Tango Gameworks Dev Asks “Not Enough?” Amid Studio Shutdown Despite Multiple Awards

Amid the studio’s shutdown, a Tango Gameworks developer has questioned whether its many awards were not enough for the Xbox management.

Tango Gameworks Game Project Manager Kazuaki Egashira took to Twitter/X to share pictures of the many awards it had received, wondering whether they weren’t enough to prevent the studio’s shutdown. His statement came in response to Head of Xbox Game Studios Matt Booty, who had reportedly said during a call with other executives that the company is in need of smaller games that give it prestige and awards.

There’s undoubtedly a sentiment of confusion and disappointment among the development team at Tango Gameworks, who were recognized by the industry with many awards for their talent and work. Shinji Mikami, who had recently parted ways with the studio, also expressed his sadness over its closure.The studio’s recent title, Hi-Fi Rush, was referred to as a “break out hit” by Aaron Greenberg, the Vice President of Xbox Games Marketing at Microsoft, for both the console maker and its players in all key measurements and expectations. According to him, the company couldn’t have been happier with what the team at Tango Gameworks delivered with the surprise release. Almost a year later, however, the studio was shut down alongside Arkane Austin, Alpha Dog Studios, and Roundhouse Games.

In a recent email sent out to employees, Matt Booty, head of Xbox Game Studios, had written that these studio closures are grounded in prioritizing high-impact titles and further investing in Bethesda’s portfolio of blockbuster games that players invested in over many decades. He added that, in order to double down on these franchises and invest to build new ones, the company will look across the business to identify the opportunities that are best positioned for success. According to him, the re-prioritization of titles and resources means a few teams will be realigned to others and that some will part ways with the company.