Romero Games has halted its upcoming first-person shooter project following the withdrawal of funding by its publisher

Romero Games has announced that they are halting development on their new first-person shooter project. This decision comes after their publisher decided to stop providing financial support for the game.

Brenda Romero, the studio's director, addressed the situation on social media, clarifying that this was a "strategic decision made at a high level within the publisher," which was beyond the studio's influence or awareness.

She explained, "We were informed last night that our publisher has decided to stop funding our game, along with several unannounced projects from different studios. We genuinely wish there was something we could have done to avoid this result."

Romero emphasized that this decision does not reflect the effort, performance, or quality of their team and project. "Our team consistently met deadlines, received positive feedback, and surpassed all internal benchmarks. We are immensely proud of the work and the outstanding team involved," she added.

Consequently, several employees have been laid off from the company. "We're actively considering our next steps and focusing on supporting our team," Romero stated. "Many in our team have collaborated for over ten years, some for even longer. This is a very tough time, and we are deeply saddened by these events. If you have any job opportunities or means to support our remarkable team, please get in touch. We are grateful to those who have offered support and encouragement during this challenging time."

A former team member mentioned that the project cancellation and resulting layoffs might be linked to the recent Microsoft staff reductions announced yesterday.

These layoffs impacted around 9,000 employees, as reported by CNBC. Xbox's closure of The Initiative, along with the cancellation of projects like Perfect Dark, Everwild, and Zenimax Online Studios' MMO codename Blackbird, were part of the fallouts.

Almost 50% of Turn 10 employees, the developer behind Forza Motorsports, faced layoffs, along with staff at Raven Software, known for their work on Call of Duty.

GamesIndustry.biz will continue to provide updates on the developments concerning Xbox layoffs as more details about affected studios or parts of the division emerge.