The all-cash $68.7 billion deal will turn Microsoft, maker of the Xbox gaming system, into one of the world’s largest video game companies and help it compete with tech rivals such as Meta, formerly Facebook, in creating immersive virtual worlds for both work and play.
Microsoft buys game maker Activision Blizzard for about $70B
For reference, Microsoft bought Bethesda for 7.5 billion dollars and the acquisition became official last year, so between then and now, Microsoft made enough F#ck Everyone Money to buy the equivalent of 9 Bethesdas.
That's what the Wall Street Journal says:Hopefully they can clean up the studio and get Bobby Kotick out of there by the end of the deal next year.
That's what the Wall Street Journal says:
This supposedly contradicts the statement by Microsoft that “Bobby Kotick will continue to serve as CEO of Activision Blizzard, and he and his team will maintain their focus on driving efforts to further strengthen the company’s culture and accelerate business growth,” but it's still technically true. He will continue to serve as CEO as of now, and then the deal will close, and he won't anymore. The official press release by Microsoft does not specify that Kotick's role as CEO will continue after the deal closes, only that he hasn't been kicked this instant.
What I'm hoping is that this includes the entire board of directors that defended him for so long, but given how large an acquisition this is, there's no reason why they shouldn't get a significant restructuring since they're no longer an independent company (see also: WB getting spun off into Discovery).
Kotick is undoubtedly going to be paid in the hundreds of millions and make more money being fired than this entire forum's family line will make before the planet implodes, but it cuts him off from giving himself yearly bonuses, at least.
Sony buying Bungie for $3.6 billion
Destiny studio will remain multiplatform, able "to self-publish and reach players wherever they choose to play"
There it is. The console arms race continues.
They're not "independent" if Sony bought them, that makes them a subsidiary like Bluepoint and other Sony studios. That's the point of paying for them.Wonder what Sony are getting from this deal besides an additional revenue cut? Bungie have said they will remain a multi platform and independant studio after the acquisition.
They're not "independent" if Sony bought them, that makes them a subsidiary like Bluepoint and other Sony studios. That's the point of paying for them.
Other than that, they're definitely still multiplatform, and Sony ideally gains as much money as possible from multiple avenues, a pre-built developer of Games-as-a-Service (the thing they struggled to do with Crystal Dynamics and Avengers, but Bungie has no problem with w.r.t. Destiny) plus the inbuilt fanbase of people who buy those things.
They could've tried their hand at buying Square Enix for the same thing (considering the critically acclaimed MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV has a free trial, and includes the entirety of A Realm Reborn AND the award-winning Heavensward expansion up to level 60 with no restrictions on playtime), but Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate with a good partnership with SE already, and they're not going to bother buying the cow when they're already getting the milk for free, so I understand their focus on keeping their hold on the Western market by nabbing an American developer.
"Bungie will continue to operate independently" =/= "Bungie is an independent company". Bungie is going to be a subsidiary of Sony Interactive Entertainment, so while they'll still have their own Board and management team (for now) and can develop their games without micromanagement from SIE, they don't have to worry about funding their own projects.Bungie will continue to operate independently, maintaining the ability to self-publish and reach players wherever they choose to play.