Turn 10 Studios, the Microsoft-owned developer behind Forza Motorsport, has been absorbed into Playground Games and renamed Playground Games Redmond. The restructuring comes as longtime studio head Dan Greenawalt prepares to retire from Microsoft after nearly 27 years, leaving the future of the Forza Motorsport franchise uncertain.
The details come from an October 29 report by The Verge’s Tom Warren, who obtained an internal leadership memo from Playground Games studio head Trevor Williams. The memo confirms Greenawalt’s planned retirement and outlines his transition away from the company following the merger of Microsoft’s two Forza development teams.
Greenawalt will remain temporarily as an adviser to Williams and newly appointed Playground Games chief operating officer Michel Bastien while preparing for his departure. Microsoft has not announced a specific retirement date.
Williams acknowledged Greenawalt’s contributions to Xbox racing games, highlighting his involvement in the original Project Gotham Racing in 2001, his role in establishing Turn 10 Studios, and his leadership in creating the Forza franchise.
Greenawalt helped build Turn 10 into one of Microsoft’s most recognizable first-party development teams. The studio produced eight mainline Forza Motorsport games, beginning with the original Xbox release in 2005 and continuing through the series’ 2023 reboot.
The organizational changes follow Microsoft’s September 2026 announcement that Turn 10 and Playground Games would combine into a single development organization. The Verge’s latest reporting clarifies that the combined studio now operates from two locations: Playground Games Leamington Spa in England and Playground Games Redmond in Washington.
The remaining Turn 10 employees have moved into Playground Games, where they are contributing to the Forza Horizon and Fable franchises. This represents a significant shift for a team historically associated with developing simulation-focused circuit racing games.
Turn 10 had already undergone substantial reductions before the merger. More than 70 employees were laid off in 2025, affecting much of the studio’s workforce. During the following year, its work largely focused on maintaining the existing Forza Motorsport game rather than developing a publicly announced successor.
The restructuring raises questions about whether Microsoft intends to continue the Motorsport series as a separate franchise. Playground Games is primarily associated with the open-world Forza Horizon games, while Turn 10 traditionally handled Motorsport’s more track-focused racing experience.
Microsoft has not announced another Forza Motorsport installment, but it has also not confirmed that the franchise has been cancelled. The studio merger and reassignment of remaining employees establish a change in development priorities without definitively ruling out future Motorsport releases.
Meanwhile, Playground Games continues supporting its existing projects, including Forza Horizon 6. The racing game’s confirmed January 26, 2027 PS5 release represents another major milestone for the franchise as Microsoft’s first-party games expand across additional platforms.
The changes also arrive during a broader restructuring of Microsoft’s Xbox operations. Xbox leadership has recently discussed the recovery of first-party game engagement following earlier declines, placing additional attention on the company’s established development teams and franchises.
For now, Playground Games Redmond remains part of Microsoft’s racing and RPG development organization, while Greenawalt’s retirement marks the departure of one of the key figures responsible for building Forza Motorsport over more than two decades.
