Former id Software Producer Details 'Brutal' Crunch Before Microsoft Layoffs
Andrew Willis describes 17-hour workdays during Doom: The Dark Ages' Revelations DLC development, followed by immediate termination.
A former producer at id Software has revealed that the development of the 'Revelations' DLC for Doom: The Dark Ages was marked by extreme crunch, only for the studio to be gutted by Microsoft layoffs immediately following the expansion's launch.
Andrew Willis, a producer dismissed during the cuts, reported that the push to finish the content was "brutal." Willis worked at least 12 hours every day for the two months leading up to the July release, with some days reaching 17 hours. He noted that the majority of the Revelations DLC was developed in a condensed window of just three to four months. "You spend so much of your energy and hours of your life, and sacrifice a bunch of things, to get something out the door, and then they lay you off the day before," Willis said.
A Sudden Studio Collapse
The timing of the layoffs coincided precisely with the product's delivery. In July 2026, the same week Revelations was released, Microsoft conducted sweeping layoffs of 3,200 staff across its Xbox studio portfolio. The impact on id Software was particularly severe; the studio reportedly lost over half of its members. These cuts included key senior personnel responsible for the id Tech engine, the proprietary technology that powers the studio's high-performance shooters.
Internal Conflict Over Viability
The loss of such a significant portion of the workforce has sparked a debate within the studio regarding its future capacity to produce AAA titles. Co-studio director Hugo Martin has claimed that the remaining team is similar in size to the group that developed the 2016 reboot of Doom. However, other staff members disagree with this assessment. Chris Hayes, a lead services provider, argued that it is "impossible" to create games of that caliber with the current reduced headcount.
Industry Implications
This situation underscores a recurring and volatile tension within the gaming industry, where employees are expected to make extreme personal sacrifices to meet rigid deadlines and quality standards, only to be terminated once the project is completed. For id Software, the stakes are technical as well as human. The dismissal of senior technical talent responsible for the id Tech engine raises critical questions about the studio's long-term viability as a premier developer of cutting-edge AAA experiences.
What Remains
While Microsoft has executed its broader cost-cutting strategy across Xbox, it remains unclear how id Software will manage future development cycles or if further restructuring is planned. The industry will be watching to see if the remaining team can maintain the technical excellence associated with the id Tech engine or if the loss of senior expertise will lead to a decline in the studio's output.