These changes come at a time when we have more players, games, and gaming hours than ever before,” said Xbox head Phil Spencer in an email to staff.

Microsoft says it is laying off about 9,000 workers, its second mass layoff in months and its largest in more than two years. The tech giant began sending out layoff notices Wednesday that hit the company's Xbox video game business and other divisions.

Reports and rumors of massive layoffs at Xbox have been building since late last month, and the first blood has now been spilled. Bloomberg reports that Candy Crush maker King is cutting 200 employees,