French video game developer Arkane Lyon must reportedly pin down a buyer by next month to avoid closure. According to a digitally translated report from French outlet Le Monde, Lyon-based Arkane Studios has until Friday, Nov. 13, to find a buyer.
The rapidly approaching deadline has reps with Arkane Studios’ representative trade union, Printemps Ecologique, pushing for more time to hammer out a deal.
The search began over the summer under the country’s “Florange Law,” which requires larger companies — those with at least 1,000 employees — to secure a buyer before beginning any large-scale layoffs.
Arkane Studios’ LinkedIn page says the studio employs 51 to 200 people, though Le Monde estimates 217 jobs are at risk.
If Arkane fails to locate a buyer, the studio’s closure would begin at the end of 2026 and continue through early next year.
Arkane Lyon among several XBOX studios facing recent cuts, closures, and layoffs
Arkane Studios, founded in Lyon, France, at the turn of the millennium, is responsible for groundbreaking games like Dishonored, Deathloop, Wolfenstein: Youngblood, and the ongoing production of Marvel’s Blade, which could face a full-fledged cancellation if Arkane Studios closes.
Marvel’s Blade, first announced at The Game Awards in 2023, is reportedly nearing the end of production, making the game’s potential cancellation an even harsher blow for fans and industry contributors.
Microsoft told Le Monde that it was still “explor[ing] different options” for the studio.
“We keep the social and economic committee as well as the employees informed, and are actively looking for a partner to support the next phase of development and enable the commercialization of the project.”
XBOX parent company Microsoft acquired Arkane Studios as part of its 2021 ZeniMax buyout.
XBOX CEO Asha Sharma first announced plans to potentially shutter the studio in a memo this past July. According to Sharma, the French developer would undergo consultations with its parent company to “review potential strategic options,” a process that Sharma suggested would take place over the next few months in an effort to identify a potential buyer.
In September, XBOX CCO Matt Booty announced that the Microsoft gaming division would eliminate nearly 300 roles, shuffle staff, and shutter studios altogether. Arkane was among those affected.
In the same memo, Booty revealed Compulsion Games and Double Fine “returned to management with their IP, back catalogs, and runway funding,” while Undead Labs “successfully transitioned on similar terms.”
Other impacts included countless cuts across Halo Studios as well as Hellblade and DmC: Devil May Cry studio Ninja Theory’s looming closure.
Keep an eye on Arkane Studios’ social media presence for any to-the-minute updates as they become available.
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