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FTC Seeks to Block Microsoft Corp’s Acquisition of Activision Blizzard

GhostOfTsu

GhostOfTsu

Banned
Kagey K said:
They were one of the biggest publishers at the time, you could barely load a game back then that didn't have the owl.

A few years after they bought them Psygnosis was responsible for 40% of all game sales in Europe.
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The 40% is from 1996, 3 years after Sony bought them and made a good job with them as a publisher.

You know that already because I already told you multiple times.
 
Js562

Js562

Member
Let Microsoft buy activision . Let it be
think denzel washington GIF
 
MasterCornholio

MasterCornholio

Member
Kagey K said:
They were one of the biggest publishers at the time, you could barely load a game back then that didn't have the owl.

A few years after they bought them Psygnosis was responsible for 40% of all game sales in Europe.
Click to expand...

Still seems a lot smaller than Acitvision Blizzard. Plus i remember seeing those games on other platforms.

Maybe your looking at it wrong?
 
Kvally

Kvally

Member
DeepEnigma said:
They are one studio with one IP of value (so far). Activation was their publisher until they got out of the contract for a very short bit. They are a development house first and foremost with no other studios and storied IPs. They are allowed to operate as third party still. Don't be pedantic.
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Bungie is a publisher and has been since 2019. I wasn't saying anything else. But my point still stands. Both are buying up developers and publishers. One is in a distant last place
 
Yoboman

Yoboman

Member
DeepEnigma said:
They didn't. People are acting like Psygnosis was this massive publisher, they weren't. And they still published Psygnosis games on other platforms before dissolving them into Sony after other games outsold Psygnosis ones years later. They did not go 3 (arguably) failing gens in a row before wanting to buy the largest 3rd party publishers in the world with all of those IPs and dev studios.

They offered a cheap CD based system, cheap $40-$50 games, and removed third parties from the draconian deals they were locked into with Nintendo. They weren't perfect over the years, but most of their deals were on an equal playing field that others, especially the MS has been free to do and done so themselves.

Most gamers never even heard of Psygnosis, that's how massive and popular they were for industry defining decades ;)
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Sony buying psygnosis is a laughable comparison. The deal was worth £12 million pounds. With inflation that's £23m now. Compared to $80 billion USD.
 
Mibu no ookami

Mibu no ookami

Demoted Member® Pro™
MikeM said:
“The agency cited Microsoft’s acquisition of game developer ZeniMax, and it says that the company’s subsidiary made titles including “Starfield” and “Redfall” exclusive to Microsoft devices despite previous assurances to European regulators.”

Is this true? If so, oof.
Click to expand...

They didn't have any content, so their hand was forced to make Starfield exclusive. Imagine for a second Starfield and Elder Scrolls on PS5... what exclusive does the Series X/S have after 3 years? Halo Infinite and Forza... that's not enough.

The problem is this doomed them in the long run. This is why Sony hasn't shown anything nor have they really bought anyone big since Bungie despite sitting on quite a bit of cash for M&A. Sony is playing the long game and Ryan played this VERY well by not conceding to Microsoft's 10 year deal.

Worst case scenario Sony still gets their 10 years but enforced by legal agreement, best case scenario the deal falls through and buys Sony a lot of time.

All that being said, I think it would be in Sony's best interest for the deal to go through with or without the 10 years.
 
sainraja

sainraja

Member
Punished Miku said:
I honestly don't play any Activision or Blizzard games except Diablo. Not a huge deal to me personally. But I do think it's a bit ridiculous still to block this on the merits of competition when all I see is Sony dominance and anti-competitive actions frequently. I think the FTC is picking the wrong fight 100%. Xbox being stronger is going to result in more competition at this point. But not the end of the world for me either way, as far as what I personally play. MS can buy small studios and they will probably have more stuff I'm actually interested in. This will certainly be maximum drama.
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Microsoft will still be able to compete even if this deal does not go through. Some of the things that helped Sony gain dominance were things where MS messed up (e.g. declining GTA3 during PS2 gen, Spiderman, and the inconsistent messaging with the XONE). They stepped on their own foot more than anything Sony could have done. Sony has basically been doing what MS was, when they had the dominant position and before that Sony. But MS had the chance to keep GTA3 on their system as an exclusive but they messed that up.

I have also heard they declined Ninja Theory's game that went to become Heavenly Sword but some people might consider that to be a good thing since that didn't really help out the PS3 when it was struggling.
 
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balls of snow

balls of snow

Member
analog_future said:
I just wanted more games on Game Pass because it means I get to spend less money on my hobby.

Curious if Microsoft is going to go after a bunch of small studios if this acquisition doesn't go through.
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Or you know, spent on on bolstering what they already have. Poach talent with you cant say no to fuck you money and established as many first party support studios as possible to pump out games at a regular pace.

But nope, probably gonna buy capcom now.
 
Swift_Star

Swift_Star

Banned
MikeM said:
“The agency cited Microsoft’s acquisition of game developer ZeniMax, and it says that the company’s subsidiary made titles including “Starfield” and “Redfall” exclusive to Microsoft devices despite previous assurances to European regulators.”

Is this true? If so, oof.
Click to expand...
Wow! I’d love to see a source for that. If true, MS played themselves.
 
Banjo64

Banjo64

cumsessed
For anyone who was cheerleading this at their own expense through nativity or a desire to ‘win’, don’t worry. If this is blocked, Xbox aren’t some little tinpot publisher, despite what you try to convey. Just enjoy the games from;
 
ComputerBlue

ComputerBlue

Member
Mibu no ookami said:
They didn't have any content, so their hand was forced to make Starfield exclusive. Imagine for a second Starfield and Elder Scrolls on PS5... what exclusive does the Series X/S have after 3 years? Halo Infinite and Forza... that's not enough.
Click to expand...


What the fuck were they doing for so many years, with so much money at their disposal creating absolutely nothing of value. This is no excuse.

Also, why is it in Sony‘s best interest for the deal to go through?
 
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