Microsoft buys Activision/Blizzard for $70B

[BrawlMan]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2022/01/20/xbox-activision-blizzard-phil-spencer/

Microsoft consolidating the video game industry is bad for everyone

Let's explore that icky feeling you had when you read about the Activision acquisition.

www.engadget.com

Fuck off Kotick!

Activision’s CEO wants Xbox to revive Guitar Hero and Skylanders | VGC

Bobby Kotick says Microsoft has the manufacturing capabilities Activision doesn’t…

www.videogameschronicle.com

 

[bluegate]

Fuck off Kotick!

Activision’s CEO wants Xbox to revive Guitar Hero and Skylanders | VGC

Bobby Kotick says Microsoft has the manufacturing capabilities Activision doesn’t…

www.videogameschronicle.com

Maybe if he had pocketed a little less money all these years, the company could have invested in those things, supported them and made them viable...

 

[Gordon_4]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2022/01/20/xbox-activision-blizzard-phil-spencer/

Microsoft consolidating the video game industry is bad for everyone

Let's explore that icky feeling you had when you read about the Activision acquisition.

www.engadget.com

Except, Engadget, I don't have an icky feeling hearing about this merger. Like at all. Presumptuous fucks.

This appears to be a report by Jason Schreier

They are right to fear lay offs, because even if Activision wasn't up to its neck in shit, those would occur if only because of the redundant staff in most corporate sections that MS won't need.

 

[gorfias]

I thought Atari was making crypto currency these days.

I'd not heard that!

Atari actually was developing a new console. It cost something like $400 to play what looked to be 1990 gen games.

But I think this article encapsulates what I think is really going on, especially when you factor in things like "Game Pass". As an old guy with a ton of games collected over the last 25 years (pre PS3 I mostly gave away as I have been gaming at home since early 1980s) it doesn't make that much sense. Might be famous last words but I don't think I'll ever run out of things to play. But if I were just entering my teens and didn't have much of a collection? I don't know I'd even buy a console. Get a controller, play on my smart phone. Maybe connect a laptop to my TV when I want to play on it. Though, can smart TVs with an Xbox app be far behind? You can mirror from phone to TV but I think lag would kill that idea.

Plugging a Samsung phone into a TV/Monitor hooked up to keyboard mouse can also provide a desktop like experience. Dunno if they'll make an Xbox app for that, but if they do, you wouldn't even need a laptop to hook up to your TV.

It’s Not a Console War, It’s a Content War - IGN

What Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard acquisition and Sony's Bungie acquisition says about a console war that never existed.

www.ign.com

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

On one hand, I knowing yet more of the industry is being considered and monopolized under a few mega corps feels like we're steadily creeping closer to the cyberpunk dystopia scenario(with environmental collapse to boot). OTOH, I barely play AAA games anymore, A/B is garbage and MS can hardly do any worse at this point with it, so on a personal gaming level I'll barely notice. I think I play like 1 or 2 current AAA games per year at best at this point with the rest being older games and indies.

Not to mitigate the corporate bullshitery here, just that I've already written most of the AAA industry off as a money-grubbing, creatively sterile loss that it just feels like more of the same, just under fewer roofs.

On one hand I agree it won’t bother me much as I game on PC as much if not more now. On the other, this is already hurting Sony big time -

Sony responds to Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard

In a statement to the Wall Street Journal, Sony said it expects Microsoft to ensure Activision games are multiplatform, as per contractual agreements. The record-breaking acquisition by...

www.techspot.com

20 billion valuation lost just off the news alone. Less money for them means less money to make all the high quality, mostly single player only, MTX-free exclusives we’ve been seeing so far. I’d really resent Microsoft if that ever changed. Just looking back at how they’ve killed so many of their own studio’s projects just by being “them” doesn’t bode well even if they’d be more indirectly responsible here.

Sony Cannot ‘Answer’ The Death Star Microsoft Is Building For Xbox

Sony shares dropped sharply yesterday when it was revealed that its biggest competition in the console space, Microsoft, bought Activision Blizzard for nearly $70 billion, potentially harvesting away a large portion of valuable ga...

www.forbes.com

 

[Bedinsis]

Interesting...

Xbox Has 'Desire to Keep Call of Duty on PlayStation,' Says Phil Spencer

After buying Activision Blizzard, Xbox / Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer says there is a "desire to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation."

www.escapistmagazine.com

My thoughts are that part of the value in Call Of Duty is its massive userbase, which ensures that there is always someone to play with. By not releasing for non-Microsoft-platforms, the value of the brand is made smaller. And less relevant, since less people have reason to keep track of titles that they won't be able to play any way.

Then again exclusives DO sell consoles, so that might be an acceptable loss for Microsoft if it gets more people to buy Xboxes.

Sidenote: can an Xbox player face of against a Playstation player in a multiplayer Call of Duty match?

My prediction is that if Microsoft makes it an exclusive some other developer will jump with glee and develop a multiplatform title that takes the position as the dominant FPS multiplayer series. Maybe Battlefield or Titanfall can take it's spot.

It also wouldn't surprise me if Microsoft themselves haven't decided yet what to do.

 

[Agema]

I’m still hoping for a new fallout game from obsidian. They can make a title while Bethesda is busy with star field and elder scrolls 6.

You won't get it. They've clearly made Outer Worlds as their own IP to scratch that itch. Outer Worlds is, whilst not post-apocalyptic, still the same sort of feel and jokes.

And besides, Obsidian would need the Fallout licence from Bethesda: Bethesda won't give it to anyone for the same reason they won't use it themselves.

 

[Fallen Soldier]

You won't get it. They've clearly made Outer Worlds as their own IP to scratch that itch. Outer Worlds is, whilst not post-apocalyptic, still the same sort of feel and jokes.

And besides, Obsidian would need the Fallout licence from Bethesda: Bethesda won't give it to anyone for the same reason they won't use it themselves.

Even though Obsidian and Bethesda are apart of the same company now?

 

[Agema]

Even though Obsidian and Bethesda are apart of the same company now?

Firstly, I believe whilst Obsidian is a division of Microsoft, Bethesda is a subsidiary - which means that although Microsoft owns Bethesda, it is technically still a separate company. Microsoft could of course force its Bethesda subsidiary to sell / hand over the IP, but...

More to the point though is that if Bethesda made more money from not releasing a single player Fallout game whilst '76 is active, then the same logic holds true for Microsoft as owner of Bethesda. They can make Fallout 5 and earn $$$ when it suits them, but there's no point killing their online Fallout early when it's earning them $$$.

 

[Hawki]

More to the point though is that if Bethesda made more money from not releasing a single player Fallout game whilst '76 is active, then the same logic holds true for Microsoft as owner of Bethesda. They can make Fallout 5 and earn $$$ when it suits them, but there's no point killing their online Fallout early when it's earning them $$$.

Why would they be mutually exclusive though?

Like, to pivot to another RPG series, Final Fantasy 11 and 14 didn't stop non-MMO entries from being made.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

...

Now I want Call of Doom Halo and for it to be developed by Obsidian.

 

[BrawlMan]

Xbox confirms: ‘We want to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation’ | VGC

Phil Spencer claims it’s Microsoft’s “desire” to keep the series on Sony’s platform…

www.videogameschronicle.com

Xbox’s Phil Spencer says he’ll let Activision’s studios work on ‘a variety of franchises’ | VGC

“We’re hoping that we’ll be able to… work on franchises that I love from my childhood”…

www.videogameschronicle.com

https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/esports/2022/01/21/microsoft-esports-activision-blizzard/

Uh-huh...

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene sold up to $15,000 worth of Activision Blizzard stock on the day Microsoft announced plans to buy the video game company

In September, Greene told Insider that, "I have an independent investment advisor that has full discretionary authority on my accounts."

news.yahoo.com

 

[Fallen Soldier]

Xbox confirms: ‘We want to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation’ | VGC

Phil Spencer claims it’s Microsoft’s “desire” to keep the series on Sony’s platform…

www.videogameschronicle.com

Xbox’s Phil Spencer says he’ll let Activision’s studios work on ‘a variety of franchises’ | VGC

“We’re hoping that we’ll be able to… work on franchises that I love from my childhood”…

www.videogameschronicle.com

https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/esports/2022/01/21/microsoft-esports-activision-blizzard/

Uh-huh...

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene sold up to $15,000 worth of Activision Blizzard stock on the day Microsoft announced plans to buy the video game company

In September, Greene told Insider that, "I have an independent investment advisor that has full discretionary authority on my accounts."

news.yahoo.com

The most idiotic member in congress is also corrupt? What a shocker!

 

[Agema]

Why would they be mutually exclusive though?

Online games like '76 and ES are heavily played by people who loved the single-player games. If they release single player games, the player base for their online games will disappear for a substantial amount of time whilst they consume the new single player product. These single-player games are big: we could be talking months that people aren't playing the MMO.

This will lead to a substantial loss of income in the short-term - and also potentially long-term, because losing a large chunk of players could undermine confidence in the game, make it less interesting for other players who consequently leave, nor is there a guarantee the players who pop off to do the single player will come back to the MMO. It is not a guarantee it will damage their MMO of course: but it is a very credible risk. To give some idea of cost, WoW is exceptional, and reckoned to make ~$1 billion a year in revenue. Something like ESO or Fallout '76 much less, but I'd guess potentially up to $100 million a year. That doesn't need to go down much to cost a great deal of potential income, especially if it does have a long-term effect across years or shortens the MMO lifespan.

There could be other issues involved - staff limitations (they need to work on one or the other - making the single player could pause some development of the MMO again with potential loss of interest), marketing confusion with two games under the same brand, etc.

 

[Gergar12]

Why do they hate single-player games? Because they want to control what we do in-game for money, and control.

 

[hanselthecaretaker]

The most idiotic member in congress is also corrupt? What a shocker!

Odd that it’s even newsworthy: Sold $15k? Pretty sure that’s peanuts next to what-all was purchased upon hearing the news.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

Why would they be mutually exclusive though?

They wouldn't.

The reason there won't be another Fallout for a long while is that Bethesda's core dev group is eyebrows deep in getting Starfield out the door and then will have to gear up for a full dev cycle on TES 6... and Obsidian's core dev team are busy with Outer Worlds 2 and apparently after that is a TES-like RPG set in the Pillars of Eternity universe. So unless another developer is brought in it's gonna be a long wait.

 

[Hawki]

This deal is looking pretty at least.

(Yes, I know it's fanmade).

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

This deal is looking pretty at least.

(Yes, I know it's fanmade).

"Let them come. Plasma sword hungers."

 

[Hawki]

"Let them come. Plasma sword hungers."

But what if they have a gravity hammer?