Microsoft at one point had considered acquiring SEGA, Bungie, IO Interactive, and more. This is based on an email sent by Xbox CEO Phil Spencer to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Microsoft CFO Amy Hood in November 2020.

Microsoft’s ongoing attempts to buy Activision Blizzard for $69 billion have forced the company to divulge all kinds of details on how Xbox operates behind the scenes. Case made: Microsoft has been forced to share internal emails, in which Phil Spencer is basically weighing up the advantages of buying both SEGA’s game studios and Bungie, and others.

“We believe that Sega has built a well-balanced portfolio of games across segments with global geographic appeal, and will help us accelerate Xbox Game Pass both on and off-console,” reads the email from Spencer via The Verge.

Spencer added, “The global appeal of SEGA’s beloved IP will help expand Xbox Game Pass’s reach to new audiences around the world, most notably in Asia, where localized content is critical to success.”

it’s unclear how Nadella responded to Spencer’s request, SEGA was also listed on an “M&A final watchlist” document from April 2021. Among the eight studios listed in the final watchlist are Bungie, IO Interactive, Zynga, Thunderful, Supergiant Games, Scopely, and Playrix.

Xbox Game Pass is the key reason for such an “approach”, with Spencer looking to “accelerate” the subscription service. This was back in 2020, before Game Pass had seemingly plateaued in terms of user numbers.

Bungie is now owned by Sony and Zynga is owned by Take-Two Interactive. Microsoft’s internal document on Bungie states the “acquisition of Bungie will include securing valuable IP, Destiny (and its community) and integration of its dev & live ops infrastructure into Xbox Game Studios.”

Microsoft is currently focused on acquiring Activision Blizzard.