- Gears of War: E-Day story director Juan Vaca was laid off from The Coalition as part of Xbox's new internal restructuring.
- Vaca shared the unfortunate news on his LinkedIn and BlueSky profiles days before the upcoming Gears game releases on October 6, 2026.
- However, the exact number of people affected at The Coalition by Xbox's new round of job cuts remains unknown.
Gears of War: E-Day story director Juan Vaca has revealed that Xbox’s recent internal restructuring has affected his position at The Coalition just days before the game’s October 2, 2026, release. Vaca revealed the information on LinkedIn and BlueSky, where he also celebrated Gears of War: E-Day going gold just a few days earlier.
The Xbox restructuring is part of CEO Asha Sharma’s ongoing “XBOX Reset” plan in July, and the company has now laid off over 260 employees in a new round of job cuts, with The Coalition affected as well. “I am part of this round of Microsoft Layoffs and am open to new opportunities in games/film/TV,” said Vaca on LinkedIn.
“If your team needs a director/storyteller, please reach out,” posted the Gears of War: E-Day story director. Vaca joined The Coalition in 2022 as a story director on the upcoming Gears title to help “establish the game’s story vision” and build a story “from concept to execution”.
He has previously worked as a Narrative Designer at several major companies, including Netflix and Telltale Games, making his layoff all the more unexpected. However, the exact number of employees affected at The Coalition remains unknown.
Unlike the major changes Xbox has already confirmed, including Activision taking over Halo and Ninja Theory facing possible closure, Matt Booty’s memo about continuing the “XBOX Reset” didn’t mention The Coalition or Gears of War: E-Day.
On September 17, the Gears of War: E-Day story director celebrated the game going gold with a post on LinkedIn, saying, “Excited for the world to see what the whole team’s been cooking,” which makes his layoff all the more unfortunate.
It’s a tough time at Xbox with all the restructuring, and even The Coalition couldn’t escape the company’s layoff hammer. For now, the studio is still on track to release Gears of War: E-Day in about two weeks.
