Following Xbox's massive layoffs in July, reports emerged claiming id Software had been severely weakened. According to Hugo Martin, creative director of Doom: The Dark Ages, the situation is not as dire as speculated. During a livestream on Bethesda's official channel, Martin stated that rumors claiming the studio was "nerfed into the ground" and reduced to just 50 people do not reflect reality.
Martin explained that id Software's current team size matches what the studio had when it released Doom in 2016, approximately 200 developers. The director also emphasized that id Tech, the studio's proprietary engine, remains "very much alive and well," contradicting speculation that the technology would be abandoned or replaced.
Alarming reports came from multiple sources: an id Software VFX artist discussed Xbox "nuking a team into the dirt," while a WARN filing from Texas suggested that 136 of the studio's 185 employees had been let go. Martin responded that these narratives do not accurately represent the studio's current state.
The developer continues working on Doom: The Dark Ages and remains focused on developing technology for the next generation of its projects. Martin closed by stating that "what matters the most is that the games are good," signaling optimism for the future.
