Rare released "Kinect Sports Rivals" in 2014. The game was worked on by 150 staff members and a new game engine was developed for it. The game was a commercial failure and following Microsoft's announcement that Kinect would no longer be a priority, about 15 Rare employees were laid off. On 10 February 2015, a group of former Rare employees announced the formation of a new studio, Playtonic Games, and planned a "spiritual successor" to the "Banjo-Kazooie" franchise titled "Yooka-Laylee", which was released on 11 April 2017 with mixed reviews. According to Rare composer Robin Beanland, the year 2015 would be significant for the company. At E3 2015, a new compilation game, "Rare Replay" celebrating the studio's 30th anniversary, was introduced; it was released in August. The compilation, with 30 of the studio's published games, only included games that Rare owned the intellectual property to. "Rare Replay" became the most pre-ordered game shown at E3 that year and received critical acclaim upon launch. A new game, "Sea of Thieves", which was a multiplayer adventure game marketed as "The Best Game That Rare Has Ever Made", was introduced at E3 that year. It was delayed at the following year's conference and was released on 20 March 2018. The game received mixed reviews, but was a commercial success; in January 2020, Microsoft declared it the most successful IP it released in the eighth generation, with more than 10 million players.