WSJ: ''Mojang to be bought by Microsoft'

This just doesn't make sense to me. I will wait for a confirmation. Buying game devs for massive amounts of cash almost never pans out, it's too tough to repeat success.
 
zomgbbqftw said:
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.
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Well yes, if they want to maximise their return on investment with no intent to prioritise their Xbox division.

I guess it makes more sense when you consider Mr. Nadella's priorities are reforming the company...but it's hard for me not to see some sort of staggered release to give at least some boost to Xbox.
 
abadguy said:
I don't think MS really gives a shit about "hate" from a few forum goers and warriors who hate anyone who opposes their favorite piece of plastic, nor should they. They are no different from any other corporation seeing an opportunity and taking it. People need to stop acting like it's only MS that does this shit.
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It is demonstrably Microsoft who does this shit the most, and who focuses on buying shit instead of cultivating their own studios. It's even quantifiable, you can count up the times Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft do it and compare. It's a huge disparity. There was just a thread on it. Numerically the difference between Microsoft and Sony (and Nintendo) in this regard is massive. It represents a very real strategic difference between the companies.
 
alr1ght said:
MS doesn't have any handhelds. If this goes through, you best bet the PS3/4 versions will get pulled.
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I doubt they will get pulled. Retail version will probably disappear but I doubt they will take it off the store, there probably won't be any updates for them though
 
Tigress said:
I'd say Minecraft is worth more than Tomb Raider. I don't even play it and was only interested if it came to Vita (cause it seemed like a game that I might like on Vita but can't get over the pixels for my tv).

I mean you don't have to like it to see how popular it is and not just with hardcore gamers, with your average joe. My cousin was playing it on her iphone years ago (that's how I even heard of it honestly) and she's definitely not all that dedicated to games.

Tomb Raider? Mostly appeals to people who actually want to game and not also to people who just want a time killer. I mean, how many Tomb Raider themed toys do you see sitting around Fred Meyer or Target?

Yeah, I'd say Minecraft is worth a lot more than Tomb Raider.
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Oh, I'm not disputing that at all. Of course Minecraft is worth more. But you'd probably only need to commit what... 200-300 million to secure TR2 as an exclusive? Considering how poorly TR1 did in sales, it might even be less. Versus 2 billion? That's a huge difference in sunk costs.

It's bizarre money management.
 
The smart thing for MS to do would be to keep selling and updating the other versions for the short term.

That way they'll keep the audience growing and then they can drop the "Minecraft 2 only on Xbox" bomb.
 
Microsoft might get a huge seller here, this will be their Pokemon/Mario Kart like super console seller (Unless if it lose its popularity somehow in the upcoming years like Angry Bird)
 
Amir0x said:
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.
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Perfectly put, my friend.
 
Amir0x said:
1. Minecraft is one of the biggest new IPs in years. It's one of the most talked about games period.
2. Minecraft helps leverage an audience Microsoft has traditionally had trouble gaining - children.
3. Minecraft comes with tons of associated merchandising possibilities.
4. Minecraft comes with very easy crossover potential; Halo skins, Banjo skins, Conker skins, etc.
5. Minecraft 2.0 would not be a sequel that would take a terribly long turnaround time to develop if they were serious about it, so they can start to leverage the deal for future purposes relatively quickly if they wanted to.
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You only listed reasons why Microsoft would want to buy Mojang. Can you think of a reason why Mojang would want to be bought by Microsoft?
 
Amir0x said:
What about it makes no sense?


1. Minecraft is one of the biggest new IPs in years. It's one of the most talked about games period.
2. Minecraft helps leverage an audience Microsoft has traditionally had trouble gaining - children.
3. Minecraft comes with tons of associated merchandising possibilities.
4. Minecraft comes with very easy crossover potential; Halo skins, Banjo skins, Conker skins, etc.
5. Minecraft 2.0 would not be a sequel that would take a terribly long turnaround time to develop if they were serious about it, so they can start to leverage the deal for future purposes relatively quickly if they wanted to.

I'm not saying it's true, I don't know. I think it's fucked up and illustrates well why Microsoft has earned the scorn of so many gamers. But as a business strategy, I can see the clear reasons why.
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It $2 billion...

Minecraft is already on xbox. Would minecraft 2 also come xbox? Yes

Just seems like a terrible deal for ms.
 
Amir0x said:
It is demonstrably Microsoft who does this shit the most, and who focuses on buying shit instead of cultivating their own studios. It's even quantifiable, you can count up the times Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft do it and compare. It's a huge disparity. There was just a thread on it. Numerically the difference between Microsoft and Sony (and Nintendo) in this regard is massive. It represents a very real strategic difference between the companies.
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Didnt Sony get the disparity by buying studios?
 
DOBERMAN INC said:
Seems like an odd move, Minecraft was a one off. It's an excellent game but how do you make a sequel when everyone is satisfied with the first and there is no clamouring for another?
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Perhaps you don't make a sequel. Maybe you just continue remaking the game with slight variations on every platform that comes out in the next 20 years.
Think Tetris.
 
If they own the Minecraft IP, all they have to do is release some kind of special version or -god forbid- a sequel and the money will come rolling right back. Not to mention merchandise will sell tremendously well. Minecraft is huge, and huge chunk of the target market is easily swayed into buying merch.
 
Korosenai said:
Oh, so you're working on Minecraft 2? Let us know when it comes out and how much money you make.
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Huh?

Corto said:
Sure. But once reached critical mass it's impossible to make any significant dent on the genre leader. It's World of Warcraft versus any other MMO all over again. Others can try to replicate, innovate the formula but will always be a numbers game.
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We wouldn't be talking about a copycat game from another developer, though.
 
If this is true, wonder if Microsoft will release it for free on their platforms as a massive carrot on a stick for their hardware...
 
Also to add: Merchandising and licensing, folks. It's off the charts right now. To make this one of their own IPs would be a big move towards the casual/evergreen audience. Games, merch, TV, tons of it. If done right, this may be the smartest move for BOTH parties.
 
Amir0x said:
It is demonstrably Microsoft who does this shit the most, and who focuses on buying shit instead of cultivating their own studios. It's even quantifiable, you can count up the times Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft do it and compare. It's a huge disparity. There was just a thread on it. Numerically the difference between Microsoft and Sony (and Nintendo) in this regard is massive. It represents a very real strategic difference between the companies.
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To be honest Sony pretty much are where they are today doing the EXACT same shit MS is doing now, they only started worrying about "cultivating studios" when all those nice third party exclusives started going to other platforms. Had things not gone bad for them at the beginning of the PS3's life ,they would still be doing it while having a few first party studios making titles as well. You know, kinda like MS is doing right now.
 
Mikey Jr. said:
For 2 billion?

You're in it for life at that point.
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Not for MS. They spent over a billion dollars on the Kin:

ms-kin-1.jpg


And killed it 48 days after launch.
 
zomgbbqftw said:
Yup. It's the only way a $2bn deal makes sense. Limiting the release to Xbox and Windows would cut off around half of all potential buyers and the fastest growing current gaming platforms (PlayStation, Android and iOS).

It would literally make no sense to buy a company for $2bn then throw away half of the revenue stream and impair the asset in kind.
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What is the appeal however of purchasing an IP, that may or may not resonate with individuals five years from now for 2 Billion $? To me, it's a head-scratcher as what are Mojang's longterm goals? There doesn't seem to be a clear strategy at the moment, but alas there is so little info at the moment.
 
I think Microsoft has given up on the Xbox: new strategy is popular content across all devices (even competitor devices).

If the deal goes through, I expect MS to wind down Xbox operations substantially.
 
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