Leadership Changes at Arkane Lyon Ahead of Xbox ‘Reset’
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2 days ago
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It’s been an uncomfortable and unpleasant few weeks in gaming, with Microsoft layoffs looming large ahead of Xbox CEO Asha Sharma’s business reset. With reports of several studios potentially at risk (as well as hundreds of jobs), one studio seems to have had a very recent change in leadership. Arkane Lyon, who are currently working on Marvel’s Blade appear to have new – but at least familiar – leadership
Following a rather good Xbox Games Showcase at the start of June, the good will earned from the show soon turned a little sour. Leadership are now focused on a reset of the Xbox business
Shortly afterwards, Xbox Game Studios head Craig Duncan and Chief of Staff Louise O’Conner resigned, and reports hit shortly afterwards suggesting that multiple teams were at risk, with Bloomberg’s Jason Schrier reporting that Double Fine Productions, Ninja Theory and Compulsion Games were all negotiating to stave off closure and that ‘It’s going to be bad’
One surprising report this week was that beyond the studios listed above, Arkane Lyon, currently working on Marvel’s BLADE, were also potentially on the chopping block. The next surprise? A change of studio leadership, as spotted on Twitter by Timur222 who’s often poking around Linkedin, and
Arkane Studios newsChange of LeadershipPursuant to the decisions of the sole shareholder dated June 30, 2026, it was decided to appoint Mr. Jerk GUSTAFSSON as President, replacing Mr. Leonard BENDEL, who resigned, effective from the same date pic.twitter.com/fD0rryLx5Z
— Timur222 (@bogorad222) July 4, 2026
Per the above screenshots, it appears that MachinesGames’ current studio director, Jerk Gustafsson is now in charge of Arkane Lyon, having taken over from Leonard Bendel, who has now resigned
Pursuant to the decisions of the sole shareholder dated June 30, 2026, it was decided to appoint Mr. Jerk Gustafsson as President, replacing Mr Leonard Bendel, who resigned effective from the same date
While we’ve only got a few days before we’ll know the true scale of the potential layoffs and studio closures, this is at least a somewhat positive sign that perhaps Arkane Lyon and Blade aren’t being abandoned or closed, and instead some sort of restructuring is taking place instead
As for what it all means, we’ll have to wait for more official information from Microsoft next week
Are you hopeful Arkance and Blade can be saved? Let us know in the comments below!
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