Man, 40 years just zipped by, didn’t it? I mean, Rare, that legendary video game creator from across the pond, was born on August 4, 1985. Feels like just yesterday I was popping Donkey Kong Country into my console. They came from this other company, Ultimate Play the Game—yeah, not the most original name, but who am I to judge? Rare’s made some of the most iconic games through their hookups with Nintendo and Xbox. You know the usual suspects: GoldenEye 007, Banjo-Kazooie, and Sea of Thieves too.
So, here’s the thing. To mark a whopping 40 years in action, Rare teamed up with 8BitDo. They cooked up this special, limited-edition wireless Xbox controller. It’s got all those cool Rare game patterns and silhouettes on it. Though, I gotta say, their timing was kind of… well, just not great. Xbox and Rare have been going through some, uh, let’s say, “unpleasant” shifts lately.
Anyway, where was I going with this? Right, the layoffs. So, since 2023, Microsoft and Xbox decided to give tons of people the boot. And the numbers aren’t small potatoes either. We’re talking 10,000 here, 6,000 there. It seems kind of bonkers, especially with Xbox claiming they’ve got more players and more hours being played than ever before. Yet, people gotta go, apparently.
These pencil pushers in suits said it was all about cutting down on management layers. Yeah, that’s the ticket. More like, less people to point fingers, if you ask me. Turn 10 Studios, you know, the Forza guys, lost 70 folks, and King—who brought us Candy Crush—axed 10% of their gang. Ouch.
It’s a double whammy for Rare, though. Besides losing staff, they had to slam the brakes on games that were supposed to be the next big thing, like Everwild. This one had me excited too, seemed like it was gonna be this magical little world to get lost in.
And now with Everwild biting the dust, along with Perfect Dark’s revival attempt, you wonder what’s up their sleeve next. Maybe — just maybe — they’re working on something secret while keeping us all in suspense. Who knows? I don’t posses a crystal ball.
Now going slightly off-track, remember Gregg Mayles? That rare gem who was practically part of the furniture at Rare—since the late ’80s, mind you—has walked out the door too. What a journey he’s had, right? From Battletoads to Sea of Thieves, he’s been like the glue keeping things running.
So, as Rare blows out 40 candles, there’s a mix of celebration and a bit of a “what now?” feel. Funny thing, they got a plaque over at Ashby-de-la-Zouch, tipping their hat to where it all kicked off, kinda like saying, hey, we were here and we made waves. It’s like acknowledging the past while they try to figure out what’s next. Feels like a poignant pause in their wild ride.
And to wrap it all up—though really, who ever wraps things up cleanly?—there’s that controller. Maybe it’ll end up a collector’s item, or perhaps just forgotten in a corner, overshadowed by everything else. Who can say? Life at Rare seems like a roller coaster with no signs of slowing down just yet.
