Microsoft announced the start of buy from Activision Blizzard in early 2022 for nearly $70 billion, which will make the likes of Infinity Ward, Blizzard North, Treyarch and others part of the Xbox family.
But for some time now, the owner of Windows has been buying game developers, many of them renowned and creators of iconic games. It currently owns more than 20 studios.
Here we’ve put together a list of all of them and what games these studios are known for.
A disclaimer: we didn’t include Activision Blizzard because the purchase of the producer hasn’t been finalized yet, but if you want to know more about the billion-dollar acquisition, listen to this week’s Game Trends podcast.
343 Industries
–
The studio was founded by Microsoft itself in 2007 to be responsible for the Halo series after Bungie left.
Known Games:
- Halo 4
- Halo 5
- Halo Infinite
The Coalition
—–
Formerly known as Black Tusk Studios, the developer changed its name in 2014, when it became responsible for the Gears of War series.
Known Games:
Turn 10
—–
Created in 2001, at the time of the launch of the first Xbox, to take care of the racing series Forza
Known games:
- Forza main series (not Horizon)
Playground Games
—–
The person responsible for the spin-off Forza Horizon only became a Microsoft studio in fact in 2018. They are currently also developing a new game in the Fable series.
known games
Rare
—–
Famous for developing games for Nintendo in the 1990s, such as Donkey Kong Country, it was bought by Microsoft in 2022. They were responsible for creating the Xbox avatars
Known games:
- Banjo-Kazooie
- Sea of Thieves
Mojang
—–
One of Microsoft’s first major acquisitions, the creator of Minecraft was bought in 2004 for $2.5 billion at the time.
Known games:
The Iniative
Studio created in 2018 by Microsoft. Currently developing a game not yet announced.
Ninja Theory
—–
Bought in 2018 by Microsoft, the English studio is currently developing Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II
known games
- Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
- DmC: Devil May Cry
- Enslaved: Odyssey to the West
Undead Labs
—–
Despite having always worked on exclusive Xbox games, they only became a Microsoft studio in 2018. They are responsible for the State of Decay series.
Known games:
Compulsion Games
—–
Another of the studios that were bought in 2018 by Microsoft. They are best known for the game We Happy Few.
Known games:
Obsidian
—–
Famous studio that creates open-world RPGs, it was also in the wave of studios that became Microsoft in 2018
known games
- Fallout: New Vegas
- Pillars of Eternity
- The Outer Worlds
inXile Entertainment
—–
Studio founded by Brian Fargo, one of the original creators of Fallout, was purchased by Microsoft in 2018.
Known games:
- Wasteland 2
- The Bard’s Tale
Double Fine
—–
Studio founded by well-known developer Tim Schafer. She is best known for creating adventure and action games.
known games
Bethesda Softworks
—–
The following studios were all acquired in the purchase of ZeniMax, the company that owns Bethesda
Bethesda Game Studios
Not to be confused with Bethesda Softworks, which is the producer. This is the company’s main studio, and known for its RPGs.
Known games:
- Série The Elder Scrolls
- Fallout 3
Arkane
One of several studios that came to buy Bethesda in 2021. Ironically, they developed the exclusive of PS5 Deathloop.
known games
id Software
One of the most renowned game studios for revolutionizing shooting games with classics like Doom and Quake in the 1990s. Another one that came with the purchase of Bethesda.
known games
- Doom (2017)
- Doom Eternal
- Rage 2
MachineGames
Another studio belonging to Bethesda Softworks that became Microsoft with the purchase of 2021.
known games
- Wolfenstein: the New Order
- Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus
Tango Gameworks
Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami’s studio. They are currently developing an exclusive PS5 game, Ghostwire Tokyo.
Known games:
Alpha Dog Games
Studio specialized in mobile games and acquired in 2019 by ZeniMax. Soon it is also part of Microsoft after the 2021 purchase.
known games
ZeniMax Online Studios
Studio dedicated to the development and support of the MMORPG The Elder Scrolls Online
known games
FOLLOW HIM START ON THE SOCIAL NETWORKS
Twitter: https://twitter.com/start_uol
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/start_uol/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/startuol/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@start_uol?
Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/startuol
–
