Microsoft’s first party portfolio has looked increasingly impressive over the last couple of years, but in recent weeks, with the announcement that all of ZeniMax (and, in turn, Bethesda) will be joining the Xbox Game Studios lineup soon has pushed them over the line from impressive to staggering.
With nearly two dozen first party studios and a healthy list of major AAA franchises under their belt, they’re looking all set to compete with the likes of Sony and Nintendo this generation- but they’re not done yet. Speaking recently in an interview with Bloomberg (which you can view below), Xbox boss Phil Spencer said that Microsoft is still out there looking to acquire more studios and add them to the Xbox Game Studios pipeline, further bolstering their first party lineup.
“Games are what gamers play,” said Spencer. “We build these platforms and services to deliver the best games to gamers everywhere, so we need a great supply of first-party teams. Bethesda nearly doubles the size of our first-party studios, meaning the studios that build games as part of Xbox, and we’re still out there looking for other teams. It’s important that we have a continued supply of great games for our gaming subscription and platforms.”
Currently, Microsoft has 15 first party studios under its belt, and once all the formalities are done and the ZeniMax deal goes through, that number will immediately jump up to 23. Their lineup is looking healthy, to say the least, and the prospect of it becoming even healthier is certainly an intriguing one.
