Microsoft has been on an acquisition spree for the past few years. Bethesda Softworks is the obvious crown jewel, but in recent years it has also acquired developers such as Mojang, Double Fine, Ninja Theory, Compulsion, inXile, and Obsidian. While the Microsoft Store is still a mess (although it may finally improve with Windows 11), Microsoft itself is growing by leaps and bounds as a first-party publisher.

PlayStation Studios chief Hermen Hulst recently took Microsoft to task a bit for its freewheeling ways, telling GQ that Sony is not in an acquisition "arms race."

"We're not going around and just making random acquisitions," she said. We're targeting teams that we know well."

Not surprisingly, Microsoft's Xbox boss Phil Spencer has a very different view: in a recent interview with IGN, Spencer explained why he thinks acquisitions are a good thing, after acknowledging that some question whether they are good for the industry .

"Starting up a new studio, frankly, starting up any small business is a very risky proposition. Launching a video game studio is even more so. And I think it's short-sighted to say that if a team is going to take the risk of actually starting a new company, starting a studio, building it up over a period of years, building value into it, then they shouldn't sell." [Spencer said that the opportunity to "realize the value of what they have created" through a buyout is one of the reasons why some people take the risk of starting a new studio, and that without that opportunity, there will simply be studios that are not established, which in turn means there will be games that are not made He stated that this is the case.

"It doesn't mean that every team has to sell their studio, but I think it's a natural and healthy thing in this industry for certain teams to start up studios," he said. But getting to the point where they can pull it off and create real value is a risk-filled journey for them, and I will always celebrate when a team realizes that value through acquisition or becomes a huge independent success."

Interestingly, Spencer said that Microsoft is "always looking for places where we can continue to build our first-party capabilities," but also suggested that the company may not focus on mainstream games in the future.

"Looking at the portfolio, I think there are still opportunities for more family-oriented content," he said, "and given the geographic diversity of first-party studios, I think there is still work to be done there."

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said in September 2020 that the company was not done acquiring game studios, and indeed Bloomberg reported in November 2020 that Microsoft was looking for a Japanese studio. Spencer, however, denied the claim a few days later, stating that while he "has an affinity for Japanese studios," to his knowledge Microsoft is not actively looking for a Japanese studio.

Thanks, VGC.