding that he’s a part of this round of 600 Microsoft layoffs. He’s already seeking new narrative director-adjacent job opportunities in games, film, and TV media.
He had worked with the studio for four years and three months.
This announcement hits especially hard because Juan Vaca was only celebrating Gears of War: E-Day’s going gold earlier this week. He’s seen a bombardment of support from fellow developers and gamers online.
Fans are quite upset because Xbox cutting key talent from The Coalition will also greatly affect its future Gears of War projects moving forward. Xbox may not have major plans for the studio; we might not see another mainline GOW title for a while.
For those not in the know, the latest job cuts also included studio reorganization. Activision is now responsible for World’s Edge and Rare, while Bethesda now includes Obsidian under its umbrella. Meanwhile, Playground and Turn10 have been merged together.
Do you think Xbox firing Gears of War: E-Day’s narrative director after the game went gold is a scummy move? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, or join the discussion on the Tech4Gamers forum.
Thank you! Please share your positive feedback. 🔋
How could we improve this post? Please Help us. 😔
Shameer Sarfaraz has previously worked for eXputer as a Senior News Writer for several years. Now with Tech4Gamers, he loves to devoutly keep up with the latest gaming and entertainment industries. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.
Join Our Community
