“Begun the console wars have,” is what Yoda would’ve said if he didn’t live in a galaxy far, far away (or if he was real). With Sony acquiring Bungie studios for $3.6 billion and Microsoft making a record-breaking deal to acquire Activision for $68.7 billion, the two giants seem to be in a tug-of-war to pull consumers on either side. That said, in case you don’t want to be a part of this skirmish, here are seven studios that we hope will continue to play for both sides. 

NINTENDO

Once upon a time, Microsoft executives were laughed out of Nintendo’s offices when they approached the company for a buyout. With IPs like Mario and Legend of Zelda under its belt, the Japanese giant has a staggering market cap of $54.89 billion. With the success of the Nintendo Switch and a host of new IPs coming soon, it has little reason to cash out. 

FROM SOFTWARE

Perhaps one of the very few studios that can do no wrong at the moment, From Software has seen a series of hits, since the inception of Dark Souls. With the success of Sekiro, and the increasing hype behind Elden Ring, Hidetaka Miyazaki’s firm is the new hot property in town. However, technically Sony does own 1.93 percent of the share in From Software’s parent company, Kadokawa. But rest assured, this deal does not create any obligation to make From Software titles exclusive to Playstation. 

ELECTRONIC ARTS

A company we all love to hate, EA is arguably the biggest name in the industry when it comes to sports-centric games. With FIFA, Madden, NBA 2K to name a few, acquiring the American brand would make complete sense to both Sony and Microsoft. However, with its well-oiled machinery of publishing franchise games every year, we doubt it has any reason to sell.  

UBISOFT

This is the type of acquisition that is in the realm of possibility but it would still send shockwaves if it happened. With tried and tested series like Assassins Creed and Far Cry, the French company seems to be doing well for itself. It even fended off a takeover from Vivendi a couple of years ago. However, with a fairly “low” market cap of $7.4 billion, we won’t be surprised if either Sony or Microsoft are tempted. 

CAPCOM Yes yes, with IPs like Resident Evil and Devil May Cry, the Japanese company seems to be the ideal crop for the picking. In fact, we wouldn’t have been surprised if Sony did exactly that a couple of years ago. However, with the recent success of Resident Evil: Village and the re-emergence of the DmC franchise, Capcom might fend off any take over attempts.  

TAKE-TWO

The owners of Rockstar Games who’ve put out iconic franchises like Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption are perhaps the least likely candidate to be bought on the list (don’t take our word for it, though). In fact, before Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Take-Two bought Farmville developer, Zynga, for a whopping $12.7 billion. 

EPIC GAMES

If there’s any worthy competitor to the big two, apart from Nintendo, it’s Epic Games. Technically, the makers of Fortnite are largely owned by Tencent, a big name in itself. With a market cap of $42 billion and still growing, we don’t see either Sony or Microsoft coming calling.