Ip for merch sales. Activision/blizzard is ass at merch.

For IP hording

Intellectual property is a resource. Corporations are in the business of hoarding resources to extort ration at a price. Microsoft doesn’t care about the studios. They care about owning ip.

To kill competition

Because that is part of the cycle of collapse and shock doctrine these corporations rely on to keep from being clowned on by moderately competent smaller game studios who actually are excited by the challenge to convince people to buy their art instead of shoving derivative slop down their customer’s throat as the cinematic monochoice for entertainment product category no. 1254…

If you mow the grass, the longterm benefit of preserving a strict monoculture is well worth the temporary mass destruction (from the perspective of the person driving the mower, it smells quite pleasant actually).

To be clear, the blades of grass are the smaller game studios on Microsoft’s lawn.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shock_Doctrine

I am glad Tango Gameworks found a new home. As for Xbox, I am no longer buying any new games for it and I am boycotting Microsoft for a myriad of reasons.

Probably the same idea EA had