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After word of Xbox’s looming “reset” emerged last week in the form of a letter published by Xbox’s Asha Sharma and Matt Booty, Kotaku is reporting that the first studio on the chopping block might be Compulsion Games, the studio behind titles including Contrast, We Happy Few, and South of Midnight.
Nothing has been formally confirmed by Xbox; however, Kotaku’s report has been updated to indicate that negotiations are ongoing between the two, leading to speculation that Compulsion Games could be attempting to buy back its independence, just as Toys for Bob did a couple of years ago.
South of Midnight was the recipient of several awards, including a Peabody and a BAFTA. It also took home Games for Impact from The Game Awards last year.
Compulsion Games was acquired in 2018 as part of a buying blitz by Xbox, which, at the same time, acquired Undead Labs, Playground Games, and Ninja Theory.
Xbox announced the formation of The Initiative, their quadruple-A studio that worked on the ill-fated Perfect Dark reboot, at the same time; however, it was shuttered as part of significant cuts and layoffs at Xbox last year.
