Here at NerdLeaks we’ve been watching the fallout from Xbox’s recent wave of layoffs closely, and id Software has become a focal point of the debate. Allegedly gutted by the cuts, the Texas studio is pushing back — but official filings and public reactions paint a more complicated picture. Take this with a pinch of salt, but according to Push Square the claims and counters keep colliding.
What Was Reported
Layoff Numbers
Per Push Square, government documents show id Software cut 96 workers at its office in Richardson last week, and a further 40 remote employees. There are also reports of layoffs at the studio’s satellite location in Frankfurt, Germany. These figures have fueled stories that the studio has been “gutted”.
Public Pushback
Those stories sparked an immediate rebuttal. id Software has been eager to repel the most extreme claims, with creative director Hugh Martin appearing on a livestream — first spotted by Kotaku and reported via Push Square — to address the rumours directly. Martin said: “There’s been reports that we’ve been ‘nerfed into the ground’ and ‘gutted’ and we have 50 people, and that’s not true. We’re the size we were when we made Doom 2016, and id Tech is very much alive and well.”
The Source & Credibility
Who Said What
According to Push Square, the livestream comments from Hugh Martin match a statement released by id Software in the immediate aftermath of the layoffs. Martin also emphasized collaboration across teams, saying: “You have to understand, we have id Tech engineers both in Frankfurt and at MachineGames. We collaborate quite a bit. The id Tech is there, the Doom team is here, and we’re excited to share with you guys more of what we’re working on in the future when it is appropriate and approved.”
What We Don’t Know
We don’t have a current headcount for the studio beyond what government filings revealed and the public statements from id Software. Push Square notes that while Martin insists the team is “the size we were when we made Doom 2016” — a benchmark the reporting says was about 200 people — the filings document very real cuts. If true, the discrepancy between public claims and official paperwork is the core tension here.
What It Could Mean
Short-Term Impacts
If the government numbers are accurate, losing 96 on-site staff plus 40 remote workers is a drastic reduction that will have immediate operational impacts. According to Push Square, these job losses will necessarily remove institutional knowledge, and that could affect project pipelines and day-to-day engineering work. Take this with a pinch of salt, but even with Martin’s assurances about surviving team size, the cuts described by filings suggest the studio has been materially altered.
Longer-Term Possibilities
On the other hand, Martin’s remarks that id Tech remains “alive and well” and that there are engineers in Frankfurt and at MachineGames hint at a strategy of distributed capability. If true, collaboration across those groups could blunt some of the damage. According to Push Square, the studio’s messaging and the filings are at odds, which leaves open questions about rehiring, rebuilding institutional capacity, and how future projects — including work tied to DOOM — will be staffed.
Why This Matters
This matters because the stakes are both human and creative. Government filings show sizeable job losses at id Software, which, if accurate, represent a significant blow to staff and to the internal knowledge base of a studio tied to major IP like DOOM. At the same time, the studio’s public denial — and claims that team size is roughly where it was for a past marquee release — aims to reassure fans and partners.
We’re sceptical but excited: the official numbers and the studio’s public posture both matter. According to Push Square, the truth may sit somewhere between a painful round of layoffs and a carefully managed PR narrative. For now, take this with a pinch of salt and watch for more documents, statements, or confirmations — if true, what happens next at id Software will be a major story for the industry and for fans of DOOM.
