Microsoft`s in-house video game unit has acquired Lionhead Studios, the British developer started by the famed game maker Peter Molyneux, in a deal that gives Microsoft exclusive access to one of the industry`s leading creators.
Most recently, Lionhead was responsible for Fable. Released on Microsoft`s Xbox platform, the game has sold more than 2 million units worldwide.
Molyneux is also known for innovative "God games" such as Black & White that give players omnipotent power over a world.
The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Microsoft Game Studios said Lionhead would now develop exclusively for the Xbox 360 and Windows-based PCs.
Video game publishers frequently acquire the external developers that are responsible for their hit franchises, not only to increase their own in-house development talent, but also to cut down on milestone and royalty payments that independent developers command as part of making a game.
Microsoft had previously acquired high-profile developers such as Bungie Studios, maker of the Halo franchise, and Rare, which made some of Nintendo`s most popular games of the 1990s.
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