Regulators should have asked that question by the way.
The problem is that ATVI deal might have changed something regarding Microsoft’s approach to third party games that they acquired. We don’t know for now, and that is the problem. ATVI deal changed the landscape too much.
There was no regulatory proceedings. This blog was done as prior to anything, with the main appeal to regulators tying into their bid (along with Epic) to break open app stores and say, hey, we play along and we like regulation, just like we want to see Apple and Google fairly regulated and oh look, we are planning on having a revamped app store ourselves.
I don’t think the ABK aquisition is the main concern for regulation MS has, if you listen to Hoeg Law and read the entierety of their blog. Or if you listen to Satya’s talk about not needing to make consessions and market percentage. Even if FTC disapproved to make an example of big tech, it wouldn’t change anything except take it to court where obviously MS has lawyers ready to blitz the notion of monopoly and anti-competition. Obviously nobody prefers that as it’s a long process that hampers timelines, but still.
There are far too many misinformed people out there, specifically console warriors on other sites or media looking for clicks, thinking that Microsoft is making consessions before legal talk have even begun. Nothing here meets the criteria of Microsoft conceeding anything as a demand of regulators; who is to say the plan all along wasn’t to keep certain “popular” GaaS “titles” multiplat to rake in the big bucks with microtransactions, like they’ve already done with Minecraft?
Additionally, certain folk are now perpetrating the notion that every single ABK franchise, present and future, will be multiplat and ABK will be a multiplat studio, when that literally has never been said even in the face of regulatory scrutiny (which speaks volumes in and of itself). These same people are portbegging Bethesda games and insisting that MS will backtrack and release Starfield and TES6 on PS.
I can’t wait until the deal is approved so Microsoft can shut people up already, because it’s going to be an insufferable year of FUD-flinging.
Until 2024-2025 nothing will change. Though time flies fast - even that Bethesda deal was announced 1.5 year ago already.
Oh, I know, but at least we expect a MS roundtable sometime in 2023 where MS talks to their Xbox fanbase like they did with Bethesda and clarifies how they plan to fix the ABK toxic culture.
We will deliver great exclusive games to the platforms where Game Pass exists
And in 2024 will get “and yes it’s exclusive”
Though it remains to be seen what’s Sony is gonna do. ATVI deal changed gaming too much.
It came across me today, I wonder if this also could be a play to get a Japanese publisher, they could be worried MS will take the games off Switch and PS (the main way people play games there) if they buy them and don’t trust what MS is saying. MS could be doing this to show them they’re serious and will follow through, I know it’s a massive stretch but could be something to look at, just food for thought,
It is really just about money, IP, devs/talent and Game Pass content. My question is would people be happy if let’s say MS buys Square and FF comes to Xbox but also PS/Switch? or would you scream how could they not make it exclusive and call the deal a “giant L” as the twitter people like to say.
Edit: not sure if this was posted but it’s interesting, a COD subscription service is coming apparently.
Can you imagine not being happy at what is effectively an announcement of getting every game from a publisher Day 1 on Game Pass? It’s wild but it’s whats happening here and we’d get it there too.
Most would be happy though.
It makes me think how funny the subtitle of the current Acquisitions thread is now. "They Did The Thing And You’re Still Not Satisfied?!
So accidently prophetic 
It’s sort of like this lol
It’ll be a big conflict on some people to either be happy or sad 
YAY we finally get FF on Xbox, BUT it’s not exclusive FML why Xbox.
Me personally, if it takes games staying MP from big publishers to get it pushed over the line but we day day 1 in game pass I’m more than happy for that. I want as much titles as possible in game pass and I don’t really care how they go about it.
It is sometimes hard to remember how loud the tiny minority are online when compared to the actual audience, the casual COD player probably has no clue what is even going on.
There is one easy way to solve the third party problem… turn them first party 
I think people will be meh with FF acquisition. Happy they won’t lose FF games anymore (though again will have to wait for years before all moneyhats expire) 
Last ATVI statement made people less care about acquisitions.
If it is the only way Microsoft came up with to prevent Xbox from losing games, they can buy each and every publisher for what I care.
I’d be ecstatic with a Square Enix acquisition and getting all those JRPGs on Xbox and Gamepass. The added benefit would be a component management team overseeing Square West and not setting absurd expectations.
I.E. “Let’s see how we can screw you out of getting paid your fair share this time”
What JRPGs though? Aside FF7R, does Square Enix release anything high profile anymore? Everything else is either underfunded or cheap.
Recently all of the below:
Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Octopath, Bravely, Star Ocean, Babylon Fall (publish), Triangle Strategy, Mana, Nier (publish).
This would also bring a massive back catalog of games that never hit the platform.
Oh, Mana series are Square Enix? I thought they are from NIS or something.
Yeah, they also own the Drakengard and Saga franchises.
Still, I don’t think that Square Enix produces anything high profile anymore. Capcom on the other hand… 
A Square Enix acquisition turning them console exclusive would be way bigger megaton than Activision one even if it was much cheaper imho, hell, and even if they went full multiplatform, it’d still be a huge win for Xbox.
Used to love SE, or well, SquareSoft, but i don’t think it’d be the right acquisition, there would be way too many complains about this for obvious reasons. I would be fine with Sony purchasing them tho, if they are going to make all their games exclusives to Playstation, at least try to resurrect that company somehow, if that’s even possible.
For MS, Crytek, IOI, and some smaller companies that aren’t god tier at what they do like Larian or Firaxis is what i would love to see more, just like in 2018-2019, big hype for State of Decay 3, Avowed or inXile’s next project.