The Fate of Sea of Thieves Developers Now Rests with Activision: British Studio Prepares New Games

Rare, after coming under Activision's wing, is working not only on Sea of Thieves. The fate of the British studio's new unannounced projects may now depend on the Call of Duty publisher.

According to The Game Business, several employees of Rare's central operations team lost their jobs after changes in the Xbox structure, although the studio continues to develop Sea of Thieves and other as-yet-undisclosed projects.

This is a difficult period for Rare: in 2025, Microsoft canceled Everwild, after which the studio significantly reduced its staff. Some employees were transferred to the Sea of Thieves team, and Rare reduced its use of third-party services.

It is currently unknown what exactly the studio is developing and whether the new games will remain exclusive to the Xbox ecosystem. The decision on their future fate will now be made by Activision, which may cancel projects if problems arise.

Rare's catalog still includes series such as Banjo-Kazooie, Perfect Dark, and Viva Piñata. Microsoft has not yet confirmed the development of new games for these franchises.