Compulsion Games Optimistic After Xbox Buyout: "We're Setting the Team Up for Success"

One of the outcomes of the recent Xbox Reset that also resulted in 3,200 job cuts is that Xbox Game Studios cut ties with a handful of its recently acquired game studios. Compulsion Games, the studio behind We Happy Few and South of Midnight, is one of the game studios that became independent again after what has been revealed to be a management buyout.

Following the buyout, Compulsion Games CEO, Guillaume Provost, commented in an interview with GamesBeat that the studio is currently working through the legal work to get publishing rights back for all of its IPs. Provost confirmed that the studio is aiming to be self-sufficient by being selective with which projects the team will tackle.

He explained that the game studio is entering the market in a difficult time, but notes that this may not necessarily be to the studio's detriment, since it teaches teams how to operate in difficult times. He also noted that the game studio is "getting a sense for what the management team is interested in doing and building," going on to say that "I just want to make sure that we're setting the team up for success. We're going to take things slow. We're going to meet with everyone."

I'm fairly confident we can get to that place if the team's heart and priorities are aligned with running a profitable business.

We're excited to gain back the rights of our intellectual properties and to keep making interesting, weird stories and weird worlds

Starting ventures when times are tough means the companies start to build the right bones. They understand the need for being thrifty and lean because of the economic context. I think we'll have really solid bones. This is a similar climate to when I started my studio originally