The Forza Motorsport franchise is reportedly on ice due to Xbox's recent layoffs.
Microsoft just laid off hundreds of Xbox employees as part of a company-wide restructuring plan. Xbox CEO Phil Spencer says that the cuts were made as a result of Microsoft's new focus on "removing layers of management to increase agility and effectiveness," and that entire parts of the Xbox business will wind down or stop completely.
The layoffs have resulted in cancellations of multiple projects and the shuttering of California-based Xbox studio The Initiative. Reports also indicated that around 50% of Turn 10's employees had been laid off--Turn 10 is a UK studio responsible for the popular Forza racing series. Now it has surfaced that these layoffs at Turn 10 have effectively canceled the Forza Motorsport franchise. It's worth noting that bit of information has not been confirmed by Microsoft, however Xbox Game Studios boss Matt Booty did say in a memo that the team decided to "wind down several unannounced projects across our portfolio," and that the steps represent a "broader effort to adjust priorities and focus resources to set up our teams for greater success within a changing industry landscape."
The news comes by way of Fred Russell, a former content coordinator at Turn 10 who was affected by the layoffs. Russell says that Forza Motorsport is effectively done, but Forza Horizon will continue.
"Turn 10 Studios has shuttered the Forza Motorsport space and the team is no more. A very sad day for one of the best car racing video games. I loved my time there," Russell said on Facebook.
"The legacy will stay, even if there is no future for the game."
When asked what will happen to the Horizon franchise, Russell responded:
"Forza Horizon will continue at this point. Horizon is going to continue...for now."
Forza Motorsport has been a high-quality Xbox exclusive for generations, but it's possible that the marquee racing game hasn't grown in proportion to Microsoft's expectations. It's also potentially telling that Microsoft chose to bring Forza Horizon 5 to the PlayStation 5 and not the mainline Forza Motorsport series.
