Former Zenimax MMO developers launch new studio, Sackbird, following Microsoft layoffs

Former employees at The Elder Scrolls Online developer ZeniMax Online Studios have formed Sackbird Studios, a new independent studio, which is entirely owned by its staff.

The details:

• Amid Microsoft’s widespread company cutbacks in July, ZeniMax scrapped a sci-fi MMO shooter codenamed Project Blackbird, which had been in development since 2018. As a result, the studio was hit with layoffs, affecting those involved in Blackbird as well as The Elder Scrolls Online.
• Now, a small team of developers impacted by the cuts have formed a new independent studio, funnily named “Sackbird.” According to its website, the developer is employee-owned and entirely self-funded with strong enough finances to keep afloat for several years. The team currently consists of less than 10 people, all of whom are industry veterans with the goal of “crafting bold, character-driven experiences free from corporate compromises.”
• Sackbird has explained that following the cancellation of Project Blackbird, the team saw the situation as a sign to open their own studio in an attempt “to avoid many of the pitfalls they’ve experienced across the industry.” “We’re grateful for our time at ZeniMax Online Studios; it shaped us as developers and as people,” CEO Lee Ridout wrote. “When I learned that Blackbird was being cancelled and a lot of people were losing their jobs, it lit a fire. We realized the best way to protect our craft—and our team—was to create a studio where creative independence isn’t negotiable.”