Vermont Senator and Democratic Socialist Bernie Sanders, who identifies as a Democrat, recently weighed in on Microsoft Xbox layoffs, pointing to company profits, executive compensation and Xbox hardware price increases in response to the cuts. It's unclear whether Sanders fully considers the broader factors affecting the gaming industry, such as rising hardware costs due to the RAM crisis, but the scale of Xbox's restructuring has now drawn attention far beyond the gaming community.
Xbox layoffs quickly became one of the biggest and saddest gaming stories of the year. Microsoft has confirmed plans to cut around 3,200 jobs associated with its gaming business during the current fiscal year, with around 1,600 employees affected as of July 6 and another 1,600 jobs expected to be cut in the coming months. The restructuring also reshaped Xbox's first-party portfolio with Double Fine (Brutal legend, oven) and forced games (We Happy Few, South of Midnight) is leaving Xbox to become an independent studio, Ninja Theory (Senua) and Undead Labs (State of decomposition 3) transition to another publisher, and Arkane is reportedly exploring strategic options with the support of the French government. Even gaming giants like Bethesda (Fallout, Elder Scrolls) were hit with layoffs, showing how widespread the layoffs are.
Microsoft is working with the French government on the future of Arkane
Microsoft is officially parting ways with Arkane, but the studio is working with the French government to keep the door open.
Sanders addressed the layoffs in a social media post, arguing that Microsoft's financial performance made it difficult to justify the layoffs. He wrote: “Last year, Microsoft made $101 billion in profits, took in $12.5 billion in taxes and paid its CEO $96 million. This year, it's raising the price of the Xbox by $150 and cutting 3,200 jobs.”
GameRant Quiz
Start
Part of Sanders' criticism was related to Microsoft's recently announced price hikes for Xbox hardware. Starting August 1, the company is raising the price of the 512GB Xbox Series X/S models by $100, while the 1TB models will increase by $150. Microsoft is also discontinuing the 2TB configuration of the Xbox Series X/S after the current inventory is sold. The price hike follows months of broader pricing pressures affecting the gaming industry, with companies across hardware continuing to report higher component and memory costs.
Sanders ended his post by writing, “Please don't tell me that corporate tax cuts create jobs. It will never go down.” The statement reflects his long-standing criticism of trickle-down economic policies and his belief that corporate tax cuts do not necessarily translate into labor force growth. Regardless of where people fall politically, Sanders' comments underscore just how visible Microsoft's Xbox restructuring has become.
