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Microsoft Now Owns The Elder Scrolls, Fallout and Doom
Butcher79
Microsoft has acquired ZeniMax Media and its many studios.
Microsoft has made a giant acquisition and is now the new owner of ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks. This means that The Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Doom, Quake, Dishonored and a host of other huge series are now covered by Xbox.
About the deal объявил today head of Xbox Phil Spencer.
"Bethesda games have always held a special place on Xbox and in the hearts of millions of gamers around the world," he said. “Our teams have a long and rich history of working together, from the amazing first DOOM and its id Tech engine, through PC game development, to Bethesda, which introduced its first original Xbox console game, the groundbreaking The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind. Over the years, I've had many deep conversations with creative leaders at Bethesda about the future of gaming, and we've long shared a similar vision of the opportunity for creators and their games to reach more players."
Here is the list of studios that came with the acquisition, which includes around 2300 people, as well as some of their most notable games:
- Alpha Dog Games (mobile games)
- Arkane Studios (Dishonored)
- Arkane Studios Austin
- Bethesda Game Studios (Skyrim, Fallout 3, Fallout 4)
- Bethesda Game Studios, Austin (Fallout 76)
- Bethesda Game Studios Dallas
- Bethesda Game Studios Montreal
- Bethesda Softworks
- Software id (Doom, Doom Eternal)
- MachineGames (modern Wolfenstein series)
- Roundhouse Studios (Rune 2)
- Tango Gameworks (The Evil Within, Ghostwire: Tokyo)
- ZeniMax Online Studios (The Elder Scrolls Online, Fallout 76)
With this admittedly massive acquisition, Microsoft has just got its hands on some of the best studios and technology in the industry. Undoubtedly, the consequences will be enormous. Xbox Game Studios now has Bethesda и obsidian. Are the stars finally aligned for New Vegas 2 or a remake? It's unclear what will grow out of this acquisition, at least in terms of new games, but Spencer mentions "a lot of unannounced" games that Bethesda has in the works.
As we wait for the fruits of the partnership, more Bethesda games will be coming to Xbox Game Pass, both for consoles and PC. Some of them, such as Fallout 76, were already available, but we can assume that in the future Bethesda games will start appearing on the service at launch.
Bethesda is a multi-platform publisher, but this acquisition threatens the future of Bethesda games on other consoles. Some of his upcoming games have already been announced for various platforms, but the next Elder Scrolls? Next Fallout? We may only see them on PC and Xbox.
Matt Firor, director of ZeniMax Online Studios, tweeted out a statement regarding The Elder Scrolls Online, reassuring players that nothing will change for them:
A note from Matt Firor, Studio Director of ZeniMax Online Studios: https://t.co/fI25uklrZ5 pic.twitter.com/q3qoJwUmXu
—The Elder Scrolls Online (@TESOnline) September 21, 2020
В separate statement Bethesda director Todd Howard said "this [partnership] is about more than one system or one screen", so it may not be the end of the Bethesda library on the PlayStation, but it's not clear. The deal cost Microsoft $7,5 billion, so Microsoft will definitely want to recoup their money.
Microsoft Corporation
— Simpsons Videogames (@simpsonsvgames) September 21, 2020
(technology company founded in 1975) pic.twitter.com/U3SK7ET4VD
That price makes it the second most valuable video game acquisition in history, right behind Tencent's $8,6 billion acquisition of Finnish developer Supercell in 2016, and several times more than Microsoft's $2014 billion acquisition of Mojang in 2,5. . Of course, this is not surprising, given the ZeniMax's size and long list of features.
What is also not surprising is that Microsoft announces this day before pre-orders for Xbox Series X and Series S are broadcasting live. Consoles aren't due until November 10th, but you'll be able to purchase one starting September 22nd, a prospect that's sure to get even more enticing.
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