Update: Microsoft has responded to Game Developer’s request for comment by restating plans to undertake a formal review into a report published by The Guardian that asserts Azure technology is currently being used by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) to surveil civilians in Gaza and the West Bank en masse.
“The Guardian, on that date, reported that multiple individuals have asserted that the IDF is using Azure for the storage of data files of phone calls obtained through broad or mass surveillance of civilians in Gaza and the West Bank. Microsoft’s standard terms of service prohibit this type of usage,” it said in an updated blog post published on August 15.
Game Developer was not made aware the blog post had been updated until now, despite reaching out to Microsoft for comment on August 12 in relation to the open letter published by unionized Arkane staffers in solidarity with the BDS movement.
“Microsoft is turning to the law firm of Covington & Burling LLP, with technical assistance from an independent consulting firm, to conduct the review,” continues the updated post. “This will expand on the company’s earlier review, which did not identify any usage by the IDF that violated the company’s terms of service. Microsoft appreciates that The Guardian’s recent report raises additional and precise allegations that merit a full and urgent review. The company will share with the public the factual findings that result from this review, once it is complete.”
Original story: Microsoft prevented a veteran developer at Obsidian from sharing their thoughts on the company’s latest round of mass layoffs and its links with Israel during an impromptu interview at Gamescom 2025.
During an on-record conversation with Grounded 2 game director Chris Parker and Eidos Montreal creative director Justin Vazquez, Game Developer asked the former for their thoughts on making games at Microsoft during a turbulent period of heavy layoffs and widespread condemnation over the company’s widely-reported ties to the Israeli regime and its military surveillance agency (via The Guardian).
Two Xbox spokesperson immediately quashed the question by explaining their devs are only here to talk about their games and directed us to reach out via email for comment on other topics.
The rub, of course, is that we have already reached out for comment multiple times to no avail.
After Microsoft laid off 9.000 workers last month, including many within its video game division, the company neglected to provide specifics about the exact nature of the cuts despite repeated, direct requests for more context.
Last week, Microsoft again failed to respond after being contacted for comment on the situation unfolding at Arkane in France, where union workers published an open letter in support of the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement—which is specifically calling for consumers to shun Xbox products including Xbox Game Pass, hardware, accessories, and popular titles.
Those unionized Arkane employees branded the company an “accomplice” to genocide and called on Microsoft to sever ties with the Israeli military. BDS claims Microsoft is “perhaps the most complicit tech company in Israel’s illegal apartheid regime.”
Meanwhile, as reported by The Verge, a group of current and former Microsoft employees recently amassed in the plaza at the company’s Redmond headquarters as part of a No Azure for Apartheid protest. Roughly 50 people were present at the event. A press release distributed by the group said they refuse to become “cogs in the Israeli genocidal machine.”
In May, Microsoft said an external review into the nature of its contracts with Israel and “found no evidence to that that” its products—including AI and cloud tech—have been used to “target or harm people” in Gaza.
Despite those assertions, the company is refusing to discuss the concerns of current and former employees—including those within its roster of Xbox game studios—while actively preventing workers from sharing their personal thoughts.
Game Developer has once again reached out to Microsoft for comment.
Game Developer attended Gamescom 2025 via the Gamescom Media Ambassador Program, which covered flights and accommodation.