Xbox cancels John Romero’s new project: Romero Games’ unannounced game left in limbo

The decision was made at a higher level and also affects other titles within Xbox Publishing.

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Update

Original News

The restructuring at Microsoft Gaming continues to have visible consequences. One of the latest victims has been the new game from Romero Games, an unannounced project that was being developed under the Xbox Publishing label and has been officially canceled. The information was confirmed by Brenda Romero herself in a statement on social media, where she deeply regrets the situation.

The cancellation is part of a broader movement that has also affected other unrevealed titles in various studios. According to the message, the decision was made “at a very high level within the publisher,” so neither the Romero Games team nor its leaders could intervene to change the course. “We wish we could have done something to avoid it,” Romero says.

John Romero’s new Xbox game gets canceled

The message emphasizes that the project was not canceled due to internal problems: the team delivered each milestone on time, received praise, and passed all internal reviews. In fact, Brenda assures that they felt “incredibly proud of the work done and the team behind it, the best we’ve ever worked with.”

The game, which had not yet been publicly detailed, was being developed with the direct support of Xbox Publishing and represented a notable collaboration with one of the industry’s big names: John Romero, a legend in the FPS genre and co-creator of classics like DOOM and Quake. The cancellation is a significant blow within an already turbulent moment for Microsoft’s internal studios.

Romero Games, founded in 2015, is evaluating its next steps and seeking ways to support its employees. Brenda Romero concludes the message with a call to the industry to help the affected team, highlighting that many of its members have worked together for over a decade.

The landscape remains uncertain for many developers under the Xbox umbrella, and this cancellation reinforces concerns around other early-stage projects.

https://twitter.com/romerogamesltd/status/1940716112922190248