Xbox merges Playground Games and Turn 10 for Forza and Fable

The new team will focus on the Forza and Fable franchises.

Kotaku places the change within a broader Xbox restructuring that began in July 2026.

What happened

According to Kotaku, Xbox chief content officer Matt Booty confirmed in a memo on Xbox Wire that Playground Games and Turn 10 are being merged into one studio or team. The message is dated September 22, 2026, and is presented in the article as part of an internal Xbox update on the organization of its game studios.

Kotaku says the combined team will focus on Forza and Fable. Playground Games is the studio behind Forza Horizon and is also working on Fable, while Turn 10 is described as the original studio behind the Forza racing franchise. That means two studios already closely tied to the same brand family are now being brought under one organizational umbrella.

The provided material does not say how large the new team will be, which executives will handle day-to-day leadership, or whether the merger is meant to be legal, operational, or purely organizational. It is also not confirmed whether the names Playground Games or Turn 10 will continue to exist as separate studios within Xbox Game Studios.

The source places the move within a broader Xbox reset that began in July 2026 with layoffs and internal restructuring. The provided material does not give an exact number of affected employees, but it does say the reorganization had already started earlier in the summer of 2026.

At this point, it is still unclear how the new organization will be structured or what the merger means for the day-to-day split between Forza and Fable. It is also not confirmed whether both franchises will continue under the same location, production schedule, or project leadership.

Background

Playground Games is known for Forza Horizon and is also developing Fable, which the studio’s official site presents as a reboot of the franchise. Playground Games’ official Fable page describes the project as a “beautifully vibrant open-world” and a reboot of the beloved series.

Turn 10 is the studio behind the Forza racing franchise. The merger of both teams fits Kotaku’s description of a broader effort by Xbox to organize development around Forza and Fable more centrally. That brings two studios with clearly defined roles in Xbox’s racing and fantasy portfolio closer together.

The available information does not yet confirm whether the merger will affect staffing, project structure, or the schedule of either franchise. It is also unclear whether the restructuring will change how Forza Horizon, the main Forza series, and Fable are divided internally.

External context suggests that Fable is still being positioned as a separate project. The official Fable website calls the game a “new beginning for a legendary franchise” and describes it as a return to Albion. No new release date is mentioned in the available sources in connection with the Playground Games and Turn 10 merger.