Xbox Game Studios

Xbox Game Studios (previously known as Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, and Microsoft Games) is an American video game publisher based in Redmond, Washington. It was established in March 2000, spun out from an internal Games Group, for the development and publishing of video games for Microsoft Windows. It has since expanded to include games and other interactive entertainment for the namesake Xbox platforms, other desktop operating systems, Windows Mobile and other mobile platforms, web-based portals, and other game consoles.

Xbox Game Studios, alongside ZeniMax Media and Activision Blizzard, are part of the Microsoft Gaming division led by Phil Spencer, who is chief executive officer of the division.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

As Microsoft Games and Microsoft Game Studios (2000–2011)

Microsoft Game Studios logo (2001–2011)

In the early 1990s, Microsoft published a few video games. It published subLOGIC's Microsoft Flight Simulator and several Microsoft Entertainment Pack compilations of minigames, but was best known for MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows. In 1992, the company began increasing its focus on games. It announced Microsoft Golf for Windows, based on Access Software's Links, and expanded the games division from two to six people with the intention of commissioning more products from other developers.<ref name="minson19921109">Template:Cite news</ref>

Microsoft acquired FASA Interactive in 1999 for its MechWarrior game series,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Access Software,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Aces Game Studio, which worked on Flight Simulator.<ref name="Aces">Template:Cite web</ref> The Games Group had also established long-term publishing deals with developers like Ensemble Studios (Age of Empires, Age of Mythology),<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and Digital Anvil (Starlancer).<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> Under Microsoft, FASA Interactive was renamed FASA Studio,<ref name="IGN fates">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Polygon fates">Template:Cite web</ref> and Access Software became Salt Lake Games Studio.<ref name="RG">Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Microsoft transitioned the Games Group into a wholly separate division named Microsoft Games around March 2000, along with other consolidation of games-related projects within Microsoft. This came alongside the public announcement of the first Xbox console, with Microsoft Games to serve as a developer and publisher of titles for both Xbox and Windows.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> Robbie Bach, who held executive positions in Microsoft's entertainment divisions, was named senior vice-president while Ed Fries, a member of the former Games Group and instrumental for some of its acquisitions, was named as vice-president of the new division.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref><ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> Shane Kim served as the division's general manager.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2001, the division was renamed Microsoft Game Studios (MGS).<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

FASA Studio and Salt Lake Games Studio remained with Microsoft Game Studios.<ref name="IGN fates" /><ref name="Polygon fates" /> Digital Anvil and Ensemble Studios were acquired by Microsoft in 2000 and 2001, respectively.<ref name="IGN fates" /><ref name="Polygon fates" /> One of the first major studio acquisitions following the division's formation was Bungie in June 2000, in the midst of its development of Halo: Combat Evolved.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> With the acquisition, Halo, which had been planned for release on personal computers, became a Microsoft-published title as well as a launch title for the Xbox on its release in 2001.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Turn 10 Studios was established in 2001 for work on the Forza series of racing games.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In September 2002, Microsoft Game Studios acquired Rare, who had previously extensively developed for Nintendo platforms.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2003, Microsoft recognized that the EA Sports label was in a far stronger position to develop sports games for the Xbox console, and among realignment steps, laid off about 78 employees within Microsoft Game Studios that were developing sports games in-house, and sold Salt Lake Games Studio, now named Indie Games to Take-Two Interactive in 2004, where it became Indie Built.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Peter Moore was named in 2003 as vice-president of Microsoft's Home and Entertainment Division, which included MGS, the Xbox division, and Microsoft's home hardware market, reporting to Bach.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In addition to pulling big publishers like Electronic Arts to the Xbox platform, Moore tried to push the Xbox in Japan by courting Japanese developers with support from MGS publishing. Such games included Phantom Dust and Blinx: The Time Sweeper.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Around 2004, MGS established Carbonated Games as an internal studio for the development of casual games for Microsoft's web games portal MSN Games, on the chat client MSN Messenger, and on the Xbox Live platform.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Kim and Fries were instrumental for securing MGS' publishing deal with Lionhead Studios for their 2004 game Fable, which would serve as the first major role-playing game on the Xbox platform. Subsequently, in 2006, MGS acquired Lionhead Studios along with the Fable properties, as it sought to secure a Fable sequel for the upcoming Xbox 360.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> MGS folded the staff of Digital Anvil into the larger studio in 2005, following the release of 2003's Brute Force, and closed down the studio entirely in 2006.<ref name="IGN fates" /><ref name="Polygon fates" /> FASA Studio was closed three-and-a-half months after the May 2007 release of their last game, Shadowrun.<ref name="IGN fates" /><ref name="Polygon fates" />

In 2007, MGS announced the opening of a European office in Reading, England, headed by general manager Phil Spencer.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Moore opted to leave Microsoft in July 2007, so to move back to the San Francisco Bay area with his family and to rejoin Electronic Arts. Don Mattrick was named as his replacement as the new vice-president of the Xbox and Games Business, which included MGS.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later in 2007, Bungie amicably split from MGS to become a privately held independent company, with MGS retaining the rights to the Halo property.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Bungie continued to develop two additional Halo games for MGS, Halo 3: ODST (2009) and Halo: Reach (2010).<ref name="gamasutra-07/09 reports">Template:Cite web</ref> Simultaneously, MGS founded 343 Industries as an internal studio to develop future Halo games without Bungie.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

In 2008, MGS disbanded Carbonated Games and announced the formation of internal studio Xbox Live Productions to develop "high-quality digital content" for Xbox Live Arcade.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Microsoft as a whole announced layoffs of up to 5,000 jobs across all divisions in January 2009 due to slowing sales of personal computers as a result of the Great Recession.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Within MGS, the studio had already planned to disband Ensemble Studios after the completion of Halo Wars in early 2009,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> while the new layoffs led MGS to also disband Aces Game Studio.<ref name="Aces" /> Microsoft acquired Vancouver-based BigPark in May 2009, using the studio to develop some of the first games for the upcoming Kinect sensor for the Xbox 360.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later in 2009, Phil Spencer was promoted to corporate vice-president of MGS, in order to replace the retiring Shane Kim.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2010, MGS formed a mobile gaming studio, MGS Mobile Gaming, focused on developing gaming and entertainment multimedia for Windows Phone devices.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It also expanded Rare with a second studio in Digbeth, Birmingham.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

As Microsoft Studios (2011–2019)

Microsoft Studios logo (2011–2019)

The Splatters is an Xbox Live Arcade game that was developed by a third-party studio and published by Microsoft Studios in 2012.

By the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2011 in June 2011, Microsoft Game Studios was quietly renamed to Microsoft Studios.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later in 2011, Microsoft Studios acquired Twisted Pixel Games.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In early December 2011, Microsoft Studios created Microsoft Casual Games, a division to revamp its past casual games for Windows (like Windows Solitaire and MSN Games) using more up-to-date software delivery platforms.

In 2012, Phil Harrison, the former Sony worldwide studios head, joined Microsoft as head of Microsoft Studios Europe and IEB.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Microsoft Studios acquired developer Press Play, known for developing Tentacles and Max & the Magic Marker.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> They also announced a new development studio in London, England.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later in 2012, Microsoft downsized Microsoft Game Studios Vancouver due to the cancellation of the Kinect family title Project Columbia and announced that the ongoing development of free-to-play title Microsoft Flight had been ceased due to portfolio evaluation.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The reduced Vancouver studios were renamed to Black Tusk Studios and tasked with making similar franchise-building title as Halo.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

In 2013, Microsoft established European studio Lift London, a studio that would create cloud-based games for tablets, mobiles and TVs.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Later, they created a new "Deep Tech" team inside its Developer and Platform Evangelism (DPE) unit; the new team is charged with working with top developers outside the company to build next-generation applications on top of Microsoft platforms.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

While Mattrick had overseen much of the development of Microsoft's next console, the Xbox One, he left in July 2013, prior to its release, to take over as CEO of Zynga.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Mattrick was succeeded by Julie Larson-Green, who was named the president of the Devices and Studios Engineering Group, following a realignment of Microsoft's divisions, overseeing both the Xbox hardware divisions and Microsoft Studios.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Shifting priorities under Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella

Phil Spencer, corporate vice-president of Microsoft Studios from 2014 to 2017

Satya Nadella became CEO of Microsoft in February 2014. At this time, Microsoft was facing strong competition in the consumer market, and within the gaming sector, the Xbox One (released in 2013) was more expensive than competitors and had too much focus on non-gaming functions. Under Nadella's direction, Phil Spencer was named the new head of Microsoft Studios to replace Jason Holtman, who had only been its lead for the prior six months.<ref name="wsj profile">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Spencer began looking for ways to expand Microsoft Studios to make it a profitable division for Microsoft, and began negotiations for the acquititions of Mojang, the developers behind Minecraft, in late 2014.<ref name="Mojang">Template:Cite web</ref> Microsoft spent Template:USD to acquire the studio, and upon the deal's completion in November, the studio's key founding personnel, Markus Persson, Jakob Porsér and Carl Manneh, departed Mojang.<ref name="Mojang" /> As a result, Persson became valued around Template:US$.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Microsoft Studios committed to keeping Minecraft available across multiple platforms, including rival PlayStation consoles.<ref name="Mojang" /> Matt Booty, the studio's corporate vice-president in 2020, said the acquisition of Mojang served as the template for later acquisitions, as Mojang was left to run as an "unplugged studio" with limited integration into the Microsoft corporation, minimizing the disruption of Mojang's normal day-to-day business matters nor impeding on the studio's freedom.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Additional intellectual property (IP) acquisitions by Microsoft Studios in 2014 included a publishing contract with Undead Labs for their game State of Decay,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the rights to the Gears of War series from Epic Games,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the Rise of IP (Rise of Nations and Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends) from Big Huge Games.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Microsoft Studios assigned Gears of War to Black Tusk Studios, which was later rebranded in 2015 as The Coalition.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In July 2014, it was announced that Xbox Entertainment Studios would be closed in the following months; the closure was completed by October 29.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On March 4, 2015, Microsoft announced that they were merging UK-based studios, Lift London and Soho Productions for further games development, with the amalgam continuing to operate under the Lift London name.<ref name="HoloLens">Template:Cite web</ref> On March 7, Microsoft announced at the Game Developers Conference that HoloLens games were coming to Xbox One.<ref name="HoloLens" /> On March 9, Microsoft announced that Kudo Tsunoda's role was expanding and that he would be the new studio team leader for studios such as Press Play, Lift London and a new internal studio called Decisive Games. Decisive Games was previously mentioned in job postings, saying that they were hiring for work on a "beloved strategy game" for Xbox One and PC, but this is the first public acknowledgement of the team's existence as a first-party studio.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Twisted Pixel and Microsoft Studios agreed to split in September 2015.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Kudo Tsunoda left the Xbox division in November 2015 for the development of HoloLens and Microsoft Edge, and other projects that could improve means of human interaction, including voice and gesture. Tsunoda's role was filled by Hanno Lemke and Shannon Loftis.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In 2016, Microsoft was perceived as "unifying PC and Xbox One" platforms.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In March 2016, Microsoft canceled development of two major projects: Lionhead's Fable Legends and Press Play's Project Knoxville, shuttering both studios in the following months.<ref name="nZkaX">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Around the same time, changes to Microsoft Studios' website indicated that further studios—BigPark, Good Science Studio, Leap Experience Pioneers (LXP), Function Studios and State of the Art (SOTA)—had been closed, Microsoft Studios clarified that all of them had been consolidated into other Microsoft Studios teams over the past several years.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In September 2017, Spencer was promoted to the senior leadership team, gaining the title of "executive vice-president of gaming".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> At this point, Microsoft Studios directly reported to Nadella.<ref name="wsj profile" /> In January 2018, Matt Booty was promoted from leader in the Minecraft games business to corporate vice-president of Microsoft Studios.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On June 10, 2018, during the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2018, Microsoft announced the acquisitions of Ninja Theory, Playground Games, Undead Labs and Compulsion Games,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> as well as the opening of a new studio in Santa Monica, California, entitled The Initiative, which would be led by the former Crystal Dynamics studio head Darrell Gallagher.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In November, Microsoft Studios announced further acquisitions with Obsidian Entertainment and inXile Entertainment.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Rebranding as Xbox Game Studios (2019–2021)

The studio rebranded itself on February 5, 2019, as Xbox Game Studios, as to reflect Microsoft's intent to use the Xbox brand to support gaming across all the devices it supports.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> At E3 2019, Xbox Game Studios announced it had acquired Double Fine,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and established a new internal studio dedicated to Age of Empires headed by Shannon Loftis, bringing their total studio count to fifteen.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This studio, later named World's Edge,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> does not directly develop any games, but oversees efforts from external studios, such as Relic Entertainment, Forgotten Empires and Tantalus Media, to assure the series is being developed in the right direction, according to creative director Adam Isgreen.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Booty has stated that with studios like Obsidian, Ninja Theory, and Double Fine, which have traditionally supported multiplatform games, they will determine if it makes sense for their future products to be treated as Microsoft-exclusive content for Xbox and Windows computers, or to allow these to be published across multiple platforms. That decision will be based on a "network effect", whether having these games on other platforms will better support the franchise and thus worthwhile for Microsoft to help dedicate resources towards it, such as they had with Minecraft.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Xbox Game Studios has allowed some of the content developed by its studios or that was previously published exclusively for the Xbox and Windows systems to be released on Nintendo systems, notably the Nintendo Switch versions of Cuphead from Studio MDHR and Ori and the Blind Forest from Moon Studios, and allowing for the titular characters from Rare's Banjo-Kazooie into Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. However, the division stated that these releases were generally "existing commitments to other platforms" that they allowed studios to honor, but they otherwise have "no plans to further expand our exclusive first party games to other consoles."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Near the end of 2019, with the combined fifteen studios now under Xbox Game Studios, Booty stated that they now had more games than ever to handle, and were likely not going to acquire any additional studios in the near future, stating "we've been shifting our focus inside Xbox Game Studios from acquisition and growth, to a phase of execution and delivery".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Additionally, as Microsoft started promotion of its fourth-generation of Xbox, including the Xbox Series X, Booty stated that titles developed by Xbox Game Studios in year or two following its release will not be exclusively for the new generation of consoles, but instead will support both Xbox One and the new console, with some games receiving enhanced performance when played on the new console lineup.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Booty said that with the large number of studios they had recently acquired, as well as ongoing external partnerships and their Xbox Game Pass service, the Studios are able to support a "breadth of offerings in the portfolio" designed to attract a large number of players.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Further, in an interview in November 2020, Phil Spencer said during an interview regarding the future of the Xbox brand that he intends to put more focus on outputting RPGs, which had to that point been underserved.<ref name="Phil Spencer RPG interview">Template:Cite web</ref>

Microsoft and ZeniMax Media announced on September 21, 2020, that Microsoft planned to acquire ZeniMax and its family of studios, which include Bethesda Game Studios, Arkane Studios, id Software, MachineGames, Tango Gameworks, and ZeniMax Online Studios, for over Template:USD in cash.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> According to Spencer, the ZeniMax acquisition was intended to give Microsoft a large library of games known around the world, and to expand the library of Xbox Game Pass and XCloud.<ref name="gq xbox">Template:Cite web</ref> However, during 2023 hearings regarding the Federal Trade Commission's concern over the proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft, Spencer said that Sony Interactive Entertainment had made sways at Bethesda to keep Starfield as a PlayStation-exclusive, further prompting Microsoft to purchase Zenimax.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Both U.S. and European Union regulatory agencies approved the acquisition by early March 2021,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the acquisition was formally completed by March 9, 2021.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The total price of the deal was $8.1 billion<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Bethesda Softworks, the primarily publisher for all of ZeniMax's games, remained as an operational unit under Microsoft with the acquisition and retained all its current leadership.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> With the acquisition, future games from the studios will be exclusive to Xbox consoles, but existing commitments to other platforms (such as Arkane Studios' Deathloop and Tango Gameworks' Ghostwire: Tokyo, which are contractually exclusive to PlayStation 5 for a period of 12 months before their release on Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S) will still be honored.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Spencer stated that Game Pass was also fundamental driver for the acquisition.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A preliminary injunction to block the acquisition had been sought in an ongoing class-action lawsuit that ZeniMax faced over Fallout 4, with the plaintiffs in the case arguing that Microsoft could shield ZeniMax's assets from damages should they be found liable after the acquisition.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The ZeniMax Board of Directors was dissolved following the Microsoft purchase.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Acquisition of Activision Blizzard and multiplatform initiatives (2022–present)

Template:Main On January 18, 2022, Microsoft announced its intent to acquire Activision Blizzard in an all-cash deal valued at $68.7 billion. Microsoft stated that this acquisition would make it the third-largest gaming company by revenue, following Tencent and Sony. With the announcement, Microsoft also announced a major change to its corporate structure, with Phil Spencer becoming CEO of the new division Microsoft Gaming, with Matt Booty leading Xbox Game Studios under it. Once approved, Activision Blizzard would then become a subdivision of Microsoft Gaming.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=":4">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The deal was cleared by various national regulators by October 13, 2023, with Microsoft closing the deal the same day.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

During litigation on the merger with the United States Federal Trade Commission, internal documents from Microsoft Template:Circa show strong interest in re-acquiring Bungie, or acquiring Sega's game development companies, Supergiant Games, Niantic, Inc., Thunderful Group, Zynga, IO Interactive, Scopely, or Playrix as part of Xbox Game Studios,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> as well as publisher Square Enix to help bolster its Asian presence and mobile market share.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In January 2023, Microsoft laid off 10,000 employees, which represented about 5% of its global workforce. Included in those layoffs were many employees from 343 Industries, The Coalition, and Bethesda Game Studios.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On October 26, 2023, Microsoft announced the promotion of several employees in the company, including Sarah Bond being promoted to president of Xbox, overseeing all Xbox platform, business, and hardware work, and Matt Booty promoted from president of Xbox to president of Game Content and Studios, including the new responsibility of overseeing ZeniMax and Bethesda, with Jamie Leder still running Zenimax as a limited integration entity, but now reporting to Matt.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the wake of Matt Booty's promotion, Alan Hartman, then the head of Turn 10, was subsequently promoted to head of Xbox Game Studios.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On October 6, 2024, 343 Industries officially announced their rebranding as Halo Studios, additionally confirming that multiple Halo games were in development and that said projects would now use Unreal Engine 5 as opposed to the proprietary Slipspace Engine that powered Halo Infinite.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On October 14, Rare creative lead Craig Duncan was announced to be succeeding Alan Hartman as head of Xbox Game Studios beginning in November 2024, with Hartman retiring after a three-decade tenure at Microsoft.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In July 2025, Microsoft Gaming performed a business restructuring ahead of the new financial year, which resulted in layoffs at Xbox Game Studios Rare, Compulsion Games, Undead Labs and Turn 10 Studios.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The latter, who conceived and developed the Forza Motorsport series, was reported to have lost almost half of its workforce and was anticipated to be restructured as a support studio for MotorsportTemplate:'s sister series Forza Horizon and developments for the ForzaTech engine, according to former content coordinator Fred Russell.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In addition, Rare's action-adventure game Everwild ceased production,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> while Microsoft also canceled the Perfect Dark reboot and closed its developer The Initiative simultaneously.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Alongside EverwildTemplate:'s cancelation, Rare veteran and designer Gregg Mayles also departed the company after 35 years, alongside producer Louise O'Connor.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Over 2024 and 2025, a series of video games published by Microsoft Gaming divisions, most notably Xbox Game Studios' titles, were released on PlayStation and Nintendo consoles under an initiative to pivot focus from the Xbox series of consoles and eventually cease to produce exclusive titles for the consoles like Sega.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Xbox Game Studios had also released Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Nintendo 64 video games on the Nintendo Switch Online service in 2024, all of whom were developed by Rare and in some cases, formerly published by Nintendo.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Studios

Name	Headquarters	Founded	Acquired	Notable releases
The Coalition	Vancouver	2010	—	Gears of War series
Compulsion Games	Montreal	2009	2018	Contrast, We Happy Few, South of Midnight
Double Fine	San Francisco	2000	2019	Psychonauts series, Brütal Legend, Broken Age, Keeper
Halo Studios	Redmond, Washington	2007	—	Halo series
inXile Entertainment	Tustin, California	2002	2018	The Bard's Tale series, Wasteland series, Clockwork Revolution
Mojang Studios	Stockholm	2009	2014	Minecraft series
Ninja Theory	Cambridge	2000	2018	Kung Fu Chaos, Hellblade series, Bleeding Edge
Obsidian Entertainment	Irvine, California	2003	2018	Pillars of Eternity series, The Outer Worlds series, Grounded series
Playground Games	Leamington Spa	2010	2018	Forza Horizon series, Fable
Rare	Twycross	1985	2002	Battletoads series, Killer Instinct series, Banjo-Kazooie series, Conker series, Perfect Dark series, Viva Piñata series, Sea of Thieves
Turn 10 Studios	Redmond, Washington	2001	—	Forza Motorsport series
Undead Labs	Seattle	2009	2018	State of Decay series
World's Edge	Redmond, Washington	2019	—	Age of Empires series
Xbox Game Studios Publishing	Redmond, Washington	2000	—	—

Former

Sold or spun off

• Bungie — Halo series — Spun off in 2007<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Indie Games — Links series — Sold to Take-Two Interactive in 2004
• Lift London — Removed from Microsoft's games business in 2019<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Twisted Pixel Games — The Gunstringer, LocoCycle, The Maw, 'Splosion Man — Spun off in 2015
• WingNut Interactive — Peter Jackson's joint venture game studio — Sold to WingNut Films<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Closed or consolidated

• Aces Game Studio — Microsoft Flight Simulator series — Closed
• BigPark — Kinect Joy Ride, Kinect Sports: Season Two, Joy Ride Turbo — Consolidated
• Carbonated Games — Closed
• Digital Anvil — Brute Force, Freelancer, Starlancer — Consolidated<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Ensemble Studios — Age of Empires series, Age of Mythology series, Halo Wars — Closed
• FASA Studio — Crimson Skies series, MechAssault series, MechWarrior series, Shadowrun — Closed
• Good Science Studio — Kinect Adventures, Kinect Fun Labs, Kinect Star Wars — Consolidated
• Hired Gun — Halo 2 PC port — Consolidated<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• The Initiative —Perfect Dark — Closed
• Lionhead Studios — Fable series, Black & White series — Closed
• Microsoft Game Studios Japan — Blue Dragon series, Every Party, Lost Odyssey, Magatama, Phantom Dust, Shenmue II Xbox port, True Fantasy Live Online — Closed
• Microsoft Studios Victoria — Closed
• Press Play — Max: The Curse of Brotherhood, Kalimba — Closed
• Team Dakota — Project Spark — Consolidated
• Xbox Entertainment Studios — Closed
• Xbox Live Productions — Consolidated

External links

• Template:Official website