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Where did you see that any of the layoffs have anything to do with Gaming? I've seen no such indication. The announcements I have seen are pretty generic All the major tech companies are laying off. Part of the problem was that Exec management were spending like druken sailors and hiring anything with a pulse. The pay packages people were getting to jump ship were simply insane. Engineers where getting $340K to switch jobs at Apple, amazon, google, intel, Facebook, MS, Netflix. The packages were much better than employees that were there so that cause those people to jump ship too. g So now things have slowed down and they realize of shit our costs are way to high. We need to get them under control. The numbers are quite high but the majority of companies are in the 5% range. It always the employees who suffer but I have been in tech long enough to know that this is something you have to plan for as it happens all the time. I've been laid off 3 times over my career. Intel being one of them and they hired me back 8 years later. Shit happens in this industry the worse part is all the H1B visas in the USA. Those people now have 60 days to find another job or they have to go back to their countries. Some have been in the country 15 years and are raising families there but those are the conditions for those visas. Given the current situation most probably cannot be hired in time.

I feel like you guys have misread whats going on, everything suggests this has very little to do with xbox. A lot of those job losses are due to rapid expansion during the pandemic, a few of the tech companies did the same and they all benefitted from the pandemic. Now things have returned to normal and costs going up there is less of a need for a lot of those employed at the time. Imagine how many new windows laptops were bought so workers could work from home, servers upgraded or companies moving everything to the cloud during the pandemic. In fact the xbox is the only major console to have increased its sales on the year before last year i.e 2022 sales higher than 2021 and in October just gone Phil Spencer did state that game pass was profitable (he did not say by how much though).

Wow I'm really jealous! 🤤 https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMYeHPmQJ/

I'm not quite sure who is responsible for the decisions or how they've come about but I do think they've got an element of gaming in them as you don't just relieve tons of developers on games that are being actively supported and have a good multi-year longevity to them. Halo Infinite, to use the example that has been impacted by redundancies, is likely not to have the same live service roadmap that something like Fortnite or Destiny has - and I can only imagine that is because the top dogs somewhere along the line have seen the projections and how its performing and think they have to go in a different direction. I follow a lot of developers on Twitter and you can see that its nice that at least the competition has been offering people to come and apply in the hope that these guys and girls won't be out of a job for long.

I'm not saying its all to do with Xbox - it's Microsoft as a whole but this has impacted the Xbox Division because they've literally obliterated their one and only major first party studio which they've haven't bought. 343 has been a prime example of shocking management and then innocent employees being the scapegoat and this has spanned a decade. I also don't buy into the pandemic excuse - this is something corporations use to mass offload staff without walking into unfair dismissal claims. Most companies would recruit staff with forward consideration and then allocate them elsewhere in time rather than pull the plug entirely to save money. It's not like Microsoft made sweeping hires during the pandemic period either so it sounds like a cop-out in a bid to rid them with justification to satisfy public opinion. Like Google and Meta, Microsoft also have many failed, neglected or abandoned projects and staff pay the price for those too even if it down to mismanagement once again. Companies like that will never own up to failures of their own doing especially Google who have cut tens of projects over the years. The game pass makes good money for Microsoft but not for the developers. Their in-house studios aren't immediately affected because they belong to Microsoft anyway but others are seeing their margins reduced to pennies per install for going down this route the same way developers have experienced with the Epic Games Store. It's a great deal for the consumers and an easy way for Microsoft to catch up to Sony by using their own studios as collateral for flogging the consoles but in time, I think developers will grow demotivated playing second fiddle to Xbox's rapid growth plan when success is determined purely on installs and can't be adequately measured by want or impulse. It just goes to show that no matter how long you've been there, what job you do or how much money the company can make, your job is not always safe especially if the hands of a characterless corporation. Game Pass certainly wont be sustainable throughout especially at its current price and management will always escape (sometimes with bonuses) for failures of their own merit where others have to suffer, sometimes very talented and experienced staff.

I think that must be the case because it seems the Plea for help is only available whilst you are spectating your remaining squad members, and if they die it cuts to the Squad Eliminated page and you can no longer plea, I just updated my PPR with info on the squad fil games they were amazing!

Maybe the people that we added had squad mates that ran away. I've had awesome squad fill games. People tend to be genuinely interested in doing the missions when that happens. With 6 people it's pretty had to fail. I also like the shock on other squads that attack you when they realize they just stirred a hornets nest and have to take on 6 motivated players than now are going to fuck them up This afternoon when we were doing it, we were rocking 3 LTVs going spot to spot. Great fun. You can't do that at all solo since there is no one to man the turret.

I've just played some squad fill games and I received the plea for help prompt, but I've never had the option to do this as a solo before. When I die it always cuts straight to the Squad Eliminated screen. Funnily enough I've jsut had the best game of DMZ ever as squad fill

I don't think so because I have revived entire squads. Stonemountain has also done it on a number of his videos. I think he even did it with a solo.

so plea for help doesn't work when solo. it only works if you are killed and another member of your squad is still alive,

I don't see any way to initiate the plea for help, I've seen others plea for help but can't see how to do it myself.

You do know that you can ask for help from a squad that downs you. I would in a case like that ask for help and say that you are running solo. Once you killed someone, they aren't a risk to you so a lot of people are more trusting at that point. The game is also a hell of a lot of fun running a x6 squad. I did that this morning and told the people I had to go because I had a meeting. They actually extracted me in so I would get my mission. There are a lot of dicks in the game, but there are a lot of helpful people too. Some of the later missions benefit from large squads.

We have recession, inflation, a game pass that has been operating at loss from what I have read, a gaming console that hasn't had a massive system seller since the 360 days and a new version of its OS that has abysmal adoption partly because it has many problems and partly because they have locked out of upgrading to it a sizeable portion of pc people because they have to buy a new system in the midst of the aforementioned recession and inflation and with many parts still having crypto boom/scalper prices most people won't just throw to the rubbish their perfectly fine pcs because microsoft said so and because of all this, I am not surprised that they have to lay off people, it's sad that common workers pay again for the incompetence of the higher ups but it is what it is

Other than perks I’m usually geared up to a 2/3 plate and medium/large in this case I had a 3 plate and a large. I just got unlucky in that when changing vehicles I ran into a squad I think the vehicle I was going for was actually theirs. To me it shows a massive flaw in some of the missions though, I’ve been trying to complete the poppy house mission for days yet I’ve only actually had 2 attempts at it the rest of the time has been trying to find keys. The first time I should have known better, I found a key nearby to the cemetery and decided to go for it despite the fact that I knew the commander helo was circling the cemetery dead drop, I should have exfil’d but didn’t want to risk losing the key to enemy operators. I’ve got a plan though and I’m going to change my tactic a little my plan for the next few days is to fully level the victus xmr in DMZ and loot nearby spawn spots for keys, go checkout those locations for more keys and/or complete an eliminate hvt contract and go checkout that key location for more keys but most importantly always extract before the timer reaches 10 minutes If I find a poppy house key then great if not then that’s great too

I know that a lot of people seem disinterested in playing it but I have spent a fair amount of time in it and it's not bad. It's kind of relaxed and a great way to level up guns (and XP which I don't need). I think to go up 3-4 level with the guns per session when I solo. This afternoon I managed to extract 7 times, kill 5 players in one session, get some challenges done. When I get tired to DOM. KC and TDM it's something else to do People should give it a chance The co-ops are trash in my opinion. I got my operators and I will never do them again. It's unfortunate because I quite liked the 2019 MW co-ops

60 for 343 is huge. Nobody is saying that 10,000 equates to Xbox entirely or their gaming division as a whole, but this level of layoffs in their first party gaming sector is significant especially considering the personnel that's departed and how it will affect Halo going forward. As it stands, it's the biggest layoff of an active studio in gaming history. If Activision came out tomorrow and said that MW2 performed so badly during the first 3 months, we're going to be sacking every developer involved at Infinity Ward; that in itself would cause a huge shock to the industry and for people that follow Halo and have supported 343 in the last 13 years, that's the impact this announcement has had. Unlike Call of Duty, they have no other studios to fall back on to carry the series forward so the brand's future is in serious doubt on a game that had a 10 year plan. There is also a massive sense of injustice from people affected, that most of the management associated with the project remain and are also sitting on huge bonuses.

60 people out of 10000 is pretty minuscule. They probably expect the Activision merger to go forward and these people are a victim of that. I read that azure, sales and Marketing were hit hard.

I've followed this story for days and they certainly haven't been generic - 343 have had around 60 front line developers culled which puts the entire future of Halo into doubt. Some of the names that have departed are massive especially Joe Staten. This is Microsoft's flagship first party studio too https://metro.co.uk/2023/01/19/xbox-bethesda-hit-by-microsoft-layoffs-as-halo-campaign-team-gutted-18128386/ Halo had the biggest budget in gaming history and a 10 year roadmap set in stone.

I’m liking the Walkman coffee table!

Basilisk Pistol is gold, I then knocked out all the longshots so all 5 Pistols are Platinum. 🙂

My only suggestion would be to gear before you do something difficult. Get your 3 plate vest and large backpack. Gas mask. Precision airstrike. Revive pistol, Revive kit, Plenty of stims. Once you get going, plates/plates/Plates. Try to get a number of good extraction perk streaks and then go for those missions. Carry in a sniper rifle and a good AR/LMG. I like having a thermal also just to spot people/AI I also tend to avoid cars. They make noise and are visible on the map. I Climb the towers and parachute instead. People seem to rarely look up I do squad up however and assess the squad. If there are newbies without microphones, I don't go for anything difficult and don't risk my gear as much

OK so having a bit of a better run today. I've just extracted 100k in a single run. I had been trying to to this all evening yesterday and failing spectacularly. I opted for a different tactic this time and looted the Sawah Hotel and the Deckhands toolbox nearby (I had a key for it) and achieved 73k from the two places. Now i'm off to complete the Poppy Farmer House mission wish me luck!!

Is it just me or are the enemy operators becoming much more ruthless recently? no one seems willing to just let you pass on by and every meeting becomes a firefight

Great episode. Haven't finished it all yet, as I usually struggle to get time to watch full episodes, but love the coverage on the gaming tables and then also the interesting chat about boss battles. ❤️

That sucks. I think the enemies respawn on a timer. I think 6 minutes. So if you take too long for some reason you have to be on your toes.

At also allows for cool down or your insured weapon slots. The cash can be used at buy station to get stuff while doing the missions which is where it is actually of use

I’ve done this multiple times now. It’s funny as Fuck when you’re driving through the city in the truck and you come under fire by a team of 3 then all of a sudden your 5 squad mates stand up in the back and fuck em all up 😂😂

Does the cash just give you XP? Or something else for your inventory?

Look at what I just found!! Probably the most expensive small backpack I've ever owned!

Sound fucking wicked mate! Nice one!

Went in today with a good squad which is rare and we Friended another good squad which made us basically godly. We had a number of squads trying to hunt us because we were carrying something like 300K in cash. It didn't work out for them. 3 vs 6 will get you wrecked. We extracted by saving the hostage. Even the AI didn't stand a chance for change 🙂

Always the case, pushing it a little too far is the name of the game.. It's definitely happened to me. Sounds like you've been doing pretty well otherwise so GGs on that 👍

Had a “it was this moment he realised he fucked up” in my last game of DMZ, had a great run 25k+ cash, completed contracts, basilisk contraband for the headshot mission, 3 plate vest, large backpack, heading to exfil and ran into a squad exfilling a weapon case. Needless to say I made the wrong decision and tried to hang around in case it was a solo and I could get a cheeky steel turns out it was a cracked 3man but it was too late by the time I realised and tried to take them on as they were exiting their vehicle. Oh well live and learn I guess

I did have the m13b on me it has an unusual camo so they would know I didn’t get it from the chemist during that run if they got the unlock because of it then fair play to them, I was more annoyed about losing my 3 plate vest, backpack and mission items for exfil that’s the biggest frustration for me in DMZ is that if you die you have to start the next round with basically nothing, I would love to be able to bring out more inventory and have a stock of things like vests, self revive and armor plates

And just like that this evening I'm managed to nail it! I did a setup run extracted a self revive, medium backpack, durable gas mask, and 2 plate vest, I then spawned in with the MCPR-300 (Body Count Blueprint with the 5 round mag removed (for a 10 mag) and a Kastov 74u then went straight for the Radiation Zone, got a message right away saying the chemist was in the area, sometimes I've had to run around the outside of the area to get that message. then took the high ground and was able to take the enemy out one by one, from around the area then I ventured in and started collecting gas masks, plates and stims, it took around 20 minutes but I didn't really get any large clusters of enemies like I have on previous attempts so I was able to take them down successfully. I found the chemist a couple of times, got a headshot on the first and destroyed his helmet, finally I found him close by a building and was able to finish him off with the 74u, there wasn't really any other enemies nearby so I grabbed the m13b and legged it to my vehicle, found a sensible extraction a little while away the radiation was about to start expanding and I didn't want to take any chances. I did get downed at the extraction but was fortunate to still have the self revive. I'm really pleased to have extracted it solo and can now play some DMZ missions without having the chemist in the back of my mind. I do really feel that the mode needs some serious buffs for anyone playing solo it can be extremely difficult the AI are either braindead and shooting in the opposite direction or absolute beasts which can take you out with a single shot from a pistol at 75m when you have 3 plates

I'm in North America on an Xbox. Don't think I can be much help under those circumstances. After new years if you are still looking for someone we can give it a try when I get back to my console

Still struggling along with this one I'm finding it really tough as a solo player I've gotten really close a few times this evening. Anyone fancy squading up with me one evening to help with the mission?

I agree with this. The guns good but it’s not the best in the game, it’s more the journey you went through to get it 😂 I helped my son get it last week, was fun, I killed the chemist grabbed the gun but died in the zone. My son didn’t have a mask or anything so told him not to risk it, our third was already dead. He looted up nearby till he had some survivability. I pinged where my body was and the gun was nearby. He managed to run in as the enemies had backed off 15mins later, grab the gun and extract all by himself with me watching his back. It was so rewarding for him to clutch up, he’s only 10 bless him.

The extra Ammo and molotov saved me a few times but that is really up to you. You can fly a direct path with the Helo and parachute down so the chances of ambush are reduced. It worked for me but that doesn't mean it will for you or anyone else. I also had a UAV that I used once the extraction was in bound to know how clear the extraction zone was. I think I had vary favorable conditions however. The gun really isn't that great. Don't expect too much. It's probably the one that took the longest to get to gold. Even worse than the M16

That's kinda the tactic that I've been using with the exception of the helo and I've been using battle rage rather than the ammo box.

Got my closest to getting the m13b this evening, I got the chemist but then got swarmed by enemies both inside and outside the radiation zone, I'm determined I will get it though.

I have played it several times with a friend of mine. Reminds me a lot of The Division. Just not as polished. It’s fun. I don’t see myself playing it a ton. If I wanted that type of game I would of stayed with The Division

I think a bunch of people made up their mind to hate it because that's the only way to get the M13. So they complain about a gun behind exclusive to a mode rather than go and try it out. I believe the purpose of the M13 exclusivity was to get people to try it. The next gun as we saw is available in DMZ or multiplayer. It's fun mode and worth trying

High risk of reward is really paying out well on this mode. 3 times myself, @phil bottle and @James5497 went in two nights ago thinking we'd get some nice loot and also try some keys we've all picked up along the way. Every time we pushed probably for something just a little more than we went in for....and then got took out dramatically around the extract and also by human players too. One run we nearly did multiple bounties and had the Weapon Case virtually extracted, only for us to fall at the final hurdle before the time just ran out. More and more people here need to give a few rounds a go as they won't be disappointed.

That was probably one of the best gaming moments I've had in a very long time. I've been really enjoying playing DMZ, think I like the objectives and fast paced gameplay over Warzone.

It's a great mode. You can really get people to rage in it and sometimes to hilarious results. Yesterday I decided to solo and went in without a gun. Couldn't find the dam things. Two operators came around in a car. So I hid. As one of the guys was looking at something I punched in the face a got a nose breaker. Dropped my C4 on top him. Waited from a distance. Buddy comes around to revive. Boom! Needless to say they said a bunch of things about my heritage and my mom 🙂 Picked up their M4 and LMG and went on my merry way. Far more fun that DOM or TDM

The DMZ is absolutely fantastic. Such a great game mode to chill on and i'd say the only downfall is we can't group up with more players on it. The AI is quite hard in places which really adds to the difficulty and the PvE missions just keep making you want to go back in for more stuff. Outside of that, you then can be sidetracked midway through a run because something will happen in a part of the map, which is really great to add to the unpredictability of each try. We had a run the other night with @James5497 and @MrBiron when a Weapon Case got picked up and marked it on the map. We decided to change plans and take the armoured truck we just dropped off for a bounty and it was a race against time. Just got there with the Helicopter down to extract, we ran them over and shot them clean out. Picked up the case, extracted and got 'Caution Tape' Weapon Blueprint! Honestly, when you have 2 or 3 of you and waiting for others to come, this is the gamemode to have a few go's on. So many others enjoy it too here.

It does say DMZ beta so I am hopeful that we see improvements I agree with you about the weapon case. I would also like to see that all party members get the reward if there is one. It pisses me off to do all the work just to have a team mate scoop it and take off The AI is also too strong. If they were human the would be accused of AIMbot with wall hacks. Yesterday I got shot from while inside a building through the window when I hadn't even engaged the enemy and was crouched. That's just plain ridiculous

It's a pretty good mode but I think Infinity Ward did a miserable job when promoting it at its exclusive event as they didn't really tell the content creators what the mode entailed or really talk about its potential going forward. They left the impression that it was just another Hazard Zone with a wannabe Tarkov approach and we've had very little from them since. It definitely needs more variety and I think they need to add manual drops points because the spawns make it too easy to intercept other players pathing and then reveal the activity POI's after everyone has landed. They should also remove the weapon extract alert on players because it just makes it too easy to camp on someone leaving or mow them down when they are en-route. The extraction point reveal should be enough and then the onus should be on players to intercept the rival rather than have the info on a plate at every opportunity. I hope IW continue to develop and support the mode but I think it will be dependent on player counts and income potential their end. It's a nice escape from MP and the hell that is WZ2.