Undead Labs boss “reluctant to share” number affected by layoffs: “I would hate to reduce the impact to those individuals to a number or statistic”
Undead Labs has transitioned to an employee-owned studio following ongoing restructuring at Xbox. The move resulted in layoffs affecting the developer, though studio head Philip Holt has been reluctant to disclose the specific number of employees impacted by the transition.
“It was a total heartbreak to have to part ways,” Holt told The Game Business when discussing the departures. Explaining his decision not to share exact figures, he stated: “I would hate to reduce the impact to those individuals to a number or statistic.”
Despite the difficult circumstances surrounding the studio’s independence, Holt defended his approach to communicating with staff during the transition. He acknowledged that he was “irresponsibly transparent” with employees, but explained that he intentionally chose to keep them informed throughout the process. Rather than “keeping them in the dark and manufacture some alternate reality,” Holt said he preferred to bring employees alongside the transition, allowing them to understand what was happening.
The restructuring represents Undead Labs’ move to independence from Microsoft’s Xbox division, following broader shake-ups across Xbox Game Studios. While the exact scale of the layoffs remains undisclosed, Holt’s comments underscore the human cost of the studio’s transition to employee ownership.