Five promising games cancelled by Microsoft

Microsoft's recent round of layoffs and studio closures, part of CEO Asha Sharma's so‑called "Xbox reset," has ended a number of high-profile projects that began under former Xbox chief Phil Spencer. The decade-long cost-cutting campaign has meant more cancelled games, even as the company remains profitable and pushes console exclusives while accelerating work on heavy hitters like The Elder Scrolls 6.

Blizzard's survival title codenamed Odyssey was in development for years and drew excitement from internal staff, but it was cancelled in 2024 after Microsoft completed the Activision Blizzard acquisition. Bloomberg reported the project had started in Unreal Engine and struggled when it was moved to an internal engine originally built for mobile, and it was not close to release when it was shelved.

Rare's Everwild, a long‑gestating, apparently gentle take on interacting with creatures, was rebooted once before being cut in 2025 during a mass layoff wave.

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