Report: Microsoft and Activision Blizzard launch studio focused on franchise spinoffs

A new Windows Central report claims Microsoft and Activision Blizzard quietly opened a new studio. Its purpose? Developing and releasing spinoffs of popular Activision Blizzard franchises.

The outlet spotted several King employees updating their LinkedIn profiles reflecting the shift to a new team. Further, their sources allege this studio is tasked with making smaller double-A games, like how Nintendo treats Mario and Zelda.

At time of writing, it's unclear what systems these hypothetical titles will release for, given King's status as a mobile studio. Likewise, it's unknown what ABK franchise would be this supposed new team's debut project.

Can a double-A focus give Xbox a win?

Why launch a smaller studio inside a bigger one? Because making games is expensive!

Triple-A titles have become infamously more costly to make, and not all of them sell enough to break even. Smaller, double-A titles provide a reprieve for Microsoft, and let it put marquis games out at a faster clip than its tentpoles.

In the case of Activision Blizzard, this move is even more noteworthy since Microsoft previously expressed interest in reviving the publisher's long dormant franchises. Building out bigger series like Overwatch and Diablo would be a boon, too.

Along with Nintendo, this move resembles Riot's strategy with League of Legends. Third-party studios like Airship Syndicate and Digital Sun released numerous spinoff titles under the Riot Forge banner before it was shut down this past January.

Should this new studio be true, it may result in a more robust and consistent release catalog for Microsoft. But one question will remain: why couldn't Tango Gameworks be a part of this reported double-A push?

Windows Central's full report can be read here.