Tango Gameworks employee shares pictures from the Xbox studio’s final day
The Evil Within, Ghostwire: Tokyo and Hi-Fi Rush studio has closed its doors
Tango Gameworks has officially closed its doors, meaning ZeniMax Asia is no more.
In an X thread on Friday, developer Takeo Kido shared a series of pictures of the Japanese studio on what he said was its last day,
They included pictures of the lobby and reception, boxed up office equipment, and pizzas the employees presumably ate as a last meal together.
Tokyo-based Tango was founded in 2010 by Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami, and acquired later that year by Bethesda parent company ZeniMax Media.
It joined Xbox Game Studios in 2021 when Microsoft acquired ZeniMax for $7.5 billion.
ピザじゃぁーー 食え食えーーー pic.twitter.com/OjyA79BX9v
— Takeo Kido (@KidTak) June 14, 2024
Tango developed The Evil Within, The Evil Within 2, Ghostwire: Tokyo, Hero Dice, and last year’s critical darling Hi-Fi Rush, which would be its one and only new release to be published by Microsoft.
Xbox announced in April that it was shutting down four Bethesda studios – Tango, Redfall maker Arkane Austin, Mighty Doom developer Alpha Dog and support studio Roundhouse Games.
さらば！ pic.twitter.com/hVkw1RqO4B
— Takeo Kido (@KidTak) June 14, 2024
Following Sunday’s Xbox Games Showcase, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer spoke publicly about the decision to close the Bethesda studios.
“I haven’t been talking publicly about this because right now is a time for us to focus on the team and the individuals,” he told IGN.
“It’s obviously a decision that’s very hard on them, and I want to make sure through severance and other things that we’re doing the right thing for the individuals on the team. It’s not about my PR, it’s not about Xbox PR, it’s about those teams.”
Further reading
Tango says physical version of Hi-Fi Rush still coming, final patch releasing today
Spencer went on to say that while he personally didn’t like making the decision to close Tango, his job was ultimately to keep Xbox profitable.
“I’ve said over and over, I have to run a sustainable business inside the company, and grow,” he explained. “And that means sometimes I have to make hard decisions that, frankly, are not decisions I love, but decisions that somebody needs to go make.”
