MS "Considering" Acquiring IO Interactive

Andy

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The insider Klobrille, hints at Microsoft "considering" the opportunity to acquire the Copenhagen-located studio. IO Interactive.

"Consideration = a fact or a motive taken into account in deciding something.". That's what it is. A consideration, It's a start,"

MS aren't done with new first party studios. Source is Klobrille from Resetera, I think he also has a reddit account.

He is the one who first leaked Playground games and Obsidian acquisitions.

https://www.resetera.com/threads/mi...-sold-off-by-now.75600/page-198#post-15205433

From what I hear, Hitman 2016 didn't do well, and Hitman 2 isn't doing well, either, so they're ripe for a buyout.
 
IO still owns the Freedom Fighters IP. Maybe MS would let them do a new one if they bought them.
 
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At this point, why not Microsoft? IO has talent and a known IP. I feel like I'm beating a dead horse but they bought Compulsion Games, and they have IMO far less talent and notable IPs than them. IO would be a great pick up given the resources MS has. Let them continue the Hitman IP episodically on game-pass, then let them work on a new IP and hopefully have more success than they did with Kane and Lynch.
 
Yeah, honestly, I'm not a fan of this studio, so I'm lukewarm on this acquisition. But the more the merrier.
 
I'd wish they were "considering" Insomniac Games but they're probably still counting that Spider-man money. Insomniac would be a better pick up than a few of their recently acquired studios IMO.
 
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I'd wish they were "considering" Insomniac Games but they're probably still counting that Spider-man money. Insomniac would be a better pick up than a few of their recently acquired studios IMO.
Sony fans would be pissed if MS acquired Insomniac.

I don't think Insomniac is going anywhere, though. They have Spider-Man and R&C, both successful series on the PS4. I don't think they'd want to walk away from that. Their one exclusive experience on the Xbox (SO) was not that rewarding.

Besides, MS is targeting companies that are struggling to make it. They're shopping for bargains. Insomniac wouldn't be a bargain. They're riding high after Spider-Man.
 
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Sony fans would be pissed if MS acquired Insomniac.

I don't think Insomniac is going anywhere, though. They have Spider-Man and R&C, both successful series on the PS4. I don't think they'd want to walk away from that. Their one exclusive experience on the Xbox (SO) was not that rewarding.

Besides, MS is targeting companies that are struggling to make it. They're shopping for bargains. Insomniac wouldn't be a bargain. They're riding high after Spider-Man.
Not sure they're shopping for a bargain. I dont think money is really an issue. I think they want studios that make sense and add diversity.
 
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Playground were struggling? Ninja Theory? Compulsion games doing fine and so on
 
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Fan of the studio. Not the Hitman IP. From what I understand, Square still owns the IP and would get it back if IO was bought. Best of both worlds. IO is great at game and level design. Hitman’s story, characters and world are boring. That’s why it no longer sells. IO would be my candidate for a Perfect Dark reboot.
 
Fan of the studio. Not the Hitman IP. From what I understand, Square still owns the IP and would get it back if IO was bought. Best of both worlds. IO is great at game and level design. Hitman’s story, characters and world are boring. That’s why it no longer sells. IO would be my candidate for a Perfect Dark reboot.

Nope IO own it but didn't get to keep Kane & Lynch or mini ninjas
 
Playground were struggling? Ninja Theory? Compulsion games doing fine and so on

Well I can't imagine Compulsion was doing that well but they were small.

So struggling studios? No except for maybe Compulsion. Bargain studios? Yes absolutely but that isn't a bad thing.
 
Well I can't imagine Compulsion was doing that well but they were small.

So struggling studios? No except for maybe Compulsion. Bargain studios? Yes absolutely but that isn't a bad thing.

Bargain yes but they weren't struggling although gearbox didn't help we happy few with its pricing.

Been helping develop other games while working on their own titles so money always coming in.
 
Playground were struggling? Ninja Theory? Compulsion games doing fine and so on

Playground wasn't struggling, but they've been with MS many years. I was talking about the new studios.

Obsidian was in bad shape, and so was InXile. NT was coming off a surprise hit but would've been in trouble otherwise and in any case was still surviving game-to-game, always anxious about the possibility of failure. IO Interactive is struggling as well. The majority of the buyouts have been of studios that are in a somewhat precarious position.

I'm not criticizing. It's smart shopping. I shop for bargains, too. A bargain in this context means $ tens of millions of dollars ... real money. That's part of why they've been able to buy so many -- they're getting them cheap (relatively).

Anyhow, my point was that Insomniac wouldn't be a bargain. It's a strong studio coming off some big hits. Not a cheap purchase.
 
I agree with Andy They're bargain shopping with their acquisitions. Looking for mid tier developer ( either in development scale or size) that are small and/or struggling and purchasing them for what might be pennies on the dollar. Its not a bad strategy if those studios blossom into profitable studios for MS. My personal selfish wish is for them to open up the checkbook just 1 more time and grab a big time studio. Not a Minecraft size check mind you but something a bit more than what they've done so far.

Back to the topic on hand though, IO seems like the kind of acquisition that MS would make now. Struggling independent developer that's not too big. If they can get them and the Hitman IP* for a reasonable price, that's a feather in their cap.

*Not really sure who owns the hitman IP after scouring the internet.
 
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I agree with Andy They're bargain shopping with their acquisitions. Looking for mid tier developer ( either in development scale or size) that are small and/or struggling and purchasing them for what might be pennies on the dollar. Its not a bad strategy if those studios blossom into profitable studios for MS. My personal selfish wish is for them to open up the checkbook just 1 more time and grab a big time studio. Not a Minecraft size check mind you but something a bit more than what they've done so far.

Back to the topic on hand though, IO seems like the kind of acquisition that MS would make now. Struggling independent developer that's not too big. If they can get them and the Hitman IP* for a reasonable price, that's a feather in their cap.

*Not really sure who owns the hitman IP after scouring the internet.
I read a few tweets about the latest Hitman. IO are taking a hit behind it and could be a last stand. As I heard it, it sounds like they've got a letter of intent from MS. All rumor (aside from Kobrille mentioning that the first phase of a deal is happening between the two) for now, but this could become a reality in the near future.

I just hope MS has them work on something other than Hitman -- not get rid of the franchise forever but put it on ice for a bit - try something new.
 
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I read a few tweets about the latest Hitman. IO are taking a hit behind it and could be a last stand. As I heard it, it sounds like they've got a letter of intent from MS. All rumor (aside from Kobrille mentioning that the first phase of a deal is happening between the two) for now, but this could become a reality in the near future.

I just hope MS has them work on something other than Hitman -- not get rid of the franchise forever but put it on ice for a bit - try something new.


Its a shame Hitman 2 hasn't sold well. To quote someone else, its a great game that no one else is talking about. Warner Bros really dropped the ball on promotion for this.

IF IO get bought by MS, I'm sure that MS will have them work on other things besides Hitman. IO has talent and as much as they'd like to continue working on Hitman, sometimes you need a break. I hope the leadership at MS use Guerrilla games as an example of what studios can do when they don't have to work on the same IP over and over.
 
Ninja Theory was, they even said so in that video they put out, how they had their own devs doing freelance and moonlighting at, and or for, other studios...





*edit for note*

I believe, but don’t know the details, that MS approached Ninja Theory without the knowledge of their “dire state”, that and I doubt they would make that public to other devs.
 
*edit for note*

I believe, but don’t know the details, that MS approached Ninja Theory without the knowledge of their “dire state”, that and I doubt they would make that public to other devs.

Well they were talking about when they started Hellblade and not so much after it came and was a success
 
In
I agree with Andy They're bargain shopping with their acquisitions. Looking for mid tier developer ( either in development scale or size) that are small and/or struggling and purchasing them for what might be pennies on the dollar. Its not a bad strategy if those studios blossom into profitable studios for MS. My personal selfish wish is for them to open up the checkbook just 1 more time and grab a big time studio. Not a Minecraft size check mind you but something a bit more than what they've done so far.

Back to the topic on hand though, IO seems like the kind of acquisition that MS would make now. Struggling independent developer that's not too big. If they can get them and the Hitman IP* for a reasonable price, that's a feather in their cap.

*Not really sure who owns the hitman IP after scouring the internet.


IO got the rights to Hitman and Freedom Fighters when they left SE but SE keep K&L and Mini Ninjas.
 
I was under the impression that the hitman reboot did very well in sales and critically. The second game appears to have a lukewarm reception, feeling like an expansion rather than a sequel, but is otherwise solid since it's basically exactly like the first.

But anyway; such an acquisition seems a little silly since they were just let go from square enix. Though that sounded like they couldn't afford to keep IO and let it split off rather than fire everyone. So long as microsoft can afford to hold on, the more studios the better I suppose.

ongoing RIP to my kane and lynch 3 fantasies with square holding the property.
 
The insider Klobrille, hints at Microsoft "considering" the opportunity to acquire the Copenhagen-located studio. IO Interactive.

"Consideration = a fact or a motive taken into account in deciding something.". That's what it is. A consideration, It's a start,"

MS aren't done with new first party studios. Source is Klobrille from Resetera, I think he also has a reddit account.

He is the one who first leaked Playground games and Obsidian acquisitions.

https://www.resetera.com/threads/mi...-sold-off-by-now.75600/page-198#post-15205433

From what I hear, Hitman 2016 didn't do well, and Hitman 2 isn't doing well, either, so they're ripe for a buyout.


Which is ridiculous because they are both fantastic games.
 
First one did over 5m and 2nd has only just released.

Got off to a poor start in the UK but game will have legs.
 
Playground wasn't struggling, but they've been with MS many years. I was talking about the new studios.

Obsidian was in bad shape, and so was InXile. NT was coming off a surprise hit but would've been in trouble otherwise and in any case was still surviving game-to-game, always anxious about the possibility of failure. IO Interactive is struggling as well. The majority of the buyouts have been of studios that are in a somewhat precarious position.

I'm not criticizing. It's smart shopping. I shop for bargains, too. A bargain in this context means $ tens of millions of dollars ... real money. That's part of why they've been able to buy so many -- they're getting them cheap (relatively).

Anyhow, my point was that Insomniac wouldn't be a bargain. It's a strong studio coming off some big hits. Not a cheap purchase.

Strong studios are also less likely to be available to be acquired, most of them are independent and like it that way and don't want to become part of a corporate culture.