“Studios in the Bethesda organization like id Software (Doom) and ZeniMax Online Studios (Elder Scrolls Online) are not shutting down but are cutting a significant number of staff this morning, per sources.”
Studios in the Bethesda organization like id Software (Doom) and ZeniMax Online Studios (Elder Scrolls Online) are not shutting down but are
Microsoft also cutting thousands of jobs in Sales and XBOX divisions
"I just saw a post on Bluesky from an ESO dev claiming half the team was laid off and now the team is so small they're questioning what they could possibly do moving forward."
And for those wondering about the actual core Bethesda dev team and Elder Scrolls/Fallout, the new head of XBOX said they want to speed up the turn around on those series.
So no cuts to Bethesda (the devs) yet but if TES VI or Fallout 5 are bad/flop, then maybe in the future they will be forced to downsize. I know Bethesda expanded massively over the last decade into multiple studios. Thats actually been cited by former devs as part of the reason development has ironically slowed down since its a massive headache to coordinate multiple full studios whereas before it was just one
To clarify, the last number i saw for the count of people being laid off (in total across Microsoft) was ~4,800. AFAIK this is likely the largest mass layoff in gaming history
I dont know for sure how many of those ~4,800 layoffs were specifically in game development,but I do know Sales/promotion of alot of game releases have been cut back alot.
I'd imagine many of the "Sales" positions being eliminated could be related to their gaming division but thats just my speculation
A number (around 30) of Bethesda employees were let go in the recent layoffs. One thing i noticed is many of them seemed to be team leads their area/department.
This would likely signal that Microsoft wants to get rid of a number of "single team leads" and instead switch to a system where multiple teams report to a single person.
This aligns with similar "layoff strategies" at other tech companies which specifically try to eliminate middle management type positions.
These layoffs and restructurings are designed to consolidate teams into a more funneled reporting structure wherein a large number of people report to a single person.
What these restructurings often do is cause that "single lead" (who multiple teams now report to) to struggle as a lead. This is because hey may be an expert in *one* topic/leadership area but aren't an expert in *all* the areas they are now a lead for. Excessive middle management is far from ideal but trying to get rid of it almost entirely wont work either.
Lets just make a hypothetical here and say you are a tenured dev with extensive knowledge of melee combat battle systems. Suddenly you are "promoted" to also lead for teams which do shooter and magic based combat systems.
Could you learn those other systems to function as a somewhat competent lead for those other teams? Sure. Will that be easy or efficient? No. Will teams under your original area of expertise potentially suffer since you have to now also focus on different unrelated teams? Yes.
I won't pretend like the old system of "have a bunch of small teams with single leads" is perfect, efficient, or even financially reasonable in a broad sense. I also wont pretend that the new system one is 100% impossible to make work.
*But* these sorts of restructurings rarely work out well. These changed are usually rushed and the people (who don't get laid off) have mere months, weeks, or even *days* to prepare for their new added responsibilities. This sort of restructuring would have to be slooowly rolled out by specifically training one person to handle multiple lead roles. This would take time, even years, to properly and specifically prepare for.
Instead it unfortunately seems likely that these leads will be dumped into new managerial responsibilities they have *not* been sufficiently prepared for. It is exceedingly likely that all these teams and employees will suffer as a result.
Thanks for clarifying where you stand. So you're an anti-Semite and a hater. Shame, such a nice blog.
I am not an anti-semite. clarifying i am not for the terrorist state of Israel NOR the terrorist state of the United States does not make me an anti-semite???
Israel is literally committing a genocide and the usa is helping.
I have absolutely NO problem with jewish people.
Being against Israel's actions does not equivate to being antisemtic.
So for the record because I've seen sooooo many phm posts going around using slurs. Yes, people in the intersex community are aware that hermaphrodite is used in biological contexts to mean "animal that produces both male and female gametes." Yes, it's still a slur in that context, and was adopted in biological circles from its usage as a slur. The word has been used as a slur against intersex people since at least the 14th century. It came into use in biological contexts in the 18th century. This is a word that spent 400 years being used as a slur before it was used to mean an animal that produces two types of gametes.
Yes, Eridians only have one sex. I obviously don't speak for the entire intersex community, but the terms that intersex advocates suggest using alternatively are "cosexual" or "monoecious." Both of these terms describe organisms with male and female reproductive organs, or which produce both male and female gametes. If you're in the camp where you think Eridians only produce one type of gamete, an appropriate term would be "isogamistic."
We don't use the r-slur to refer to people with intellectual disabilities, despite the fact this was the commonly accepted medical term for many, many years. It was used in medical contexts. It was used in American federal law until 2009. The language has changed. Please be kind to your fellow fandom members and use a term to refer to Eridians that does not have a history as an intersexist slur.
Hey I love the way you write Maul and I was wondering if you could do headcanons of him with a neurodivergent reader? Like ADHD or AuDHD ? If not that's okay!!! Mostly just wanted to say love your writing 🫶
Maul x Neurodivergent Reader headcanons
Star Wars Masterlist
A/N: First of all, thank you so much 😭🫶 And sorry it took me so long to get around to this 💀 Anyway, I did some for autism, ADHD, and both. Also sprinkled some misophonia and OCD. And ARFID, though that one's subtle and could be interpreted as autism.
Warnings: Maul being Maul, tiny mention of murder and torture, mention of mind reading, obviously neurodivergence stuff, ARFID is an eating disorder, so keep that in mind, ‼️personal opinions‼️
Word count: 1432
❗️DISCLAIMER: This is based on my own experiences with neurodivergence (hence why I included only those forms that I myself have) and the experiences of my friends. Everyone's experiences are different, and that's okay. Those are just my personal headcanons.
Reblogs are very appreciated, since they help my posts reach more people and motivate me to continue writing 🫶
𖹭 If you mask, he can immediately tell upon meeting you that something is off. But probably interprets it as lying and having bad intentions
𖹭 A little frustrated with your ability to recognize patterns and notice when he's manipulating someone (especially you). Manipulation is his default, especially at the early stages of the relationship, so it would throw him off and unnerve him a lot if it were almost impossible
𖹭 If you're touch-averse, he's actually really glad at the beginning, cause he's traumatized as hell and touch is something that takes him a lot of time to get used to. So he would be content not to have you pressure him.
𖹭 If you stim, especially if you make any noise while doing so, in time it starts to calm him by extension as well. He starts to register it as a sort of white noise, the sound of you, and you mean safety and comfort
𖹭 Will immediately know if you're masking around him
𖹭 He learns all your triggers and memorizes all the things that help. The moment he notices you start getting overstimulated, everything else ceases to matter
𖹭 Also, in case you have misophonia, he's surprisingly accommodating and doesn't really take it personally if something he does triggers you. I actually headcanon he has a bit of misophonia, so...
𖹭 Though he's a little thrown off at the beginning, when you first blow up at him for some noise he didn't even make consciously
𖹭 Also super protective, but that's whether you're neurodivergent or not
𖹭 Oh, this person is triggering you? Let me just kill them. Or would you prefer to do that personally? Perhaps throwing in a little torture while we're at it?
𖹭 Let's be honest, Maul is a little socially awkward. He's a great manipulator, sure, but he's not really great at honest social interactions. So he's a little lost, especially at the beginning of the relationship, and that means you're definitely not alone in this. And he wants to get to know you for you, not for who you pretend to be to adhere to some crazy social norms. Don't even bring it up around him, or he'll get into yet another monologue about how people are boring and worthless lol
𖹭 Feels your emotions through the Force, so any lack of outward reactions doesn't bother him in the least
𖹭 Is surprisingly gentle and careful with your comfort objects
𖹭 ALWAYS has at least two of your safe foods close by
𖹭 Not bothered at all if you're picky with food, refuse to try new things, etc. He might find it a bit irrational, though; this guy probably ate way worse on Lotho Minor
𖹭 Very respectful of your space, and totally understands the need for some alone time. He needs it too, no matter how much he's in love or comfortable with someone, so he doesn't take it personally. He probably has a special room just for you where you can go and where no one else — even him — has access to without your explicit permission. Probably has a space like that too. So respect his space, and he'll respect yours
𖹭 If he becomes your comfort person and realizes it — or if you tell him — he'll be extremely touched, though he probably won't say it
𖹭 Really likes listening to you ramble about your hyperfixations. And he genuinely listens to you. He learns about your interests. He actively participates. And if you're into something that he's into, he's internally giddy with joy (not that he'll openly say it)
𖹭 He struggles a bit with open communication, especially at the very beginning, which might lead to some rather unpleasant situations if you can't read social cues
𖹭 Picks up on things you don't, like people being passive-aggressive or mocking, and will spare no one
𖹭 He's really good at picking up your moods. He practically reads you like an open book
𖹭 Which comes in really handy if you ever go non-verbal
𖹭 He might scoff at the general idea of therapy and psychiatry, but it's different when it's you. He'll get you the best doctors, and they'll be perfect, or so Force help him-
𖹭 He's generally very quiet — unless he's monologuing — and practically never raises his voice, which is great for your ears, really. Especially since he talks especially low when you two are alone. And his low voice is so kriffing sexy-
𖹭 He can be really helpful if you have autistic inertia or if you have ADHD, cause he'll help you start and finish tasks
𖹭 If you can't take care of yourself for a while for whatever reason, he's actually really understanding. Will help if you let him. But isn't bothered if you won't. This man lived on Lotho Minor for years, it won't kill him if you don't shower for a few days lol (might even prefer it if you smell more naturally and not like chemicals hehe)
𖹭 Doesn't infantilize you and genuinely respects you, even after seeing you at your worst. Believes that pain makes you stronger, and he respects the strength it takes to go on through all your hardships
𖹭 If you have body dysmorphia or struggle with feeling like a person, he can actually relate a lot and understands on a very deep level, even if your experiences aren't quite the same
𖹭 Keeps track of all your plans — both shared and individual — so he won't ever let you miss something or forget to do something or whatever
𖹭 If he's teaching you anything, he might get a little frustrated if you struggle with memorizing stuff. He gets through that eventually, and he finds alternate ways to teach you that aren't as hard on you, but he is definitely a bit rude at the beginning
𖹭 Obviously, as a (former) Sith, he won't give you the Jedi bullshit of balance and peace and emotional stability, so he actually appreciates it if your emotions aren't controlled
𖹭 Helps you plan out things and prioritize — he's great at it, considering he's a leader of a whole collective
𖹭 Very attentive and tidy, so he cleans up after you constantly if you don't. And never lets you lose stuff
𖹭 You won't have to wait your turn for anything, not on his kriffing watch
𖹭 He's surprisingly steadying if you're impulsive. Doesn't let you make dumb decisions
𖹭 He might get a little frustrated if you interrupt him a lot
𖹭 Makes sure your work (if you work for/with him) consists mostly of your special interests
𖹭 Dumps your work onto other people if you aren't feeling up to it on certain days
𖹭 Might also get a little frustrated if you have executive dysfunction or autistic burnout or whatever and struggle to do stuff like training with him
𖹭 This man has done some really fucked up things. He would absolutely not judge you for any intrusive thoughts
𖹭 Also, if you worry about somehow hurting other people and you mention to him that you fear hurting him, he'll be fully amused. You think you'd be able to harm him? That's cute
𖹭 Pays attention to detail, so any "fuck did I turn off the oven?" thoughts will be shut down immediately. You might not be sure whether you did it, but he knows
𖹭 Might look at you a bit weird if you do something a specific number of times or clean stuff overly, but he probably won't comment on it. Force knows he did weirder stuff, and he's smart enough to figure it out at least partially, even if he won't entirely understand
𖹭 He knows better than anyone that the brain isn't always on the same page with its owner, so he doesn't even pay attention to any intrusive thoughts you might have, even if he reads your mind. He might raise an eyebrow or something at the beginning, more curious than put off, but when you explain it to him, he'll stop paying attention to it whatsoever. And not just in the performative way of saying he doesn't mind while it gnaws on him. He genuinely couldn't care less; he filters it as background noise
A friend requested some references of Davrin's scars for their art and I decided I might as well post them publicly :)
More various close-ups under the cut!
(the last three are colour-corrected for better scar visibility to account for the inventory lighting getting very dark on the bottom parts of the model)
I dunno who I am but I do like cheese @iamthelordofcheese - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
