4 ms·

Sony spent 20+ years building up and planning their 1st party studios. Microsoft could do that too, but it would take 20 more years. They don't have the time fo

Sony spent 20+ years building up and planning their 1st party studios. Microsoft could do that too, but it would take 20 more years. They don't have the time for that and acquisition is really their only option. I don't like it either, but that's the reality of it.

benlumen 5y ago
It's not like Microsoft couldn't have done that from the start. They were the software company, after all, so they probably should have done. They're both over 20 years into the game, now.
- jayd16 5y ago
  MS HAS owned and operated game studios for 20 years. This acquisition doesn't fundamentally change how MS approaches game development.
  - benlumen 5y ago
    You're right - but when you look at the list of Playstation exclusives vs Xbox exclusives, you'd hardly know it. A lot of people buy Playstations because there's nothing of interest on Xbox that they can't have.
- AdmiralAsshat 5y ago
  Didn't it come out recently that they tried to buy Sega 20 years ago, when they were just getting into the business with the XBOX? EDIT: They tried to buy Nintendo, too: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25672443 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25672443
awill 5y ago
Agree. If I were in charge at MS, I might have done this too. I can't blame them. But I imagine Sony execs are struggling to comprehend what's going on. They've done so much right in the last few years. They've built some of the best studios in the world. They've delivered the best exclusive AAA content. Just in the last few years: The Last of us Part 2, Ghosts of Tsushima, God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn, Uncharted.... And despite that, they still might not come out on top. Life isn't fair :). >> Sony spent 20+ years building up and planning their 1st party studios. Microsoft could do that too, but it would take 20 more years. Ironically, the Xbox (OG) was released 20 years ago.
- tyfon 5y ago
  I don't think microsoft will be successful here. First, the price they are paying is insane. The investors will be demanding the results eventually. Also, buying studios won't fix the culture in Microsoft. They've had so many years and still can't make consistently good games. There are some gems in between but they are usually form partnerships or newly bought studios. Their in-house development seems like actual hell (Halo). I also suspect that game pass will make them focus on GAS games (service games) with microtransactions, optimised for profit instead of fun.
  - mrtranscendence 5y ago
    > I also suspect that game pass will make them focus on GAS games (service games) with microtransactions, optimised for profit instead of fun. If they want to go that route, charging by the month isn't the way to do it. There's a reason exploitative mobile games are free at point of sale. I predict that MS stays the course of putting decent first and third party titles on Game Pass and chooses to raise prices rather than mandate that Game Pass games be more exploitative.
  - agar 5y ago
    > The investors will be demanding the results eventually. I wish I had time to dig into Activision's financials to get a better feel on this. They earned $2B last quarter, with over $500m going to Cost of Revenue. For a software company, I'm guessing a lot of this is in multiplayer gaming infrastructure. Cost of Revenue is another $716m, with half going to R&D (engineering) and half going to G&A (rent, administration, etc.). In other words, if Microsoft can absorb the Cost of Revenue into Azure and optimize the G&A a bit, they can increase quarterly revenue by almost 33%. That's $10B/year. Plus, putting Activision's back catalog on GamePass might drive up GamePass subscriber count/retention and back catalog sales (see the first article linked below). It would be tough to show this as hugely profitable over the short term, but I think they could model out a 5 year ROI very very easily. > I also suspect that game pass will make them focus on GAS games (service games) with microtransactions, optimised for profit instead of fun. I'm not a subscriber, but as a casual follower of GamePass I haven't seen it drive more MTX. On the contrary, it seems to have opened the door to more niche-y games that would have a hard time finding an audience elsewhere. These two articles give developer quotes that are very interesting insights into both gamer behavior and the economics of putting a game on GamePass: https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2021/03/19/game-pass-massive-growth-is-bringing-developers-some-surprises/?sh=1ab05b2262b4 https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2021/03/19/game-pass... https://www.gameinformer.com/2021/03/24/deathloop-dev-opens-up-on-how-xbox-game-pass-gives-arkane-creative-freedom https://www.gameinformer.com/2021/03/24/deathloop-dev-opens-... Yes, these are probably MSFT sponsored and it's not all roses, but even if there's a core of truth to them it's encouraging.
doikor 5y ago
Playstation has also bought (and closed) a lot of studios (and one publisher) over the years. A lot of the Playstation 1st party studios were not built from ground up but instead bought.
- Drew_ 5y ago
  The difference is that Sony was the original publisher behind many of the studios they have acquired. Presumably these studios wouldn't have gotten traction without Sony backing to begin with.
nixass 5y ago
Yeah for MS is easier to dump cash (you don't have to be creative for that) and outright buy whole studios with their IPs, rather than using brains and actually create something new. Sony is way ahead in that regard, so sad to see money dumping on the other side
- phendrenad2 5y ago
  Why is it sad? Presumably you work as a software developer. Are you sad that your boss didn't do the programming his or her self, and instead "dumped money" into your bank account?
  - awill 5y ago
    He's obviously speaking as a consumer. If I was CEO of Activision/Blizzard, and I was getting millions or billions from the buyout, obviously my opinion would be different to that of the consumer that's affected by this.
torginus 5y ago
The weird thing I remember some of the best games from my childhood were made by Microsoft Studios - Freelancer, Midtown Madness, Flight Simulator, Age of Empires etc.

benlumen 5y ago

It's not like Microsoft couldn't have done that from the start. They were the software company, after all, so they probably should have done. They're both over 20 years into the game, now.

jayd16 5y ago
MS HAS owned and operated game studios for 20 years. This acquisition doesn't fundamentally change how MS approaches game development.
- benlumen 5y ago
  You're right - but when you look at the list of Playstation exclusives vs Xbox exclusives, you'd hardly know it. A lot of people buy Playstations because there's nothing of interest on Xbox that they can't have.
AdmiralAsshat 5y ago
Didn't it come out recently that they tried to buy Sega 20 years ago, when they were just getting into the business with the XBOX? EDIT: They tried to buy Nintendo, too: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25672443 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25672443

awill 5y ago

Agree. If I were in charge at MS, I might have done this too. I can't blame them. But I imagine Sony execs are struggling to comprehend what's going on. They've done so much right in the last few years. They've built some of the best studios in the world. They've delivered the best exclusive AAA content. Just in the last few years: The Last of us Part 2, Ghosts of Tsushima, God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn, Uncharted.... And despite that, they still might not come out on top. Life isn't fair :). >> Sony spent 20+ years building up and planning their 1st party studios. Microsoft could do that too, but it would take 20 more years. Ironically, the Xbox (OG) was released 20 years ago.

tyfon 5y ago
I don't think microsoft will be successful here. First, the price they are paying is insane. The investors will be demanding the results eventually. Also, buying studios won't fix the culture in Microsoft. They've had so many years and still can't make consistently good games. There are some gems in between but they are usually form partnerships or newly bought studios. Their in-house development seems like actual hell (Halo). I also suspect that game pass will make them focus on GAS games (service games) with microtransactions, optimised for profit instead of fun.
- mrtranscendence 5y ago
  > I also suspect that game pass will make them focus on GAS games (service games) with microtransactions, optimised for profit instead of fun. If they want to go that route, charging by the month isn't the way to do it. There's a reason exploitative mobile games are free at point of sale. I predict that MS stays the course of putting decent first and third party titles on Game Pass and chooses to raise prices rather than mandate that Game Pass games be more exploitative.
- agar 5y ago
  > The investors will be demanding the results eventually. I wish I had time to dig into Activision's financials to get a better feel on this. They earned $2B last quarter, with over $500m going to Cost of Revenue. For a software company, I'm guessing a lot of this is in multiplayer gaming infrastructure. Cost of Revenue is another $716m, with half going to R&D (engineering) and half going to G&A (rent, administration, etc.). In other words, if Microsoft can absorb the Cost of Revenue into Azure and optimize the G&A a bit, they can increase quarterly revenue by almost 33%. That's $10B/year. Plus, putting Activision's back catalog on GamePass might drive up GamePass subscriber count/retention and back catalog sales (see the first article linked below). It would be tough to show this as hugely profitable over the short term, but I think they could model out a 5 year ROI very very easily. > I also suspect that game pass will make them focus on GAS games (service games) with microtransactions, optimised for profit instead of fun. I'm not a subscriber, but as a casual follower of GamePass I haven't seen it drive more MTX. On the contrary, it seems to have opened the door to more niche-y games that would have a hard time finding an audience elsewhere. These two articles give developer quotes that are very interesting insights into both gamer behavior and the economics of putting a game on GamePass: https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2021/03/19/game-pass-massive-growth-is-bringing-developers-some-surprises/?sh=1ab05b2262b4 https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2021/03/19/game-pass... https://www.gameinformer.com/2021/03/24/deathloop-dev-opens-up-on-how-xbox-game-pass-gives-arkane-creative-freedom https://www.gameinformer.com/2021/03/24/deathloop-dev-opens-... Yes, these are probably MSFT sponsored and it's not all roses, but even if there's a core of truth to them it's encouraging.

doikor 5y ago

Playstation has also bought (and closed) a lot of studios (and one publisher) over the years. A lot of the Playstation 1st party studios were not built from ground up but instead bought.

Drew_ 5y ago
The difference is that Sony was the original publisher behind many of the studios they have acquired. Presumably these studios wouldn't have gotten traction without Sony backing to begin with.

nixass 5y ago

Yeah for MS is easier to dump cash (you don't have to be creative for that) and outright buy whole studios with their IPs, rather than using brains and actually create something new. Sony is way ahead in that regard, so sad to see money dumping on the other side

phendrenad2 5y ago
Why is it sad? Presumably you work as a software developer. Are you sad that your boss didn't do the programming his or her self, and instead "dumped money" into your bank account?
- awill 5y ago
  He's obviously speaking as a consumer. If I was CEO of Activision/Blizzard, and I was getting millions or billions from the buyout, obviously my opinion would be different to that of the consumer that's affected by this.

torginus 5y ago

The weird thing I remember some of the best games from my childhood were made by Microsoft Studios - Freelancer, Midtown Madness, Flight Simulator, Age of Empires etc.