Report: The layoffs at Xbox's DOOM studio id Software are even worse than we thought — devs at Bethesda's Austin office have been hit ⁠69%

By Brendan Lowry⁠71%

7/8/2026, 1:38:17 PM

BS Summary: This article contains 20 faulty reasoning types, including Unattributed Quote, Appeal to Emotion, and Loss Aversion, with Negativity Bias as the most egregious example at 47.6% saturation with 263 hits. Analysis detected 1,201 faulty-reasoning hits from 553 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 61.7% and a BS Rank of ⁠69% (6,976 of 21,887 articles). This article is worse (more manipulative) than 68.10% of the article peer group.

Earlier this week, Microsoft initiated a large wave of 4,800 layoffs that hit the firm's Xbox and gaming divisions particularly hard, with four studio divestitures and 3,200 cuts — 1,600 immediate, and 1,600 more coming in the next 12 months — striking in what's been called a "reset" for the Xbox business . 
Though the redundancies have affected teams across all of Xbox, they've impacted certain game studios such as ZeniMax and Bethesda and Obsidian Entertainment quite disproportionately. 
Another developer that's experienced a severe reduction in force is id Software, the team that creates and oversees the modern DOOM games. 
Initially, it was reported that half of the entire studio was laid off as part of Microsoft and Xbox's restructuring — a major and devastating loss of talent that shocked the community and upset developers at id , given the popularity of its games and the potential of the always-evolving id Tech game engine. 
According to a new report, however, the total number of layoffs at the Texas-based developer is even larger. 
At first, it was believed that 96 roles were removed at id. 
Now, though, Game Developer writes that a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notifications (WARN) notice — obtained by the outlet from the Texas Workforce Commission upon request — has revealed that 40 remote workers at the studio have been let go as well. 
Microsoft's mass Xbox layoffs hit id Software just one day before the release of its new Revelations DLC for DOOM: The Dark Ages. 
(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios) 
That brings the total number of id Software cuts up to 136, meaning that the studio's workforce has been hit significantly harder than early reports indicated. 
Notably, the WARN document also confirmed that 22 staffers have been affected at Bethesda Game Studios' office in Austin, Texas, with 158 Texas employees laid off across both teams. 
146 of these workers are reportedly represented by the Communication Workers of America labor union; Bethesda Game Studios has its own union, too, and it's been very vocal about its frustration with this week's redundancies . 
With how concerning the news of the loss of half of id was, hearing that an additional 40 workers were laid off on top of that is extremely worrying. 
I can't help but be fearful about the studio's future, and that it no longer has a headcount sufficient for the efficient development of new DOOM games and other projects moving forward. 
The painful irony of the situation is that these cuts have come at the same time id released its new Revelations DLC for its latest game, 2025's DOOM: The Dark Ages . 
So far, the new expansion has garnered strong reviews, and I'm glad to see it...but it's also heartbreaking to see that many of the creative minds responsible for it, The Dark Ages, and other modern DOOM titles are now gone. 
Do you believe that Microsoft and Xbox went too far with the cuts made to id Software? 
Voice your feelings on the matter in the comments, and vote in our poll as well. 
Join us on Reddit at r/WindowsCentral to share your insights and discuss our latest news, reviews, and more. 
Article reasoning-pattern comparisonThis article: 3.3%Brendan Lowry: 4.0%Windows Central: 4.2%Confirmation Bias3.3%This article: 6.9%Brendan Lowry: 0.9%Windows Central: 1.0%Anchoring Bias6.9%This article: 7.6%Brendan Lowry: 6.7%Windows Central: 4.6%Availability Heuristic7.6%This article: 4.5%Brendan Lowry: 1.4%Windows Central: 1.1%Representativeness Heuristic4.5%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.5%Windows Central: 0.8%Hindsight Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 2.3%Windows Central: 2.9%Overconfidence Bias0.0%This article: 10.7%Brendan Lowry: 4.0%Windows Central: 5.0%Framing Effect10.7%This article: 20.8%Brendan Lowry: 2.0%Windows Central: 1.3%Loss Aversion20.8%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.1%Windows Central: 0.9%Status Quo Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.3%Sunk Cost Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 4.3%Windows Central: 8.0%Optimism Bias0.0%This article: 5.8%Brendan Lowry: 6.0%Windows Central: 3.0%Pessimism Bias5.8%This article: 47.6%Brendan Lowry: 16.3%Windows Central: 8.6%Negativity Bias47.6%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.6%Windows Central: 1.4%Self-Serving Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.9%Windows Central: 0.9%Fundamental Attribution Error0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.3%Windows Central: 0.2%Actor-Observer Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 2.0%Windows Central: 1.2%In-Group Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.2%Windows Central: 0.1%Out-Group Homogeneity Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 5.4%Windows Central: 4.1%Halo Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.1%Horn Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.0%Dunning-Kruger Effect0.0%This article: 4.2%Brendan Lowry: 3.4%Windows Central: 2.2%Recency Bias4.2%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 1.0%Windows Central: 0.5%Primacy Effect0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.1%Windows Central: 0.1%Blind-Spot Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.2%Ad Hominem0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.1%Windows Central: 0.3%Straw Man0.0%This article: 12.8%Brendan Lowry: 3.6%Windows Central: 3.7%Appeal to Authority12.8%This article: 3.1%Brendan Lowry: 1.3%Windows Central: 1.7%False Dilemma3.1%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 1.6%Windows Central: 1.0%Slippery Slope0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.1%Circular Reasoning0.0%This article: 5.8%Brendan Lowry: 6.5%Windows Central: 8.5%Hasty Generalization5.8%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.2%Red Herring0.0%This article: 2.9%Brendan Lowry: 0.9%Windows Central: 1.1%Bandwagon2.9%This article: 22.2%Brendan Lowry: 7.7%Windows Central: 3.8%Appeal to Emotion22.2%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.5%Windows Central: 0.9%Begging the Question0.0%This article: 9.9%Brendan Lowry: 2.9%Windows Central: 2.9%Post Hoc (False Cause)9.9%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.1%Tu Quoque0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.3%Windows Central: 0.5%Burden of Proof0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.2%Windows Central: 0.1%Appeal to Nature0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.2%Composition/Division0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 3.1%Windows Central: 4.0%Anecdotal0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.2%No True Scotsman0.0%This article: 7.2%Brendan Lowry: 1.4%Windows Central: 2.4%Ambiguity (Equivocation)7.2%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.0%Gambler’s Fallacy0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.2%Middle Ground0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.3%Windows Central: 0.2%Personal Incredulity0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.2%Windows Central: 0.1%Special Pleading0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.1%Genetic Fallacy0.0%This article: 26.9%Brendan Lowry: 4.8%Windows Central: 3.0%Unattributed Quote26.9%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 1.0%Windows Central: 1.1%Quote-first Misdirection0.0%This article: 5.8%Brendan Lowry: 18.5%Windows Central: 13.9%Biased Writer Voice5.8%This article: 3.1%Brendan Lowry: 1.9%Windows Central: 1.9%Indoctrination3.1%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.0%Politically Left Leaning Bias0.0%This article: 0.0%Brendan Lowry: 0.0%Windows Central: 0.0%Politically Right Leaning Bias0.0%This article: 6.1%Brendan Lowry: 3.1%Windows Central: 6.7%Attempt to Sell a Product or S…6.1%

553 words analyzed.

Speakers

2speakers8.5%attributed speech506writer words
Voice mapSelect a segment to jump to its words
Writer's voice • 24 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 53 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 25 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 22 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 54 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 18 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 12 words • 0.0% coverageGame Developer • 42 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 23 words • 0.0% coverageXbox Game Studios • 5 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 26 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 29 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 36 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 29 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 32 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 32 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 40 words • 0.0% coverageWriter's voice • 17 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 16 words • 100.0% coverageWriter's voice • 18 words • 100.0% coverage
Selected voice

Game Developer

100%flagged-word coverage
42 attributed words89% of attributed speech100% writer coverage
0%50.0%100.0%Unattributed Quote+78.9 ptsWriter: 21.1%Game Developer: 100.0%100.0%Attempt to Sell a Product -6.7 ptsWriter: 6.7%Game Developer: 0.0%0.0%Biased Writer Voice-6.3 ptsWriter: 6.3%Game Developer: 0.0%0.0%Indoctrination-3.4 ptsWriter: 3.4%Game Developer: 0.0%0.0%

Attribution is sentence-level. Pattern percentages are calculated only from words assigned to that voice.

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Analysis

Hover over highlighted words in the article to view the associated bias or fallacy analysis.