In a recent interview, id Software Lead Services Programmer Chris Hays discussed the recent Xbox layoffs and how they affected the veteran Doom studio. At one point during the interview, Hays calls this recent round of id Software layoffs “inhumane,” and confesses that morale at the Xbox-owned studio has never been lower than the day the layoffs first hit.
According to their LinkedIn profile, Chris Hays has worked at id Software for over 16 years now, having joined the company in August 2010 as an Associate Programmer. Hays’ first project at id Software was 2011’s Rage, the post-apocalyptic first-person shooter that received a generally positive reception from critics but has since been somewhat overshadowed by the likes of Borderlands. Over the last 16 years, Chris Hays has gradually progressed through the ranks at id Software, becoming Lead Services Programmer in May 2021.
id Software’s Chris Hays Says Morale at the Studio Has ‘Never Been Lower’ Due to Layoffs
In a recent episode of Auf ein Bier’s Well Played podcast, id Software’s Chris Hays was interviewed. The recent Xbox layoffs were the focal point of this interview, and the discussion begins with Hays stating that id Software had been preparing for layoffs for the best part of two years. According to Hays, the closure of Tango Gameworks was the “first indication to us that doing something good, meeting all the metrics you’re told, getting critical acclaim didn’t mean you were safe.” Shortly following Tango’s closure, id Software unionized and started preparing itself for layoffs.
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Chris Hays goes on to describe the day that id Software was hit by Microsoft’s company-wide layoffs. Hays claims that the studio had just suffered “worse than usual crunch” to get Doom: The Dark Ages‘ DLC out the door, and that the team were looking forward to a “breather.” However, layoffs hit the studio the day before the Doom DLC’s launch, causing “the hardest day” Hays has ever experienced. The lead programmer then calls the recent id Software layoffs “inhumane,” “demoralizing,” and says that “morale has never been lower.” According to Hays, there are still personal items in the id Software office that those laid off have been unable to claim.
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Those who kept their jobs at id Software reportedly received no official announcement from higher-ups on who was actually let go from the studio. Instead, Hays says that those left had to reach out personally to those affected to try and determine the scale of cuts for themselves. After this “mad dash” to contact those laid off had finished, those left at the studio realized at least 50% of the id Software team had been let go.
At the time of the podcast’s release on July 31, Chris Hays says that the future of id Software is still unclear. While higher-ups have stated that a major reorganization is happening, the “vision of what that is is still not clear.” What is clear in Hays’ mind, however, is that id Software is no longer the studio it once was. Hays says “we’re half the same id… what made us special was the people and the relationships we have, not the IP.”
- Released
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May 15, 2025
- ESRB
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M For Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Publisher(s)
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Bethesda Softworks