Some games, maybe. All games, surely not.
ABK is here to make money.
No interest in Take Two Interactive. Mostly just sports games and a Rockstar game every 5 years or so which if it’s GTA would most likely be multi-platform so just no point.
Would easily prefer Electronic Arts because while they also sports games which would and should be multi-platform, they also have a lot of other genres and IP’s. They have a few Marvel games in the works, they have Star Wars games in the works in addition to the Jedi series, they have Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Titanfall, Battlefield and also have that EA Originals label that would really thrive under Microsoft especially with Game Pass.
So if Microsoft were to go after one of them and would be handcuffed for another two years or so, I would prefer it to be Electronic Arts instead of Take Two Interactive. In fact, while ABK was the better business decision, I personally would have preferred EA over ABK simply because they have many more games and franchises that im interested in than ABK or Take Two Interactive for that matter.
2 Likes
I believe Xbox should be trying to immediately acquire Hazelight Studios and Supergiant Games. Both would add incredible diversity and versatility to Xbox’s 1st party.
2 Likes
Both studios are no doubt in demand. I believe Supergiant is staunchly independent, and in a post-Hades landscape, such a small studio (<25 staff) can run for a decade or more without running out of money. And Hades 2 will no doubt find some success.
Forgetting acquisitions for a moment, Hazelight gets sweetheart publishing deals via EA Originals - the terms are extremely generous for the studios that sign up. Epic Publishing has also done similar sweetheart deals to secure games from fairly prestigious studios - like the new game from Ueda (Team ICO lead), Alan Wake 2 from Remedy, etc.
I think that model - supporting and offering generous publishing terms to some great teams - is a good path to expand output and nurturing long term partnerships. Fundamentally, the “need” to acquire has been replaced by just “wants” in the post-ABK landscape. They may still want this or that, but all their needs are met and gaps can be easily filled with publishing and other forms of dealmaking.
Since there is no longer a great rush to fill the content schedule ASAP, I think taking the longer view, where you build these long term partnerships that may or may not eventually result in an acquisition is a good idea. I would like to see Microsoft talking to Remedy for new games. I would like to see them courting studios like Hazelight for future publishing deals - maybe by offering even better deals than what EA Originals does (already extremely good!). And in those, perhaps you include a right of first refusal for acquisitions if the companies do some day decide they don’t want to be independent anymore.
5 Likes
A new ‘Xbox Originals’ set-up similar to EA would be pretty smart, especially if they can get them in GP day one.
I tend to agree, however most have gotten into the mindset of looking at current ABK (The COD factory). If you go back and look at their history they were releasing so many games it was incredible, they were very different machines. If Xbox can start turning them around to become what they once were I think their value surpasses EA easy.
Short term I’d definitely go with EA as they are currently releasing way more games which interest me (and Respawn are legends).
Take-Two is a tricky one. Rockstar is absolutely incredible, there’s no doubt about it. Games like Red Dead, Max Payne, Bully and GTA are phenomenal. The attention to detail that goes into their games goes beyond pretty much any other studio (including PS/Xbox first party). Having their talent and RAGE engine inside Xbox would really turn heads.
Outside of Rockstar I have no interest in T2 apart from the odd game they release through Private Division.
2 Likes
I think Level-5 would also be a very good Studio for mobile games and a good acquisition target for Microsoft.
5 Likes
I would love if somehow they could get a Dark Cloud like game from them. I know Sony owns that particular IP.
1 Like
I’v wanted a DC sequel for 20 years but Sony clearly has no interest which is sad, DC was an excellent launch game and the sequel is honestly one of the best JRPGs ever made and the soundtrack is sooooo good
There’s so much they could do with a modern sequel with the town/home creating, a spiritual sequel would be amazing to get
2 Likes
Personally, I think they are gonna go for a Japanese developer next. Square Enix is down so much they could make a deal. Capcom is doing a lot of apple deals and always being in showcases lately so maybe MS want to acquire it because of that. This board already know about Sega.
However, I dont expect anything for 1.5 years.
2 Likes
It probably won’t happen, but EA would be an incredible acquisition for Xbox. EA Sports, Codemasters, DICE, Respawn, Maxis, Bioware, Criterion, Motive, and all the mobile game studios… This would be a great addition to Xbox Game Studios. Having EA Sports games on GP day 1 would be totally crazy. Apex is still a very popular game and Xbox could alternate the releases of BF and COD, which would offer a second chance to BF. EA is also a very big player on mobile, and getting The Sims would be a great acquisition for PC. I think there’s no chance regulators would let Microsoft acquire EA, but it would be an incredible acquisition for Xbox.
I agree. The only interest with Take Two is Rockstar. Many of their studios have had poor results or still have everything to prove. EA has a bad reputation, but they are much more interesting than Take Two.
2 Likes
No xcom fan here ?
1 Like
True - Realistically all of the big ones (EA, T2, Epic & Valve) are off the table for the next decade (or more) anyway. Even Ubisoft are off the table due to this new cloud deal. Unfortunately I don’t think WB would get through the regulators either ATM.
It’s only really the mid-size publishers left as possibilities IMO (Square, Capcom, SEGA, Embracer & Konami etc).
Even between EA and TakeTwo I think I’d still prefer Xbox pick up the ‘long requested’ group of studios (Crystal Dynamics, Eidos Montréal, Asobo, Remedy, Crytek and PCF etc).
4 Likes
I don’t buy into the need to wait. If they find a partner that is run well by a strong leadership team then there shouldn’t be a lot to do except make sure they have the resources they need. You don’t try messing with that as soon as their acquired.
I’m oversimplifying the situation, but Sega seems like it has a strong leadership team delivering on growth. What happened with Hyenas is unfortunate, but every publisher has a a few misses in their history.
SE with a new CEO, mixed results, and a varied past with Xbox seems like big a gamble.
Getting Lego would be very cool and then changing Lego to allow them to make R rated movie properties or M rated game Lego sets.
Who wouldn’t want to buy Lego: Gears of War or a set based off of Starfield.
You would then be able to make Lego: Halo or Banjo Kazooie sets too.
Definitely huge potential going that route, be it Lego video games like what Travelers Tails did or just expanding Xbox properties into Lego format.
1 Like
Firaxis is probably my favorite 2K studio, but their games don’t sell very well. Maxis is more interesting because it has The Sims which is an original concept with a huge community. But in any case you don’t buy Take Two for Firaxis or EA for Maxis. It’s just a bonus in the package, and I much prefer EA’s package to Take Two’s.
If Microsoft’s objective is to grow on PC, then the best choice is to acquire SEGA and Frontier which cover a large part of the strategy and management games popular on this platform. I was interested in Paradox but I’m much less interested after recent events. SEGA is the no-brainer for a lot of reasons, and Frontier is also a long-time Microsoft partner that has had some financial struggles of late. I think these two would be a great addition for PC, which is an important market that should not be overlooked.
Indeed, I no longer expect the acquisition of a large Western publisher. I think Warner is the only one that might have a chance of being validated, but Microsoft doesn’t seem interested in the film and television industry. As you say, the next opportunities are in Asia, and the task will not be easy.
Yes, I would also like the acquisition of a dozen independent studios. There is so much talent in this industry.
Yes, LEGO is a brand that can adapt to any universe. It would be great to see TT Games adapt the Xbox universe into LEGO games. And then with LEGO toys you attract a new community of young players to your platform. This would be interesting for Microsoft.
3 Likes
Totally agree. I do wonder with Sega though. The Japanese tend to have their pride. Shinji Mikami leaving and now coming back doesn’t seem to send a message I suppose that has to do with Zenimax though.
I don’t think buying lego to them immediately change it would be a good idea at all, and it would be years before you see any new sets come out, lego has a long pipeline
And sadly they can’t do the call of duty or halo sets because Mega is already involved
https://x.com/devolverdigital/status/1719612119887511572?s=46&t=x67OgPnK2PNMkoMLA_j70A
https://x.com/ses_dev/status/1719614191265517776?s=46&t=x67OgPnK2PNMkoMLA_j70A
4 Likes
Good for the team, happy to see them work with Devolver Digital, a good publisher to work with from what i have remembered.
In other stuff, what are the chances Xbox acquires a indie Publisher like Thunderful or 11bit Studios?
1 Like