https://www.polygon.com/e3/2018/6/10/17447264/ninja-theory-microsoft-acquisition

One of the bigger surprises in Microsoft’s E3 press conference wasn’t about a new game, but a new game studio. Or, to be specific, a new life for an old game studio. Ninja Theory — the storied developer behind everything from the ambitious Enslaved: Odyssey to the West to the controversial DmC: Devil May Cry to the critically acclaimed indie release, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice — is now an internal Microsoft game studio, alongside names like Minecraft’s Mojang and Sea of Thieves’ Rare.

The studio’s founder and chief creative director, Tameem Antoniades, shared some background on the decision to leave independent life behind and become a first-party studio in a video posted to the team’s YouTube account. Instead of coming off as defensive or the kind of PR-directed mea culpa you may expect, Antoniades — along with commercial director, Dominic Matthews — offer a passionate explanation for why a studio like theirs may be interested, or even desire, a corporate patron to facilitate their projects.