Microsoft is Buying Activision Blizzard $68.7B ***Update: Acquisition Finalized***

[Hyperglide]

This is huge news but I wonder if this is going to break some kind of anti trust law?

I don't see CoD leaving PlayStation. Microsoft left Minecraft on PS and Nintendo after they bought them out so I don't think we are going to see a similar situation like when MS bought Bethesda. DOOM and TES are huge IPs but not on the same level as CoD or Warcraft.

 

[Nova44]

Good.

Get that pile of shit company away from my ps4.

 

[Deadwing88]

I wouldn’t consider it a monopoly yet. It is extremely anti-consumer though, just as the Bethesda one was. They’ve shown this is their strategy. Wall off gamers from as many established publishers as they can through acquisitions to force people to their ecosystem.

No one else has the means to do this. That is not debatable.

Meh.. Sony's entire strategy is to moneyhat third party IPs, so this is a predictable reaction from Microsoft..

Playstation tried to moneyhat starfield, they did with Deathloop and Ghostwire..

Basically every square game including Forspoken and future Final Fantasy's are moneyhatted..

KOTOR.

There's rumours of the new bioshock having timed exclusivity and numerous other IPs..

 

[Deadwing88]

This is huge news but I wonder if this is going to break some kind of anti trust law?

I don't see CoD leaving PlayStation. Microsoft left Minecraft on PS and Nintendo after they bought them out so I don't think we are going to see a similar situation like when MS bought Bethesda. DOOM and TES are huge IPs but not on the same level as CoD or Warcraft.

COD I could see staying multiplatform yeah.. that's it.

WOW as a IP has no legacy on playstation at all.. it's going to be only Xbox/PC.

 

[Hyperglide]

Cope harder fanboy.

The copium is delish. Sony Ponies on watch lmao..

 

[Dizzy]

Meh.. Sony's entire strategy is to moneyhat third party IPs, so this is a predictable reaction from Microsoft..

Playstation tried to moneyhat starfield, they did with Deathloop and Ghostwire..

Basically every square game including Forspoken and future Final Fantasy's are moneyhatted..

KOTOR.

There's rumours of the new bioshock having timed exclusivity and numerous other IPs..

I thought the big brain takes comparing what Microsoft is doing to what Sony has done with some IP’s was going to stop after this but here we are.

 

[GearSolidMetal]

This is bad.

This is very very bad.

I get why some people are celebrating. More games for GamePass and the CEO is gone, but beyond that this is a HUGE step toward Microsoft having a monopoly over the entire western gaming market.

It may be some good aspects in the short-term, but think of the the long-term. Once Microsoft dominates this console generation and possibly put Sony into irrelevancy, they'll be increasing prices on GamePass and the quality of their exclusives across ALL of their dozens of studios will be of the quality of the XBoxOne generation.

With a few exceptions, Microsoft doesn't know how to guide studios into making great games. They were great before being bought out by Microsoft, and mostly became shit afterward. Microsoft buys out their competition to neuter their products, so they don't have to compete with them in the open market.

Everyone... of your Top 10 Favorite Games of the last 20 years, which ones were made directly under Microsoft's leadership? The first 3 Halo games maybe, but look at how well 343 have done since that.

Mark my words. Years from now we will curse this day in the same way we curse the day Disney bought out Star Wars.

 

[Deadwing88]

With a few exceptions, Microsoft doesn't know how to guide studios into making great games. They were great before being bought out by Microsoft, and mostly became shit afterward. Microsoft buys out their competition to neuter their products, so they don't have to compete with them in the open market.

Everyone... of your Top 10 Favorite Games of the last 20 years, which ones were made directly under Microsoft's leadership? The first 3 Halo games maybe, but look at how well 343 have done since that.

Mark my words. Years from now we will curse this day in the same way we curse the day Disney bought out Star Wars.

Given most of Xbox's first party releases last year were very well acclaimed.. this post doesn't really stand up to scrutiny.

Xbox isn't in the era of Mattrick, Phil is actually competent..

 

[KaNesDeath]

It is extremely anti-consumer though,

Hyperbolic to proclaim that when Sonys model with Playstation has dealt with exclusivity when Microsofts business model of the past five years hasnt. In the XBox press release 4/6ths of the IP's mentioned are Pc games, one is mobile and the remainder(COD) is a console title.

All in all, im happy to pull a Jim Cornette pissing on Vince Russos(OWL) grave. No fucking way OWL survives this merger.

 

[Deadwing88]

I thought the big brain takes comparing what Microsoft is doing to what Sony has done with some IP’s was going to stop after this but here we are.

I didn't say it's comparable.. it's a reaction.

Once a 2 trillion dollar company finally becomes serious with investing into gaming, and one of its competitors main business strategies is momeyhatting.. what do you expect to happen lol.

 

[Dizzy]

Great thread from Shinobi

 

[GearSolidMetal]

Given most of Xbox's first party releases last year were very well acclaimed.

Those were...?

 

[Deadwing88]

Those were...?

Forza Horizon 5 (92%), Halo Infinite (87%), Age of Empires (80+%), Pysconauts 2 (89%), Microsoft Flight Simulator (90+%)..

Forza and Pyschonauts were nominated for GOTY.

 

[milliniar]

Forza Horizon 5 (92%), Halo Infinite (87%), Age of Empires (80+%), Pysconauts 2 (89%), Microsoft Flight Simulator (90+%)..

Forza and Pyschonauts were nominated for GOTY.

Psychonauts was mostly done when they bought double fine, it started as a crowd funded game.

That would the same as saying deathloop was so good because of MS.

 

[adam199]

Not a big fan of this. Microsoft has been mismanaging their exclusive developers for years now, releasing duds and mediocre games left and right.

 

[Deadwing88]

Psychonauts was mostly done when they bought double fine, it started as a crowd funded game.

That would the same as saying deathloop was so good because of MS.

Actually no..

Tim Schafer has said after the Microsoft acquisition, the game was significantly revised (boss fights were re-added).. that's why it was literally delayed for a year.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.pc...-fights-because-of-the-microsoft-acquisition/

 

[KaNesDeath]

Great thread from Shinobi

Past two years Activision repurposed all their subsidiaries to work on Warzone and their yearly COD release. This opens the door for those subsidiaries to work on other projects. Gives hope that the assholes at Blizzard will be purged and that the studio returns to some former form.

 

[Dizzy]

I didn't say it's comparable.. it's a reaction.

Once a 2 trillion dollar company finally becomes serious with investing into gaming, and one of its competitors main business strategies is momeyhatting.. what do you expect to happen lol.

You’re saying Sony does similar things so no one should have an issue with Microsoft buying up the two largest American gaming publishers. They don’t.

You’ll notice there are very few people supportive of this outside of what it might do for Blizzard (which by the way is bereft of all the talent that once made them so special) and the usual M$ stans.

I said Bethesda was a horrible precedent and here we are.

 

[milliniar]

Actually no..

Tim Schafer has said after the Microsoft acquisition, the game was significantly revised (boss fights were re-added).. that's why it was literally delayed for a year.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.pc...-fights-because-of-the-microsoft-acquisition/

Okay I guess I was wrong.

 

[Deadwing88]

You’re saying Sony does similar things so no one should have an issue with Microsoft buying up the two largest American gaming publishers. They don’t.

You’ll notice there are very few people supportive of this outside of what it might do for Blizzard (which by the way is bereft of all the talent that once made them so special) and the usual M$ stans.

I said Bethesda was a horrible precedent and here we are.

Yes I'm aware that you said bethesda was a supposed horrible precedent.. because you literally melted down in that thread, disputed obvious facts and started attacking people personally..

Your concern trolling is tiresome really.. you were attacking Xbox before the Bethesda acquisition for acquiring Ninja Theory for crying out loud.