WSJ: ''Mojang to be bought by Microsoft'

Facebook thought Oculus was worth 2 billion. There's no way that thing makes anywhere near as much money as Minecraft has and will continue to make. What's the point of spending the $2 billion to make a bunch of games that in all likelihood would do little better than breaking even and sell maybe a couple million copies at best when you can get a sure thing? Not to mention the sequel would likely be a sure thing too.

So you're saying this one game is worth $2 billion dollars of actual exclusive games for xbox one owners?

HAHAHAHAHAHA /jokerlaugh
 
Haha, that won't happen. Not how this works.

And you think that'd even be smart if they could do that? That'll show gamers how much they want their money - take the lollipops from their mouths as they're sucking on its fruity deliciousness!

Haha, ok. It can easily happen. Unless Sony put any publishing money towards minecraft on PS4 the developer can take the game down whenever they want
 
So you're saying this one game is worth $2 billion dollars of actual exclusive games for xbox one owners?

HAHAHAHAHAHA /jokerlaugh

To put it in perspective, it's worth 4 NFL Fantasy Football apps for Xbox One

Man is that an absolute terrible idea or is it a terrible idea?

Why not buy Rovio while you're at it, MS?

Rovio has like a dozen games. They all have Angry Birds in the title, but still a different situation.
 
That said, it's really fucked up. Gamers came into Minecraft on PC, and then played it everywhere under the sun. This was to the benefit. Gamers everywhere could share their ideas, their creativity, and enjoyed its simplistic appeal.
Who said it wouldn't also be on Windows?
 
MS could leverage Minecraft as a digital rival to Lego.

This isnt just about reskinning Minecraft 2, but many other games with a big family draw...

Minecraft Star Wars platform/puzzle
Minecraft Batman etc.
Forza Mini Minecraft Racing (MarioKart clone)

I think it would be good business for Microsoft. If I was a shareholder I'd support it.
 
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Minecraft on PC costs $27 and the counter says about 16.5 million on PC. Minecraft on consoles costs $20 and multiplied the remaining of the 54 million. It's not the most precise but it gives a general idea.

You are forgetting that 21 million + of that 54 million came from mobile editions.

Those sell from $1 - $7 before the platform holder takes 30% off the top.

Many of those PC sales happened long before the game was $27 as well.

And they don't get anywhere close to the $20 retail price of the game on consoles.

Your math is way, way off.
 
Facebook thought Oculus was worth 2 billion. There's no way that thing makes anywhere near as much money as Minecraft has and will continue to make. What's the point of spending the $2 billion to make a bunch of games that in all likelihood would do little better than breaking even and sell maybe a couple million copies at best when you can get a sure thing? Not to mention the sequel would likely be a sure thing too.

makes? no

Will make? Yes, VR is bigger than Minecraft.
 
Would be a megaton if this comes true. Minecraft 2 only on an MS console or computer? Win win all around for MS. I hope they pull the trigger. I look forward to a Minecraft 2.
 
Timed exclusivity, silly.

Rake in the profits from Minecraft now, and then in 2016, time a huge marketing push and "Xbox One Exclusive" Minecraft 2.

Sells gangbusters, then release it out to PC and 360 and profit from the Microsoft ecosystem.

360 release in 2017? XB1 release in 2016? The market will have pretty much moved on from it by then. The only way to hold the value of the purchase would be to act as a publisher for Mojang across all platforms, and what Minecraft profit? They made $115m last year, which, while a lot for an independent game developer, is basically nothing for MS.

If they are going to spend $2bn on this I don't think it will be related to the Xbox division, rather, a diversification purchase like Skype using vast amounts of excess cash at their Irish subsidiary.

A value destroying move that won't pay off until after the market has decided on the generation winner doesn't make a lot of sense.
 
No big deal for me since the definitive version by far is on PC. That said, would they be legally obligated to continue supporting the PS4 version with patches and such? That would suck if Sony had an update and minecraft stopped working.
 
I don't know why some people think this would be so funny.

This is Microsoft securing one of the biggest new IPs in forever. They can announce Minecraft 2 and give it the type of flourishes that can cross over from their own games. Halo skins and Forza skins. New features that add to the creative flexibility. Crossovers with Project Spark. Who knows!

I think that's fucked up because that's yet another series that was everywhere and for good reason, and this strategy from Microsoft keeps depriving legions of gamers of franchises like that. But I don't think it's "funny" in the sense that it's a bad idea.

Maybe it is a bad idea, but considering how Minecraft won't stop selling copies, a Minecraft 2.0 could potentially be psycho large.



lol. That's not how this sort of deal works :P

That presumes that Microsoft could make a better Minecraft, I doubt they could. Minecraft was a fluke in the first place, change too much or not enough it wont have the same appeal(what reason will people have to move, they will want more than skins). They wont know what they are doing with it, they will ruin it with there interference.

It seems like Microsoft like to burn money.
 
Haven't read through the entire thread to see if this was posted, but here's an excerpt from Notch's blog from June 14th:

Notch said:
Mojang does not exist to make as much money as possible for the owners. As the majority shareholder, I’d know. Every time a big money making deal comes up that would make a lot of money, it’s of course very tempting, but at the end of the day we choose to do what either makes the most sense for our products, or the things that seem like fun for us at Mojang.
 
Minecraft on PC costs $27 and the counter says about 16.5 million on PC. Minecraft on consoles costs $20 and multiplied the remaining of the 54 million. It's not the most precise but it gives a general idea. These are only raw numbers only to compare to $2 billion and how much Microsoft would be overpaying

The majority of the 38 million copies sans PC are mobile versions sold for 5 bucks.
 
People are really missing the big picture here and underestimating the Minecraft name. The amount of returns they can make on Minecraft merchandising and licensing fees alone could be potentially worth it, let alone an Xbox/Windows exclusive Minecraft 2.
 
So is minecraft the actually best "Selling" game of all time? I know some facebook games, and wii sports have been playing by more, but those games weren't really sold on a per copy basis at any point
 
Ok does it proved it was a system seller?

And what do you have to support that it doesn't?

It's a massively successful IP, beyond that of most AAA titles that include system sellers like Gears of War and Uncharted. With that amount of popularity, it's not unreasonable to believe that people would buy what it's available on if they had to.

No one can say for sure, but to say it won't be a system seller full stop is ignorant of what Minecraft has grown to be.
 
Haha, ok. It can easily happen.

Haha, I can see now you just want it to happen for some bizarre reason. I can read between the lines. But that's not how this works.

It's even more hilarious to imagine the logistics as well. You think they're going to go into stores and recall Minecraft PS4 and PS3 disc versions? They're going to stop people who own the game from playing it? Gonna be hilarious to see them explain how they're all supportive of gamers when they start that shit.

It's out there now. That ship has sailed.

Calabi said:
That presumes that Microsoft could make a better Minecraft, I doubt they could. Minecraft was a fluke in the first place, change too much or not enough it wont have the same appeal(what reason will people have to move, they will want more than skins). They wont know what they are doing with it, they will ruin it with there interference.

It seems like Microsoft like to burn money.

Honestly, and this is not remotely a mark against Notch, but Minecraft is a very simple foundation. It would not remotely be hard to replicate that for a sequel and add some extra creative flexibility for a better game. Then you add some unique for Microsoft touches - like Halo skins and Sunset Overdrive skins and such - and you get an appealing sequel.
 
People are really missing the big picture here. The amount of returns they can make on Minecraft merchandising alone could be potentially worth it, let alone an Xbox/Windows exclusive Minecraft 2.

I don't think people here understand the brand appeal of minecraft... I haven't met a 10 year old that isn't completely obsessed about it...
 
Welp there's goes the Wii U chance of getting port, though it was never going to happen.

Though it's one way to get the kids market assuming the Minecraft bubble doesn't burst.

Now Minecraft: Pokémon Edition will never happen.

It was never happening, but it would make truckloads of money

There's a mod called Pixelmon, where Pokémon appear in the game. It isn't amazing but it's an option.
 
There was a recent post on GAF that pointed out how Microsoft spends so much money on acquiring game studios but not enough money on making exclusive games. I can kinda see how this could be a continuation of that, but an exclusive Minecraft would be a pretty huge snag.
 
This also just makes Microsoft's other money deals even more ridiculous. They aren't willing to shell out the dough to make Tomb Raider 2 a full true-blue exclusive, but they're willing to slap down 2 billion on this?

Shit don't make no sense...
 
If MS buys Minecraft, you can expect it to continue to be on every device imaginable.

That's their whole new direction: Office on iOS. No longer a "devices and services" company.
 
Unless MS is willing to breach a contract they won't do that. Previous contracts will be maintained and probably NOT renewed but what's done is done.

Most contracts have an out for change of ownership. No company wants to be devalued because of a legacy contract, and conversely no business part wants to be forced to remain in a contract with a purchasing company they do not like or may compete with directly.
 
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