Breaking: Microsoft purchasing Zenimax for $7.5 billion.

BrawlMan

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And now I got an Xbox fanboy that works at GameStop claiming how Micrsoft is doing "better" than Sony, because they're buying up all of these companies. Okay, Microsoft can still fuck up. Remember Rare?
 

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I'm slightly tickled at the fact that the descendant studios of Black Isle and the Fallout IP are all now under the same roof. Though I won't hold my breath for any sorta homecoming for the Fallout franchise.

Obsidian seems to have their hands full with their own stuff - with Grounded, Avowed and whatever else. I reckon InXile will also keep doing what they are doing.
 

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Eh... I would really only care about Arkane potentially no longer releasing games on PlayStation because of this. Even then, they're available on PC anyway. Bethesda as a developer is so overrated. If I wanna play some fantasy RPG, it ain't gonna be Elder Scrolls and if I wanna play a "Fallout" game, I'll play Wasteland.
 

hanselthecaretaker

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Ok so I just did a VERY rough search of the various Bethesda titles, and used the lower end of the average of players using those titles as indicated by steam sales. Most of their big titles ranged from 5-10 million users, others were 1-2 million. I used the lower number, and came up with, on the low end, 38 million copies of their library sold, just on steam. And I was even more conservative and just gave their titles a blanket $40 US value, even though plenty of them were sold at $59.99, and the total money made, off those very rough, LOW numbers, is about 1.5 billion. Keep in mind, a LOT of their titles were in the 5-10 million sold range, and it was titles I know for a fact were $59.99 at release.

And that was just the front page of 3 pages of their titles released. I just redid the numbers, being way more optimistic, and used the higher values, and with roughly 85 million sales, on only steam, and using the full price number of $59.99, they made roughly $5 billion US. And that's not counting consoles.

Factor in the games that have an online store component, and other things, it seems fairly reasonable to me, that Bethesda has easily made that much money, if not more over the years.

So yeah, 7.5 billion on a company that you feel confident will continue to make games that sell? Yeah, doesn't surprise me at all.

Because as much as people get nearly sexual gratification from hating Bethesda for 76, they couldn't stop sucking their company dick for how much they loved DOOM 2016, and FO 4 sold MILLIONS of copies.

Bethesda know how to make games that a lot of people enjoy playing, and have been for many years. To call them shit because they really fucked up with one title that was vastly reviled, is frankly stupid. But hey, it's gamers we're talking about, so stupid flip-flopping of opinions and loyalty will happen all the time. Pretty much on a turnover time table equivalent to "the next time they release a game we like/hate."
Zenimax’s total equity was about 2.5 billion back in the 2016. Not sure how much has changed since then, but either Microsoft doesn’t care to bargain or we’re not getting the full story of what the extra 5 billion gets them.
 

CriticalGaming

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Pre-orders are live for the Xbox Series S and X and......they aren't sold out. In fact they are quite easily available. Either Microsoft made a SHITLOAD of pre-orders available, or......people don't care or trust microsoft right now.
 

CriticalGaming

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And PS5 pre-orders are already filled up. I am not sure it reflects anything on Microsoft's current strategy though, but rather a wariness due to how mishandled the XBone launch was and the poor follow up and support the XBone has been for most of this console generation. The XBone is a joke and even if MS are now trying to rebuild the brand, it takes time to make people forget the neglect and look at the new offerings with games pass, exclusives etc..

MS has a long way to go before they get the Xbox brand back to where it was at the height of the 360. My main concern is that MS are big enough that they can probably brute force a de facto monopoly just by diverting funds to its gaming business. Which is what this deal comes off as.
That's the thing too about them buying up Zenimax as well. There are a lot of Studio's that Microsoft owns, but where are the games? When was the last new IP from Microsoft, hell when was the last good sequel? Gears 5?

Microsoft actually has to start putting out things that people want to play on Xbox. Otherwise there strategy of giving people a bunch of shit on gamepass is irrelevant. Backwards compatibility only survives if there is also forwards compatibility, if that makes sense.

Not to mention the last two major products from Bethesda were Fallout 4 and Fallout 76 and neither of those games were exactly stellar.

And if you factor in ID softward, then I guess Microsoft gets yet another FPS game developer on their side. But someone should really point out to them that there are other types of games besides shooters. Gears, Halo, State of Decay, Crackdown, now Doom. Everything is a shooter.
 

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I mean bethesda stuff usually can run on a potato if you minimize the settings. And who knows where you'll be by the time Evil 3 comes out. Have faith my dude.
I appreciate the encouragement and effort, but it's not exactly about faith. Most PC games just don't interest me, aside from a few smaller ones here and there. I've always been a console gamer. It is what I prefer. I played my fair share of doom, serious sam, Max payne, Oddworld back in the day. A few others as well, but that's about it.
 

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That's the thing too about them buying up Zenimax as well. There are a lot of Studio's that Microsoft owns, but where are the games? When was the last new IP from Microsoft, hell when was the last good sequel? Gears 5?

Microsoft actually has to start putting out things that people want to play on Xbox. Otherwise there strategy of giving people a bunch of shit on gamepass is irrelevant. Backwards compatibility only survives if there is also forwards compatibility, if that makes sense.

Not to mention the last two major products from Bethesda were Fallout 4 and Fallout 76 and neither of those games were exactly stellar.

And if you factor in ID softward, then I guess Microsoft gets yet another FPS game developer on their side. But someone should really point out to them that there are other types of games besides shooters. Gears, Halo, State of Decay, Crackdown, now Doom. Everything is a shooter.
Tell that to the blind Xbox Fanboy GameStop employee I talked to last night
All that and some of the customers that entered the store. One customer is literally trying to get getting the X-series X only for the sports games and forza. He don't even give a shit about Halo. Neither his friend with him either.
 
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CriticalGaming

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Tell that to the blind Xbox Fanboy GameStop employee I talked to last night
All that and some of the customers that entered the store. One customer is literally trying to get getting the X-series X only for the spores games and forza. He don't even give a shit about Halo. Neither his friend with him either.
Spores games? That fucking shitty evolution sim from like 10 years ago?
 

CriticalGaming

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That was supposed to be sports. Freaking Google speak.
Well that makes more sense. Yes there is a volume of people who play video games, but don't really have much interest in gaming. They play sports games (which Forza technically also is) and Call of Duty or Halo or something of the sort, but otherwise they play nothing else. They don't know about the industry, they don't know what the different companies are doing, and they frankly don't care.

Which is why there are still people who swear by XBox even though their sports games are on every system so it really doesn't matter what console they buy. But it's easier for them to just keep getting the new version of whatever console they originally got. If they had a 360, then they'll still buy xbox's until the end of xbox or they stop gaming entirely.

Sometimes it is hard for us hardcore gamers to remember that. (And if you are on a video game forum you are hardcore end of story). We read the news, we watch what company's do, we pay attention to a wide array of games coming out, we have our fingers on the pulse because this is our passion hobby. We care about it more than most, and sometimes that disconnects us. Everytime we ***** about lootboxes, we forget that the casual whatever crowd is buying them in buckets and that's why they exist. While it frustrates us, that's just what the reality is. It's also why it's so fun to watch those casual players take notice and get pissed off at things like Battlefront 2 and the like, because even the ignorant eventually notice when something is wrong.

I'm sure the xbox will still sell plenty of units. The Xbox sold like 50 million consoles still. Which is nothing to scoff at honestly. It's the 14th best selling console of all time. Which is both a product of brand name loyalty from casual gamers, and also a reflection of just how big video game audiences have become.

EDIT: As I wrote this another thought occurred to me as a fundamental problem with Microsoft's path to success. If they wanted to really compete with Sony, Microsoft needs to break into the Japanese market. If you look at the vast majority of first party Microsoft IP's they fall under two catagories, shooters and racers right? And you know what games Japanese companies almost never make? Shooters and Racers. Seriously, when was the last Japanese FPS game? The last Japanese Racing/sports game? Gamers in Japan don't fucking care about that shit, which is why Microsoft needs to develop something ANYTHING else to appeal to other gaming audiences.

Seriously as badass as Doom2016 was. It only sold 6100 copies in Japan opening week https://www.playstationlifestyle.ne...mains-1st-homefront-outsells-doom-battleborn/ Doom did go on to sell a total of 40k copies to date in japan. But a simple google search shows that the Japanese market doesn't play FPS games like that.

Meanwhile Final Fantasy 7 Remake sold over 700k copies in the first week in japan alone. Which is Sony exclusive.

Furthermore, out of 50 MILLION units of Xbox One sold. Japan is only responsible for 100k of those.

And Microsoft admittedly is fighting a loosing battle in Japan for sure, because I'm sure Japanese customers are always going to prefer Japanese companies when possible like Sony and Nintendo. However that doesn't mean they are resistant to it. For example the 360 sold almost 2 MILLION units in Japan. That's a decent market, but remember the 360 had JRPG's on it, as well as a wide variety of shit that appeals to a much bigger audience than the Xbone had and more than the Xbox SX appears to be moving towards as well.

Remember this, if Microsoft could create games that appeal to Japan, that means it will also appeal to more customers around the world, because it's that variety of sweet exclusives that diversify your audiences and make your sales grow. Something that Microsoft continues to fail on. They seem to feel like they should be successful simply because the 360 was successful. They are even going so far as to fall back on their 360 library to try and entice people again. "Hey guys remember when we used to be awesome? Subscribe and replay those memories."

***** we ain't Pepperidge Farms.

Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to. Make the future better Microsoft.
 

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Well that makes more sense. Yes there is a volume of people who play video games, but don't really have much interest in gaming. They play sports games (which Forza technically also is) and Call of Duty or Halo or something of the sort, but otherwise they play nothing else. They don't know about the industry, they don't know what the different companies are doing, and they frankly don't care.
These two guys in particular are somewhat aware of goes on in the industry. One of the guys didn't like the last couple of 2K sports games and I told him you're going to keep seeing that for a long while. All your getting is a roster update and them removing features that are already in the game to begin with and selling it as DLC on top $60. he gave it some thought but not enough to deter him from still wanting the newest sports game or trying to pre-order an X series x.

And Microsoft admittedly is fighting a loosing battle in Japan for sure, because I'm sure Japanese customers are always going to prefer Japanese companies when possible like Sony and Nintendo. However that doesn't mean they are resistant to it. For example the 360 sold almost 2 MILLION units in Japan. That's a decent market, but remember the 360 had JRPG's on it, as well as a wide variety of shit that appeals to a much bigger audience than the Xbone had and more than the Xbox SX appears to be moving towards as well.
Ironically enough, the OG Xbox era is where Microsoft tried the most to appeal to Japan. Despite the 360 sales in japan, it was mostly a fair weather effort. Yhe only reason they sold so much to begin with, was because the PS3 was so expensive and at the beginning. Once the price dropped happened, you started seeing way more sales of PS3s in Japan than 360s.

Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to. Make the future better Microsoft
Well it is important to remember the past good and bad, you should not obsess over it. Or blind you only to the "good times/good ol days". Also, I recommend you don't take morality advice from someone who obsess over the past themselves and pretend to act like they don't care about it. Because he sure as hell didn't let the past die, despite claiming it.
 
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hanselthecaretaker

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Well that makes more sense. Yes there is a volume of people who play video games, but don't really have much interest in gaming. They play sports games (which Forza technically also is) and Call of Duty or Halo or something of the sort, but otherwise they play nothing else. They don't know about the industry, they don't know what the different companies are doing, and they frankly don't care.

Which is why there are still people who swear by XBox even though their sports games are on every system so it really doesn't matter what console they buy. But it's easier for them to just keep getting the new version of whatever console they originally got. If they had a 360, then they'll still buy xbox's until the end of xbox or they stop gaming entirely.

Sometimes it is hard for us hardcore gamers to remember that. (And if you are on a video game forum you are hardcore end of story). We read the news, we watch what company's do, we pay attention to a wide array of games coming out, we have our fingers on the pulse because this is our passion hobby. We care about it more than most, and sometimes that disconnects us. Everytime we ***** about lootboxes, we forget that the casual whatever crowd is buying them in buckets and that's why they exist. While it frustrates us, that's just what the reality is. It's also why it's so fun to watch those casual players take notice and get pissed off at things like Battlefront 2 and the like, because even the ignorant eventually notice when something is wrong.

I'm sure the xbox will still sell plenty of units. The Xbox sold like 50 million consoles still. Which is nothing to scoff at honestly. It's the 14th best selling console of all time. Which is both a product of brand name loyalty from casual gamers, and also a reflection of just how big video game audiences have become.

EDIT: As I wrote this another thought occurred to me as a fundamental problem with Microsoft's path to success. If they wanted to really compete with Sony, Microsoft needs to break into the Japanese market. If you look at the vast majority of first party Microsoft IP's they fall under two catagories, shooters and racers right? And you know what games Japanese companies almost never make? Shooters and Racers. Seriously, when was the last Japanese FPS game? The last Japanese Racing/sports game? Gamers in Japan don't fucking care about that shit, which is why Microsoft needs to develop something ANYTHING else to appeal to other gaming audiences.

Seriously as badass as Doom2016 was. It only sold 6100 copies in Japan opening week https://www.playstationlifestyle.ne...mains-1st-homefront-outsells-doom-battleborn/ Doom did go on to sell a total of 40k copies to date in japan. But a simple google search shows that the Japanese market doesn't play FPS games like that.

Meanwhile Final Fantasy 7 Remake sold over 700k copies in the first week in japan alone. Which is Sony exclusive.

Furthermore, out of 50 MILLION units of Xbox One sold. Japan is only responsible for 100k of those.

And Microsoft admittedly is fighting a loosing battle in Japan for sure, because I'm sure Japanese customers are always going to prefer Japanese companies when possible like Sony and Nintendo. However that doesn't mean they are resistant to it. For example the 360 sold almost 2 MILLION units in Japan. That's a decent market, but remember the 360 had JRPG's on it, as well as a wide variety of shit that appeals to a much bigger audience than the Xbone had and more than the Xbox SX appears to be moving towards as well.

Remember this, if Microsoft could create games that appeal to Japan, that means it will also appeal to more customers around the world, because it's that variety of sweet exclusives that diversify your audiences and make your sales grow. Something that Microsoft continues to fail on. They seem to feel like they should be successful simply because the 360 was successful. They are even going so far as to fall back on their 360 library to try and entice people again. "Hey guys remember when we used to be awesome? Subscribe and replay those memories."

***** we ain't Pepperidge Farms.

Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to. Make the future better Microsoft.
Microsoft doesn’t even care about putting money into domestic studios (building them, not buying) or building their portfolio beyond the big three (Halo, Gears, Forza), so it’s beyond a long shot they’ll care to tailor a strategy for anyone overseas, especially Japan.

But John Carmack is geeked.


Probably GabeN too.


Because they’re so engrained in the Microsoft ecosystem that it’s virtually an instinctive choice.
 
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hanselthecaretaker

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Sounds like Sony could still be getting table scraps best case, at least with the higher profile IP’s.
 

CriticalGaming

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Sounds like Sony could still be getting table scraps best case, at least with the higher profile IP’s.
It would be fair play to make shit timed exclusives at the least. Though the games will be on PC either way which is where Bethesda games thrive thanks to modding.