Game News

Arkane Lyon gets one more month to find a buyer: what the unions won and what is still at risk

Microsoft has given Arkane Lyon, the French studio behind Dishonored and Deathloop, an extra month to find a buyer before it can be closed. Eurogamer reported on 23 October that the studio, caught up in Xbox's cuts earlier this year, had until November; PC Gamer, citing Le Monde, put the original deadline at 13 November and the headcount at 217.

Two unions, Printemps Écologique and the STJV, asked for more time so redundancy talks and the search for a buyer could continue, and the request was granted, PC Gamer said. Kotaku explained that French law requires companies with at least 1,000 employees to look for a buyer before mass layoffs or a closure.

“This is a defined extension, and we remain committed to keeping the Works Council informed throughout the process.” — Microsoft representative, via PC Gamer

Microsoft said closure documents are part of the required consultation and not a final decision, and that it may bring in a partner to finish the studio's work on Marvel's Blade. Union representatives told Le Monde the game is near the end of development and called leaving it unfinished a “monumental waste”, Kotaku reported. On 26 October, Eurogamer confirmed Xbox had agreed to the union request.

How each outlet framed it

• Eurogamer — a beloved studio inside Xbox's “reset”, then the union's win on timing.
• PC Gamer — the numbers and Microsoft's own wording on the extension.
• Kotaku — Marvel's Blade: nearly finished, unseen since 2023, and now the studio's bargaining chip.

What we don't know yet: whether any buyer or partner has come forward.