Laid off ZeniMax developers form Sackbird Studios

A group of ZeniMax Online Studios (ZOS) developers who were recently fired by Microsoft have reunited to form Sackbird Studios.

The group worked on an online shooter codenamed Project Blackbird in ZOS. As Bloomberg reported in JulyMicrosoft canceled Blackbird even though the project seemingly wowed Xbox executives, including division chief Phil Spencer, during an internal demo.

Now key members of the ZOS team, including Chief Tools Engineer David Worley; director of e-commerce product management studio Lee Ridout; project technical director Robert Ballantyne; and lead interaction designer Doug Carroll co-founded Sackbird and began actively developing an original project for PC and consoles.

Sackbird bills itself as an independent, employee-owned studio. The team intends to use internal funding to maintain full creative control, and plans to create “a bold, character-driven experience free of corporate compromise.”

Former ZeniMax Online Studios developers reunite to create a studio “where creative independence is non-negotiable”

According to the ad on the Sackbird websiteThe development team currently numbers less than 10 developers and is committed to implementing sustainable development practices.

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“After many years in triple A, we wanted the freedom to take smart risks without waiting for the green light or chasing quarterly targets,” said studio chief operating officer David Worley. “We are 100% employee owned and funded, which means we only respond to people who are passionate about gaming.”

Sackbird CEO Lee Ridout stated that recent layoffs at Microsoft— the fourth major round of job cuts at the company since it merged with Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion.— lit a fire under the command.

“We are grateful for our time at ZeniMax Online Studios; it shaped us as developers and people,” Ridout said. “When I found out that Blackbird was closing and a lot of people were losing their jobs, it lit a fire. We realized that the best way to protect our craft – and our team – was to create a studio where creative independence was non-negotiable.”