“No one is ever buying Activision.”
- The Internet, - 2021
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Translation : we will not be cheap, honorable partner.
“Xbox cannot acquire anything after Bethesda”
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Yes, Sega has attractive IPs and potential, but I don’t see it ever getting realized under them. A lot of their IPs are not even relevant anymore and the ones that are other than the Yakuza series require spending that I don’t think they are ready for. If they were well financed on their own, I don’t think anyone would be looking to them being acquired.
I see Sega same as Rare. Everybody cry for old IPs, but where they are very strong is to experiment and try new things. Dreamcast was crazy because they tried many new genres and games. This is this kind of Sega I want to see back again, not the same old games that please old nostalgic gamers without imagination.
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I may have posted this before but I don’t see XYZ Sega IPs suddenly all coming back if Xbox acquired them, besides maybe just remastered releases. Really, Sega is already trying to bring back IPs themselves at the moment (and aren’t doing good at it).
Soul Hackers (Atlus but still) revival = flubbed
Sakura Wars revival = flubbed
House of the Dead revival = outsourced and idk really who cares lol
Crazy Taxi and JSR = Who knows. If other recent GAAS attempts can give a hint then they will be flubs.
Sega IPs being dormant to me is not a budget issue, it is a talent issue. I’d also say I don’t think Sonic Team games would see any changes either. Don’t see how an MS acquisition changes this and I’d expect such an acquisition to be even more hands off than the Western publisher ones. I would expect it to be to keep them as is but ensure all of their games are day 1 GP and for MS to keep the marketing of the games and prevent other platform exclusivities, nothing more.
Edit: I should add that I’m not trying to say Sega has a talent issue altogether, I’m expecting big results from LAD Infinite Wealth, Sonic still does alright-good, Atlus will pull big results with P3R and Metaphor (since that’s a Persona team game, not the C-team Soul Hackers team). PSO2 still does great for them. Basically what I’m saying is that they’re good at what they currently do for the most part, not really great at digging out those IPs though.
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I would be more intrigued if Xbox were to acquire Asian studios instead of publishers. Here is the reason: The studio could make their ip or new ip into an exclusive without much issue. This is what we are currently seeing with Hellblade 2, Bleeding Edge and Project Maria from Ninja Theory.
With this in mind, i already now which ones i think Xbox should invest and acquire. The first one that comes to mind has got to be the likes of Swery’s White Owl Inc, Swery has already have some ties with Xbox for a while and this year Tokyo Game Show proved that without much issue. Not only that but he is good buds with Tim Schaffer, of Double Fine, and its studio focus more on originality. The next studio that i will bring up is a shocking one, but boy it would be a surprise to see this one happen. That is Project Moon, the creators of Library of Ruina and currently developing the likes of Limbus Company, an mobile RPG that has garnered some fans. The reason why i mention them is because this studio has realesed their titles on Windows and Pc, but have only brought Library of Ruina over to Xbox.
So i think there is room for more from them and last i heard they are currently making an Action RPG, so if i was Xbox i would seek to use their resources and try to get them on board.
They pretty much touted their IPs and potential and that is what most of those wanti ng the acquisitions know them for or atleast certain kinds of genre. If it’s just about new IPs why even bother acquiring them. There are tons of devs out there that can do new IPs better in my opinion. Ori was a new IP and was amazing. I think balance is the key and old IPs as well as new are equally important. The old IPs show legacy and history. Nintendo for example is built for the most on their old IPs and then balance it with new ones like Splatoon. I do see the Rare, thing and I’ll put it this way having the IPs is important just like getting ABK brings those billion-dollar franchises in house. They don’t have to be developed by the same developer. Rare did not do the last Battle toads heck Sega didn’t even do the last Streets of Rage or Shenmue. Personally, I would like to see more investment in the games Sega make.
Unsure how Japanese devs would respond to it, but i think a better approach is Microsoft to go the Netease route of providing a bag at veteran devs to create teams . I know it may not be popular but Microsoft could be an attractive place to work if they provide good salaries and work like , and that could be an interesting approach to take
True. And Microsoft doesn’t need to acquire Sega as long as they have a strong relationship with them thats really what matters.
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In my defense… I did call Blizzard
Here’s what Sega brings to the table for MS (In order of importance from my perspective):
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A permanent foothold in the Japanese gaming landscape with an iconic brand.
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Another big push into mobile with Rovio.
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A couple of PC-Centric developers attached to iconic franchises.
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A globally recognized and oft-loved Mascot who loves to go fast.
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Some much needed JRPG studios that people love.
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A treasure trove of classic IP with unlimited potential.
I get that some here aren’t as high on a Sega acquisition as the rest, but MS themselves had Sega at the top of their list. I doubt that has changed post ABK since they still check so many boxes for MS and the cost isn’t even very high. So, I’m still expecting it to happen at some point if MS is still in the market for publishers which I believe they will be.
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Time to get whats ripe for the picking. Right now those are the Embracer studios.
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I cry inside every time someone suggests White Owl Inc, lol. I really don’t think that’s the tier of Japanese games Xbox should be going after.
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I think the problem there is the 6+ year payoff and uncertainty of building new studios. We see how much that has failed in the west, we’ll see what Netease’s work produces.
I think those are two negatives that a company with plenty of resources doesn’t need to take.
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The other thing that’s mind-numbingly stupid to have to read over and over is this idea that gamers only care about Sega because of their old IP… those people fail to realize that most don’t care about IP that doesn’t fit in modern times (sorry people but there’s no planet in 2023 where a AAA Golden Axe does well today) and most, if not all, of the current stable of properties Sega puts out sold way more than most of the titles we supposedly want back. No, we’ve said time and time again that it’s for all of these reasons, and the fact that titles like Yakuza/LAD would soar with the budgets (and time, as we’ve seen with Bethesda) to make titles that have the production value of games that sell their equal.
I swear, the constant dismissal of so many is becoming a red flag with some of you… it’s one thing to dismiss us but to still read asinine comments that imply Xbox isn’t extremely interested in Segahas to be considered one at this point, no? Again, the court documents are so easily verified that there’s no excuse to keep running with that nonsense.
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Yeah, the risk most likely outweighs the reward in that scenario. So, the Netease approach would be risky, but that could be way to get things going there. It somewhat worked in 360 area with partnerships, but I guess that’s furthest they can go with that approach
I think if MS is buying outside of the west it will be major moves, not some random smaller studios that don’t move the needle
I hear you, but I dream of a return to this world in RPG form
Don’t even have to be made by Sega. Just go track down the old artist and composer lol.
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Okay, now you are talking to someone who literally bought the OG Xbox for Panzer Dragoon Orta - still have that copy too in fact. I never said all of the old IP couldn’t or shouldn’t come back 
In seriousness, I’m an OG and current Sega fan, and like you I do think there are more than plenty of old IP that could come back (and GP allows for more risk as we’ve seen), I just think the idea that those of us that agree with Xbox are doing so for more reasons than solely old IP.
Edit: had to pull my copy out for just this occasion
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