The date is September 21, 2020 the day before Xbox Series X pre-orders go up and Microsoft has dropped quite possibly their biggest news of 2020.
Microsoft has acquired Bethesda Softworks, including parent company ZeniMax Media for a total of $7.5 Billion. With this acquisition this brings in more game studios making it 23 creative studios to Microsoft.
Those studios include: id Software, ZeniMax Online Studios, Arkane, MachineGames, Tango Gameworks, Alpha Dog, and Roundhouse Studios. While the franchises include The Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Wolfenstein, DOOM, Dishonored, Prey, Quake, Starfield which there are more to name.
With this acquisition Phil Spencer has stated that they will be brining Bethesda’s franchises to Xbox Game Pass for console and PC. It was also announced that Xbox Game Pass has surpassed 15 million subscribers, while every new game Bethesda makes like Starfield will be available on the service day one.
“Like us, Bethesda are passionate believers in building a diverse array of creative experiences, in exploring new game franchises, and in telling stories in bold ways. All of their great work will of course continue and grow and we look forward to empowering them with the resources and support of Microsoft to scale their creative visions to more players in new ways for you.”
Pete Hines of Bethesda had spoken about the deal and is excited to join Microsoft because it allows them to make even better games.
“So why the change? Because it allows us to make even better games going forward. Microsoft is an incredible partner and offers access to resources that will make us a better publisher and developer. We believe that means better games for you to play. Simply put – we believe that change is an important part of getting better. We believe in pushing ourselves to be better. To innovate. To grow.”
There are still many questions about this deal as you know Bethesda has been releasing titles for PlayStation 4 & 5 and for Nintendo Switch. With the Minecraft deal that happened about 6 years ago it didn’t mean that the game was strictly exclusive for Xbox so this could still mean the same with this Bethesda deal.
More details will be pushed out soon. What are your thoughts on this deal for Microsoft?
