• NOT_RICK@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I mean, you don’t spend 70 billion on a market sector you’re going to deemphasize.

    • radix@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      *70 billion this year alone.

      2021: Zenimax for 7.5B
      2018-19: Ninja Theory, Playground Games, Undead Labs, Compulsion Games, Obsidian Entertainment, inXile Entertainment, Double Fine Productions (all unknown amounts)
      Earlier: Rare for 375M, Mojang for 2.5B

        • Glitchington@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Psychonauts 2 happened because Microsoft bought Double Fine and said, “How much time/money do you need to finish your game?” And basically gave it to them.

          • echo64@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            What? No. Double fine kickstarted the game. That’s why psychonauts 2 happened. Revisionist crap needs to die.

            • Glitchington@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              Literally watched an interview with Tim Schafer, they ran out of Kickstarter money and Microsofr saved the day. Look it up before calling me out please.

              • echo64@lemmy.world
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                1 year ago

                No one saved the day, they fund raised before, everyone does, many people found publishers if needed after running out of croudfunded money. There is no saviour here.

            • Glitchington@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              Was Kickstarted for all consoles, they ran out of money, Microsoft bought them and left everything as-is, just gave more money. Go watch the interview about it.

    • ryathal@sh.itjust.works
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      1 year ago

      That’s how it works now. You can’t get results in a quarter or two by spinning up your own production company.

    • Knusper@feddit.de
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      1 year ago

      Microsoft has rarely innovated themselves…

      Edit: I just remembered that even Windows was externally acquired, so I believe, it would be more correct to say that Microsoft has basically never innovated something themselves.

      • NotSteve_@lemmy.ca
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        1 year ago

        I think Windows was built in house but on top of DOS which Bill Gates bought off someone

        • Knusper@feddit.de
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          1 year ago

          Yeah, it started its life as “Quick And Dirty Operating System” (don’t know, why they renamed it) and even that was basically a ripoff of CP/M: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/86-DOS

          I guess, you can say that they did put in own effort into developing the windowing system. I wouldn’t want to call that “innovating”, since they were late to the party, but I guess, that would be moving the goal posts here…

  • ComradeWeebelo@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    Now let’s all pretend that MS and Phil aren’t buying up publishers to have another monopoly full of Xbox/PC exclusives. Tbf though, I think Sony started this whole exclusives thing and really pushed hard for it. They do, however, seem to be relenting now by publishing their games to steam.

    • phillaholic@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Sony buys up studios for their talent not their IP. Bungie/Destiny is the only exception. They have a strong history of empowering their developers to release better games than they did before.

      Microsoft is the opposite. They buy up studios / IPs and run them into the ground.

      • RolyRamen@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Can’t agree more. I don’t think there’s a studio under MS that’s done better under their leadership/portfolio than they’d done prior to their acquisition. The studios created to shepherd Xbox franchises that original studios move on from generally have never matched the highs previously seen either.

        I also don’t appreciate them hoovering up franchises, via acquisitions whilst failing to develop much new that’s if any note. All it does is condemn a growing back catalogue to mediocrity or have them disappear into the vault.

        Sony aren’t perfect but their studios tend to produce top tier games that look and feel like they’re a tier above most, making the most of their “exclusivity”. Most (all?) their major releases are their own franchises developed in house too, and it feels like there’s a steadier turn out of new, quality IP to boot.

      • RGB3x3@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Tomato/Tomato. They get the IP and keep them exclusive. Sony shouldn’t get a pass just because their games are better.

        The “exclusives-game” these companies play is bad for the consumer and Sony plays it just as hard as anyone else.

        • phillaholic@lemm.ee
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          1 year ago

          Sony makes them. Microsoft buys them. Two very different things. Quality is a separate issue, but related In that Microsoft apparently has a hundred billion dollars to spend but can’t make a great game by themselves in the last two decades. They have no taste for it. I hope they prove me wrong. I don’t want to see them become a monopoly of mediocre games that we have to subscribe for. I also don’t want to see Sony without competition.

      • Dudewitbow@lemmy.ml
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        1 year ago

        I mean Sonys last purchase was Firewalk Studios, who was working on a game that hasnt been publically shown(however, sony was given a preview of it privately) and they havent released a game yet, so they technically bought out an IP unless you claim they already hit the reset on whatever project they kept under the sheets.

        • phillaholic@lemm.ee
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          1 year ago

          Borderline I’d say, but if it’s not public Sony is buying based on devs / potential, not existing sales or hype, and at that point they are bankrolling a new IP and assuming all those associated risks.

        • echo64@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Eh no, you can’t really level the idea of buying out an ip that only exists behind closed doors.

          • Dudewitbow@lemmy.ml
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            1 year ago

            It does if they decide to remove the windows conpatibility that was announced beforehand. So far they havent, but if they did, it would be treated the same.

  • elouboub@kbin.social
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    1 year ago

    I bet you they’ll start pulling their games from stores in 2-3 years or release new ones exclusively to their own. The games will be made as difficult to run in wine/proton as possible. Probably they’ll introduce some new graphics layer that’s windows only and since they own huge game publishers, they don’t have to worry about any other platform ever.