For that kind of announcement, I found it surprisingly open and detailed (at least if everything in there is true).

Still, some points are telling.

> Our business today is not healthy. We are operating at margins that are 3-10x lower than comparable platform and publishing businesses.

So the layoffs are not because they're operating at a loss and had to cut costs urgently. The margins are there, they aren't even thin, they're just not thick enough...

> In addition, Mojang and King will now report directly to me. These two studios have increasingly become platforms and are our largest by monthly active players. They bring critical geographic, demographic, and differentiation to XBOX.

Was a bit surprised that Minecraft got such a special status, but not at all surprised by King. All the studios getting nerfed, except the engagement maximizing mobile games...

Minecraft is an enormous game and the success of the movie among Gen Z/Alpha (a demographic that is fading from the silver screen) shows the potential of a multimedia franchise. It was by far their best purchase (and in some ways runs counter to the idea that "Not every studio fits with us".

But yeah, on the other end: 15 year old Skinner box experiment continues to Skinner box and remind us that war truly never changes.