Earlier today, word broke that Microsoft is reportedly planning to close Compulsion Games–the studio behind South of Midnight, We Happy Few, and Contrast–as part of a larger round of layoffs and studio closures. Now, there’s word that a handful of Xbox Studios’ smaller developers are taking some steps to avoid that fate. Bloomberg is reporting that Compulsion, Double Fine, Ninja Theory, and “several other studios” have started negotiations with Microsoft to spin off their companies from Xbox Studios and avert…