Microsoft is once again making headlines for potentially acquiring a slew of renowned game studios — not that anyone’s surprised! This, of course, is an obvious attempt at bolstering their first-party line-up. They have more than enough money to work with and are obviously going all-out in their battle with Sony and Nintendo, so these huge — one might say tectonic — moves make a lot of sense. We also knew that it was only a matter of time before they made a slew of new acquisitions and, if the rumor mill is to be believed, it seems that Microsoft have settled on the three following studios: Crytek, IO Interactive, and Avalanche.

Talk about a demonstration of force!

These are all highly successful studios known for their impressive output. Crytek, of course, is best known for Crysis — a series of first-person shooters that are as legendary as they come, and probably Microsoft’s biggest pick-up. They also made Ryse: Son of Rome, although it’s fair to say that that launch title didn’t make nearly as big of a splash as they had hoped.

IO Interactive, on the other hand, is synonymous with the Hitman series along with the Kane and Lynch franchise — an IP that has a surprisingly staunch fanbase. They also happen to be working on a James Bond video game, one that is tentatively named “Project 007.” That’s about as great a pairing (developer + IP) as it gets! The folks over at IO have been making excellent stealth games for what feels like an eternity!

Last but certainly not least, we have Avalanche. They might not be as successful as the two studios mentioned above, but they’ve still had a couple of fantastic releases (most notably the Just Cause series).

If Microsoft has, indeed, acquired these three developers, they have then pushed the number of their first-party Xbox Game Studios to 26! That, in short, is simply astounding. Whether these three studios specifically are the ones that have been acquired still remains to be seen, but they definitely fit the bill in regards to what Microsoft is after.

With 26 studios under their banner, Microsoft will be primed and ready to take on the likes of Sony and Nintendo, both of which are known for their exceptional first-party releases. This Redmond-based tech giant already has the edge when it comes to services and sheer console horsepower, and now all they need is a slew of releases that’ll allow them to seal the deal and enter the upcoming holiday season “swinging for the fences!”