Xbox Game Studios head Craig Duncan to depart amid pending layoffs
Craig Duncan is leaving his role as head of Xbox Game Studios as Microsoft prepares another round of layoffs in its gaming division.
Microsoft's Xbox Game Studios will lose its current leader, Craig Duncan, who assumed the position in October 2024, according to an internal memo obtained by The Game Business. Duncan's portfolio, which includes studios such as Halo, The Coalition, Playground Games, Rare, Obsidian, Ninja Theory and Double Fine, will report directly to Matt Booty, Xbox's chief content officer, until a new head is named. Louise O'Connor, the studio's chief of staff since last year, is also leaving the company.
The departures follow a memo from Booty and Xbox CEO Asha Sharma to employees outlining a "reset" of the business after a revenue decline. The memo cited rising hardware component costs and competition for player attention, and warned that Xbox had become "over extended" after acquiring numerous studios over the past decade without sufficient funding to ensure their competitiveness.
Bloomberg reported that Xbox is preparing another major round of layoffs, expected to start after Microsoft’s fiscal year ends on June 30. The company previously cut about 1,900 jobs in its gaming division in early 2024 and announced a broader reduction of 9,000 positions across the firm in July 2025, many affecting Xbox, which has also canceled several games and closed a studio.
