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Xbox lets studio heads make coronavirus working calls

Xbox lets studio heads make coronavirus working calls

The games arm of Microsoft Xbox has said that it is supporting its studios in the decisions they are making over the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement, the head of Xbox Games Studios Matt Booty (pictured) said that developers were facing unique challenges as more and more outfits move to working from home. This is part of the strategy for slowing the spread of coronavirus.

The exec said that because each studio is facing its own problems, the bosses are being allowed to make their own calls for what works best for them.

"We know that gaming connects people during times of social distancing, and we are committed to delivering the highest quality Xbox Game Studios games for our global community of players," Booty wrote.

"At the same time, the health and safety of our Xbox Game Studios development teams is our top priority. Each studio is facing unique challenges and constraints depending on its particular location, and many of our external development partners around the world are similarly affected. We are supporting our studio leaders to make the right decisions for their teams and their individual games during this challenging time.”

Xbox first-party studio 343 Industries has already said that it had moved to working from home, joining many companies doing the same. The firm has said that that staff were doing their best to make sure Halo Infinite comes out in time.


PCGamesInsider Contributing Editor

Alex Calvin is a freelance journalist who writes about the business of games. He started out at UK trade paper MCV in 2013 and left as deputy editor over three years later. In June 2017, he joined Steel Media as the editor for new site PCGamesInsider.biz. In October 2019 he left this full-time position at the company but still contributes to the site on a daily basis. He has also written for GamesIndustry.biz, VGC, Games London, The Observer/Guardian and Esquire UK.