Amazon Game Studiosは昨年10月に数千人の人員削減を実施し、Project Tridentおよび『ロード・オブ・ザ・リング』のMMO開発を中止した。開発チームは生成AIの導入に追われていた。
これらの中止は、Amazon全体で約1万4000人の雇用を削減する大規模な人員整理の一環として行われた。Project Tridentは、生成AIを活用するよう企業側から圧力を受けたことで方針転換を繰り返しており、『ワンダと巨像』スタイルの冒険から『Helldivers』のようなマルチプレイヤーゲーム、最終的にはAIを活用したNPCとの対話機能を備えたシングルプレイヤータイトルへと変遷していた。Eurogamerが入手した情報によると、2025年10月に人員削減が行われた際、チームはデモ版の完成間近であったという。
X上では、Amazonが生成AIの導入を強要した末にProject Tridentを中止したことや、2025年の人員削減に伴う『ロード・オブ・ザ・リング』MMOの中止について議論が交わされている。ユーザーからは、AIへの急激な方針転換に対する批判や、Amazonのゲーム開発戦略に対する失望の声が上がっている。また、AI導入の義務化の効果を疑問視する投稿や、業界全体で大規模プロジェクトから撤退する動きがあることを指摘する声も見られる。
Amazon Game Studios has shut down Project Trident and laid off the entire team in San Diego.
— Pirat_Nation 🔴 (@Pirat_Nation) 2026年5月14日
The game started as a team adventure like Shadow of the Colossus, with giant monster fights, grappling hooks, and flying mounts.
In mid-2024 Amazon told all teams to add AI tools as… pic.twitter.com/NraRqdOYg6
Amazon Game Studios has cancelled its Lord of the Rings MMO.
— Pirat_Nation 🔴 (@Pirat_Nation) 2026年5月14日
Announced in May 2023 in partnership with Embracer, the project was still in very early pre-production.
The decision follows Amazon’s major layoffs last October, which scaled back several first-party AAA and MMO.… pic.twitter.com/VLPYoIEL9c
Amazon has reportedly cancelled its Lord of the Rings MMO, after recent mass layoffs
— Dexerto (@Dexerto) 2025年10月30日
Former engineer Ashleigh Amrine confirmed that her entire team working on the game had been let go pic.twitter.com/MxH8jtR7YU
AMAZON REPORTEDLY PUSHED A GAME TEAM TO REBUILD A PROJECT AROUND AI, THEN LAID THEM OFF
— Wall St Engine (@wallstengine) 2026年5月14日
Eurogamer reports $AMZN's Project Trident started as a co-op action game where players scaled giant Jotuns using grappling hooks and flying mounts.
Sources said the original version had… pic.twitter.com/uDtMDsCc9z
Amazon Pressured One of Its Teams to Develop an AI Game, They Scrambled to Make It Work - Then Got Laid off Anywayhttps://t.co/Yk91qwY6GA#gamedev #videogames #pcgaming #gaming #genai #ai
— DreamStation.cc (@DreamStationcc) 2026年5月14日
AIによるレポート AIによって生成された画像
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