Microsoft’s latest round of Xbox layoffs has reportedly affected employees at Call of Duty developers Treyarch and Raven Software. CharlieIntel says multiple staff posts indicate both studios were hit by the cuts announced on September 22, while separate reporting from Insider Gaming also identifies Treyarch among the affected teams. Microsoft has confirmed 268 job eliminations across its gaming organization but has not published a complete list of every studio involved.
The cuts are part of the wider Xbox restructuring Microsoft announced through a staff memo from Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty. The company said positions are being eliminated across Halo Studios, other first-party developers and Xbox Game Studios management and central functions. Microsoft added that the actions completed since July now put it roughly three-quarters of the way through its previously announced restructuring plan.
Treyarch’s involvement is supported by reporting that collected employee disclosures alongside information from industry sources. The studio remains one of Activision’s principal Call of Duty developers and has worked closely with Raven Software across recent Black Ops projects. Neither Microsoft nor Activision has disclosed how many Treyarch employees were affected or which departments saw reductions.
Raven Software has also reportedly been impacted, according to CharlieIntel, which cited multiple employee posts. Raven has long been part of Activision’s Call of Duty development network and has contributed heavily to both premium releases and Warzone. The studio has also worked alongside Treyarch on recent Black Ops titles, including projects marketed jointly by Activision.
The reported Call of Duty cuts broaden the scope of a restructuring already known to affect several other Xbox teams. Microsoft explicitly confirmed reductions at Halo Studios, while additional reports have identified employees at The Coalition and World’s Edge among those losing their jobs. The broader round follows earlier reports that Microsoft was preparing hundreds more Xbox layoffs and studio consolidation.
At the same time, Activision is taking on a larger role within Microsoft’s gaming organization. Microsoft has confirmed that Activision will oversee World’s Edge and Rare and will develop the next Halo game through a new purpose-built team that is separate from its ongoing Call of Duty plans. That restructuring makes the reported Treyarch and Raven reductions notable because they are occurring while Activision’s overall responsibilities inside Xbox are expanding.
Microsoft has not indicated that the Call of Duty development schedule is changing as a result of the cuts. The franchise continues to operate across a large network of studios that includes Treyarch, Raven Software, Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games, Beenox and others. Recent Call of Duty releases have increasingly relied on collaboration between multiple teams, making it difficult to assess the production impact without knowing the scale or disciplines involved in the layoffs.
The two studios also remain closely associated with Microsoft’s subscription strategy. Modern Call of Duty titles are now broadly represented on Xbox Game Pass, while Black Ops releases remain among the highest-profile games tied to Microsoft’s ownership of Activision. Black Ops 6 is also scheduled to join Xbox Game Pass Premium on September 25, only days after the latest job cuts.
Microsoft’s official announcement does not break the 268 eliminated roles down by studio, so the exact number of positions lost at Treyarch and Raven Software remains unknown. The available evidence currently comes from employee disclosures and specialist reporting rather than a studio-specific statement from Activision. That means the impact on individual teams and projects is still emerging.
For now, the confirmed picture is that Microsoft is cutting 268 Xbox roles as part of a larger restructuring, while reports indicate those reductions extend into Call of Duty development through Treyarch and Raven Software. Further details may surface as additional affected employees publicly identify themselves or Microsoft provides a more complete breakdown.
