Arkane Lyon, the studio behind Dishonored and Deathloop, is up for sale. According to Bloomberg's Jason Schreier, Ubisoft has put in an offer, along with "at least two other gaming companies" that haven't been named. Xbox is also reportedly weighing a third option: selling the studio to its own management and letting it go independent.
Xbox hasn't accepted any offer yet, per Polygon.
Why is Xbox selling Arkane?
It's part of what Xbox is calling its "reset" under CEO Asha Sharma, which has meant mass layoffs, studio mergers, and some studios being spun off. Arkane Lyon is based in France, and Polygon notes that French labor law required Xbox to look for a buyer before laying people off.
That search has a clock on it. Redundancy talks were reportedly going badly ahead of a November 13 deadline. That deadline has since been extended, and Bloomberg says Xbox is "exploring options" ahead of a new one in December.
Arkane's other studio, Arkane Austin, didn't get a sale process. Microsoft closed it in 2024, a year after it shipped Redfall. Lyon at least gets bidders.
Is Marvel's Blade canceled?
No. Nobody has canceled it, and nobody has confirmed it either.
Marvel's Blade was announced at The Game Awards in December 2023 and has barely surfaced since. Polygon reports the internal ship date had already slipped to late 2027. Bloomberg says the game is "expected to be released within the next year or two," which assumes someone is still paying for it.
So the honest answer depends on the buyer. If the studio is sold with the project intact, Blade probably gets finished. If no deal closes by the December deadline, Arkane Lyon's future, and Blade's with it, is genuinely uncertain. Marvel owns the license, so what happens to the game itself in a sale hasn't been reported.
What about Dishonored and Deathloop?
Also unclear. VGC points out that Xbox has let other spun-off studios keep their IP, but there's no reporting yet on whether Dishonored or Deathloop would leave with the team. The existing games aren't going anywhere. They're single-player titles still on sale, and a studio changing hands doesn't pull them from your library.
Would Ubisoft be a safe landing spot?
That's debatable. Ubisoft has spent the past several months restructuring, with layoffs across its studios and multiple cancellations, including a Prince of Persia remake that looked close to done. Buying a studio and its unfinished licensed game is a strange move for a company that's been cutting, but it's the reported move.
Going independent isn't obviously safer. Double Fine went that route and has since had layoffs of its own. Arkane isn't the only Xbox studio looking for a home, either: Ninja Theory is also trying to find a buyer after two deals reportedly fell through.
The short version
- Xbox is divesting Arkane Lyon. Ubisoft and at least two others have bid.
- No deal is done. The deadline has moved to December.
- Marvel's Blade isn't canceled, but its future now depends on who ends up owning the studio.
- Dishonored and Deathloop remain playable. Who owns the IP next hasn't been reported.
We'll update this when a sale, or the lack of one, is confirmed.
Sources
Published Nov 4, 2026. Based on Bloomberg reporting as summarized by VGC, Polygon and The Verge. Artwork © Arkane Studios / Bethesda Softworks; official Steam asset used editorially only.