Romero Games Shooter Finds New Publisher After Xbox Cut

Short answer: Romero Games, the studio of Doom co-creator John Romero, has signed with a new publisher after Xbox pulled funding from its shooter in 2025. Romero told Video Games Chronicle (VGC) that the studio has rehired about 10 former staff and is making a smaller, redesigned shooter. He would not name the publisher or give an announcement date.

The key facts at a glance

• Studio: Romero Games, John Romero's independent studio
• News: a new publisher deal, confirmed in late October 2026
• Publisher: not named
• Rehired: about 10 former staff, mostly team leads
• Team size now: about 15
• Game: a new, smaller shooter built from the cancelled project's work
• Announcement date: none given

What Romero said

Speaking to VGC, with quotes carried by Shacknews, Romero described the deal as coming from an old contact:

"I just contacted somebody that I knew, and we basically did a deal, and so we have a new publisher."

He kept the details close:

"Can't say anything about who it is, or when the announce is, or any of that stuff."

Why it is a different game

The cancelled shooter was planned for a big team. Romero said: "That game we can't get to the end, because it's a 110-person game." So instead of trying to finish it with a fraction of the staff, the studio started over with a smaller design.

In his words, it is "a complete redesign of a totally different game, but it uses a lot of the work that we had." KitGuru describes it the same way: an entirely new project built from the assets, technology and ideas of the old one.

Romero also said the team will stay at its current size, because the new game is scoped for about 15 people.

How the studio got here

When	What happened
Before mid-2025	Romero Games worked on a large first-person shooter funded by Xbox
July 2025	Funding was pulled during Microsoft's Xbox cuts, and the project was cancelled
After the cuts	KitGuru reports the studio went from about 110 people to five
Late October 2026	Romero confirms a new publisher and about 10 rehires

The cut was part of a wider round of Microsoft gaming cuts that also hit other studios and projects in 2025.

What to expect next

Step 1: wait for the publisher reveal

The publisher and the game will be named together at an announcement Romero would not date. Until then, treat any publisher name you see online as a guess.

Step 2: don't expect the old game

Leaks or screenshots of the Xbox project will not reflect what ships. The new game reuses parts of it but has a different design and a much smaller scope.

Step 3: watch official channels

Romero has pointed fans to the studio's account on X, @romerogamesltd. That, along with the studio's website, is where the reveal is most likely to appear first.

Common mistakes

• Saying the original Xbox game was saved. Romero says the new game is a redesign, not the same project.
• Naming a publisher. None has been confirmed.
• Saying the whole team came back. About 10 people were rehired, out of roughly 110 before the cuts.
• Expecting a release date soon. There is not even an announcement date yet.