Short answers, pulled from the story.
Xbox Game Studios was originally established around March 2000, when Microsoft spun the division out of its internal Games Group. It was first named Microsoft Games, then Microsoft Game Studios in 2001, Microsoft Studios in 2011, and Xbox Game Studios in 2019.
Microsoft rebranded the division as Xbox Game Studios on the 5th of February 2019. The company said the new name reflected its intent to use the Xbox brand to support gaming across every device it supports.
Microsoft announced an all-cash deal to acquire Activision Blizzard, valued at $68.7 billion, on the 18th of January 2022. Regulators cleared the deal by the 13th of October 2023, and Microsoft closed it that same day.
Craig Duncan, previously Rare's creative lead, became head of Xbox Game Studios in November 2024, succeeding Alan Hartman. Xbox Game Studios sits within the wider Xbox division, led by chief executive Asha Sharma.
Xbox Game Studios has acquired studios including Rare in 2002, Lionhead Studios in 2006, and Mojang Studios in 2014, the maker of Minecraft. In 2018 it acquired Ninja Theory, Playground Games, Undead Labs, Compulsion Games, Obsidian Entertainment and inXile Entertainment, followed by Double Fine in 2019.
Microsoft acquired Bungie in June 2000 while the studio was developing Halo: Combat Evolved, which became a launch title for the original Xbox in 2001. Bungie split from Microsoft amicably in 2007 to become an independent company, with Microsoft retaining the rights to the Halo franchise.