Microsoft buying Obsidian Entertainment

Oh s***.

Nice get. I was always bummed out when they didn't pick up Bioware even though they were pawing at MS's lap and then of course it sucked smelly anus when they derped again and didn't acquire Bizarre Creations and let them slip to EA. Feels good though, Obsidian has always been one of the best in their genre and I feel like Playground Games is doing a good job of filling most of the void of Bizarre Creations, so this is kinda great in the long run.

Does Chris Avellone still work run that company?
 
This is the best response I've seen to an NDA'd rumor:

“We do not comment on rumors or speculation,” said a Microsoft spokesperson.

“Unfortunately, we don’t comment on rumors or speculation other than to say that the Rumors album by Fleetwood Mac still holds up,” said an Obsidian spokesperson.
 
Oh s***.

Nice get. I was always bummed out when they didn't pick up Bioware even though they were pawing at MS's lap and then of course it sucked smelly anus when they derped again and didn't acquire Bizarre Creations and let them slip to EA. Feels good though, Obsidian has always been one of the best in their genre and I feel like Playground Games is doing a good job of filling most of the void of Bizarre Creations, so this is kinda great in the long run.

Does Chris Avellone still work run that company?

No he was fired/quit in 2015.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dtwice
No he was fired/quit in 2015.

Not sure how I forgot that, he's working on Dying Light 2 which is shaping up to be pretty awesome with his work helping them improve areas of the experience.
 
Rfr5slE.jpg


03fgz4U.png
 
That is pretty big news. Obsidian are very talented. Fallout New Vegas anyone? Still the best most recent Fallout game and that is by a significant margin.
 
I’m ok with this...,




So, now that kb and mouse are supported if they focus on pc games they can work with Xbox just nicely...may have to put a kb/m only logo on the box, like psvr only games
 
So who's next? I hope it's Crytek or maybe that brand new studio from old Irrational games employees, Ghost Story Games.

Well as Phil is in Japan right now, I'd wager a Japanese studio to fill the hole in their 1st party line up. Following that thought pattern, 4 studios come to mind, Level-5, Mistwalker, Platinum Games, and Nihon Falcom. And while any of these studios would be a great acquisition, IMO Platinum would probably work out better internationally, while Level-5 and Nihon Falcom would work better in the domestic Japanese markets. Mistwalker would be the wild card as they haven't done a proper console game in 7 years.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Edge BC
Well as Phil is in Japan right now, I'd wager a Japanese studio to fill the hole in their 1st party line up. Following that thought pattern, 4 studios come to mind, Level-5, Mistwalker, Platinum Games, and Nihon Falcom. And while any of these studios would be a great acquisition, IMO Platinum would probably work out better internationally, while Level-5 and Nihon Falcom would work better in the domestic Japanese markets. Mistwalker would be the wild card as they haven't done a proper console game in 7 years.

They better get a Japanese studio. Absolutely no excuse for them not to. I don't care that Xbox doesn't sell well in Japan. Perception is reality and if you're not trying to have a diverse lineup of games then you don't deserve to be market leader. Sony and Nintendo are market leaders because they have the best and most diverse lineup of exclusives.

If Microsoft had released Scalebound it would have done more good than bad for them even if it was a terrible game. Xbox One is like the first console ever that doesn't have any hidden gems. You know what you're getting. Halo, Gears, Forza, and a third party timed exclusive here and there. Good pickup getting Obsidian but if they don't get at least one Japanese dev onboard for next gen they can forget it.
 
Well as Phil is in Japan right now, I'd wager a Japanese studio to fill the hole in their 1st party line up. Following that thought pattern, 4 studios come to mind, Level-5, Mistwalker, Platinum Games, and Nihon Falcom. And while any of these studios would be a great acquisition, IMO Platinum would probably work out better internationally, while Level-5 and Nihon Falcom would work better in the domestic Japanese markets. Mistwalker would be the wild card as they haven't done a proper console game in 7 years.

Phil's in Japan? Platinum games would be pretty crazy after Scalebound. I can't see that happening, but Level-5 would be a nice get with the games they got.
 
The one thing that puzzles me is the timing of all these aquisitions. If the majority of new projects take 3+ years to make, and you're planning on launching a new generation in 2020, why not get the ball rolling in 2017?

I guess it's more complicated than that.
 
If Microsoft had released Scalebound it would have done more good than bad for them even if it was a terrible game. Xbox One is like the first console ever that doesn't have any hidden gems. You know what you're getting. Halo, Gears, Forza, and a third party timed exclusive here and there. Good pickup getting Obsidian but if they don't get at least one Japanese dev onboard for next gen they can forget it.

What if it failed to gain an audience like sunset overdrive or quantum break? Platinum seems to be on a fine line contract work like that of tell tales...
 
Well as Phil is in Japan right now, I'd wager a Japanese studio to fill the hole in their 1st party line up. Following that thought pattern, 4 studios come to mind, Level-5, Mistwalker, Platinum Games, and Nihon Falcom. And while any of these studios would be a great acquisition, IMO Platinum would probably work out better internationally, while Level-5 and Nihon Falcom would work better in the domestic Japanese markets. Mistwalker would be the wild card as they haven't done a proper console game in 7 years.

Maybe if Microsoft was doing this to win list wars. They have no presence in Japan and there isn't much reason to try at this point.
 
Maybe if Microsoft was doing this to win list wars. They have no presence in Japan and there isn't much reason to try at this point.

True, but they do need to lock in Japanese devs to release major games day for day in the West and Korea with none of this dlc exclusive biz
 
Phil's in Japan? Platinum games would be pretty crazy after Scalebound. I can't see that happening, but Level-5 would be a nice get with the games they got.
Yeah. Phil's in Japan for the entire week.


Maybe if Microsoft was doing this to win list wars. They have no presence in Japan and there isn't much reason to try at this point.

They've got to do something to make inroads in Japan. It can be argued that their lack of a presence in the hearts and minds of Japanese consumers, devs and publishers, is the reason why so many studios over there outright skip localization for the Xbox globally. IMO if MS wants to be more competitive with Sony and Nintendo next generation, they need to start figuring Japan out. A good way to start might be picking up a native studio.
 
Yeah. Phil's in Japan for the entire week.




They've got to do something to make inroads in Japan. It can be argued that their lack of a presence in the hearts and minds of Japanese consumers, devs and publishers, is the reason why so many studios over there outright skip localization for the Xbox globally. IMO if MS wants to be more competitive with Sony and Nintendo next generation, they need to start figuring Japan out. A good way to start might be picking up a native studio.



This makes me hyped for XO18....a lil :)


IR87zYt-1.gif
 
Phil isn’t allowed back unless he has the Kingdom Hearts collection with him.
 
Yeah. Phil's in Japan for the entire week.




They've got to do something to make inroads in Japan. It can be argued that their lack of a presence in the hearts and minds of Japanese consumers, devs and publishers, is the reason why so many studios over there outright skip localization for the Xbox globally. IMO if MS wants to be more competitive with Sony and Nintendo next generation, they need to start figuring Japan out. A good way to start might be picking up a native studio.


A major game being exclusive every 3 years isn't going to change anything. It didn't change anything when they had exclusives last gen and now the console market there has shrunk. What Microsoft can do is make more of an effort to get certain games to launch on Xbox instead of being exclusive to PS and work to get people who are willing to buy these games around the world to own Xboxs.