Microsoft planned to acquire SEGA and Bungie

New information emerging every day reveals that Microsoft made many attempts to include other studios on the platform prior to its Activision-Blizzard acquisition. Among them are two important companies, SEGA and Bungie.

Microsoft planned to acquire SEGA and Bungie

Over the past few years, Xbox has added a few big-name developers to its roster of first-party studios, including Obsidian and Bethesda. New court documents reveal that the list has made attempts to see Sega and Bungie under the umbrella of Microsoft. It was the ongoing litigation that brought these plans to light, particularly involving the US Federal Trade Commission and Microsoft’s attempts to acquire Activision Blizzard. At the heart of these acquisitions is Xbox Game Pass, which Xbox president Phil Spencer continues to highlight as an important part of the company’s future in the changing gaming space.

Following the start of Microsoft’s FTC hearings, official court documents have been released revealing some of the company’s plans to further expand Xbox Game Studios in 2020 with potential Sega and Bungie acquisitions. The documents included excerpts from an email Phil Spencer sent to Microsoft CEO Satya. Nadella and CFO Amy Hood outline why they believe the acquisitions will be beneficial and seek permission to approach Sega with the offer. However, it is unknown whether Spencer has officially reached out to executives at both companies to discuss the possibility of joining Xbox Game Studios.

Bungie was previously acquired by Microsoft, but left the group in 2007 and continued on its way independently. Bungie, which also took part in the important series of Xbox, was bought by Sony last year, allowing productions such as Destiny to come to the PlayStation platform.