Sony Sony buys Bungie for $3.6 billion, update: deal has officially closed

[Mercury33]

10 minutes ago, number305 said:

 

The potential problem with this and not getting any real marketable IP's is that the talent can leave.  I mean it happened to Microsoft.  Microsoft purchased RARE back in the day... but all the talent left, and RARE hasn't done anything since.

Probably a big reason they’re letting them keep their autonomy. But also who said it was a zero risk move? It’s also certainly possible Bungies next IP flops. 
 

But it’s also possible Blizzard(also completely devoid of talent atm) never regains it’s glory and Activisions IPs end up being worthless outside of a CoD which could also begin to decline. 
 

Everything has risk to it. 

[TwinIon]

Bungie has been hiring and working on a new game for a long while now. I have to assume that much of this acquisition is because of that. Given that it hasn't even been announced, I would bet that it becomes a Playstation exclusive.

 

Then again, while Sony has been dipping its toes into the multiplatform waters lately, maybe buying Bungie is just a way to push those experiments much further. Not sure how you go about leveraging Bungie's expertise in cross platform live service games, but maybe Sony is looking into the far future and not seeing single platform being the way.

 

As someone that has (and continues to) sink untold hours into Destiny 2, I'm hopeful that at the very least this means Bungie gets the resources they need to fulfill their vision for Lightfall and beyond.

 

Also, for some reason I actually believe some of the talk about independence and self publishing a bit more here. Between their experiences with Activision and Microsoft, I have the feeling that Bungie wants to remain as independent as possible, so I'm guessing that either they got the deal they wanted or the money just became too good. Hopefully it was both.

[The def star]

3 minutes ago, Mercury33 said:

Probably a big reason they’re letting them keep their autonomy. But also who said it was a zero risk move? It’s also certainly possible Bungies next IP flops. 
 

But it’s also possible Blizzard(also completely devoid of talent atm) never regains it’s glory and Activisions IPs end up being worthless outside of a CoD which could also begin to decline. 
 

Everything has risk to it. 

At least with Blizzard and Activision they have a massive back catalog that they can add to Game Pass that people will subscribe to play. Bungie only has Destiny. 

[TwinIon]

Also, I'm kinda surprised that Microsoft didn't end up buying them again. MS has a history of being a bit more open-minded about cross platform games and has a history with Bungie (not sure if that's a good or bad thing).

 

Whatever the case, I just hope that I don't end up having to play Destiny on my Playstation. I played D1 on playstation, but have very much enjoyed D2 on the PC. If there ends up being exclusive content again, that would suck.

[The def star]

4 minutes ago, TwinIon said:

Also, I'm kinda surprised that Microsoft didn't end up buying them again. MS has a history of being a bit more open-minded about cross platform games and has a history with Bungie (not sure if that's a good or bad thing).

 

Whatever the case, I just hope that I don't end up having to play Destiny on my Playstation. I played D1 on playstation, but have very much enjoyed D2 on the PC. If there ends up being exclusive content again, that would suck.

For $3.6 billion it's too much for just 1 studio with pretty much just 1 IP. MS already has the advantage when it comes to FPS's and online services. Even with MS spending money left and right that wasn't a good use of their money. Sony on the other hand could use a developer like Bungie and will gladly over pay for it.

[nublood]

What a weird time to be a gamer : /

[Mercury33]

20 minutes ago, TwinIon said:

Bungie has been hiring and working on a new game for a long while now. I have to assume that much of this acquisition is because of that. Given that it hasn't even been announced, I would bet that it becomes a Playstation exclusive.

 

Then again, while Sony has been dipping its toes into the multiplatform waters lately, maybe buying Bungie is just a way to push those experiments much further. Not sure how you go about leveraging Bungie's expertise in cross platform live service games, but maybe Sony is looking into the far future and not seeing single platform being the way.

 

As someone that has (and continues to) sink untold hours into Destiny 2, I'm hopeful that at the very least this means Bungie gets the resources they need to fulfill their vision for Lightfall and beyond.

 

Also, for some reason I actually believe some of the talk about independence and self publishing a bit more here. Between their experiences with Activision and Microsoft, I have the feeling that Bungie wants to remain as independent as possible, so I'm guessing that either they got the deal they wanted or the money just became too good. Hopefully it was both.

They already said Bungie will remain autonomous and continue to release multiplat games. 

[number305]

35 minutes ago, The def star said:

:cough:

 

 

 

 

I 100% forgot about that game... mostly because I don't play it.  But that is a quality title from them.  But if you look at their wiki page back in the late 90's/early 2000's before MS acquired them they were releasing multiple bangers every year.  Then they got relegated to kinect sports and produced garbage for a long time.

[TwinIon]

3 minutes ago, Mercury33 said:

They already said Bungie will remain autonomous and continue to release multiplat games. 

Yeah, but they still own 100% control of Bungie. They could change their mind on that the day the deal closes and I doubt there's much that could stop them. I suspect that they'll continue to support Destiny 2 as a multiplatform game, because it would be insane not to, but whatever new games Bungie makes don't necessarily have to go that way.

 

11 minutes ago, The def star said:

For $3.6 billion it's too much for just 1 studio with pretty much just 1 IP. MS already has the advantage when it comes to FPS's and online services. Even with MS spending money left and right that wasn't a good use of their money. Sony on the other hand could use a developer like Bungie and will gladly over pay for it.

I think that's a good point. Bungie has an expertise that MS already has and Sony doesn't. Seems like an odd fit for now, but maybe this is another step in the evolution of a new Sony.

[The def star]

6 minutes ago, number305 said:

 

I 100% forgot about that game... mostly because I don't play it.  But that is a quality title from them.  But if you look at their wiki page back in the late 90's/early 2000's before MS acquired them they were releasing multiple bangers every year.  Then they got relegated to kinect sports and produced garbage for a long time.

Yeah they spent a lot of time not putting out much. Other than Viva Pinatas and Sea of Thieves nothing memorable came out of them. But at least with Sea of Thieves MS is making money hand over fist so I guess the slump was worth it

[crispy4000]

1 hour ago, The def star said:

Microsoft made Bungie more valuable than it really is. If you look at the Besthesda deal, Microsoft at least got their past catalog to put on their service. With Bungie, they get Destiny, Myth and Oni? The Bethesda deal looks a lot better in every passing day  

 

EDIT: And Marathon 

 

Pathways into Darkness

I agree that this is probably too steep.  If Bungie kept the Halo IP this would have been worth that.

[SaysWho?]

It always amazes me to see people surprised Sony has this kind of money, as if they're some hole in the wall restaurant.  

 

I also think it's funny that Killzone was dubbed in the media (or message boards, heck if I remember) as "the Halo Killer" and now they own the studio that created Halo.

 

2 hours ago, GameDadGrant said:

 

The Vita failed, that's true. The PS4 is old, that's true. And I'm pretty sure the PS5 isn't selling as much as Sony would like. Admittedly, that's mostly due to hardware shortages, but still. 

 

 

Hmm. I think people just want the PS5 to thrive. Whether or not it actually is? I dunno. Doesn't look good. 

 

I want it to do well. I'm a Day One purchaser of the damn thing, after all. 

 

PS5 is doing fantastic. Until supply constraints last fall, it was outpacing the PS4 and PS2.

[crispy4000]

2 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

I also think it's funny that Killzone was dubbed in the media (or message boards, heck if I remember) as "the Halo Killer" and now they own the studio that created Halo.

 

Bungie should make a new Killzone to complete the cycle.

 

[GameDadGrant]

2 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

PS5 is doing fantastic. Until supply constraints last fall, it was outpacing the PS4 and PS2.

 

That's what I'm getting at! 

[SaysWho?]

Just now, crispy4000 said:

 

Bungie should make a new Killzone to complete the cycle.

 

 

[SaysWho?]

5 minutes ago, crispy4000 said:

 

Bungie should make a new Killzone to complete the cycle.

 

 

This Reset thread from September was bumped today lol

 

What if Sony Acquired Bungie And Was Told To Work On Killzone - A Dream or Nightmare?

[Guest]

I hate media consolidation, but I also am taken back to the old days of being a teenage console warrior and this makes me smile

[skillzdadirecta]

1 hour ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

 

I'll take Resistance if I had a vote in the matter

 

I'd take Starhawk personally.

[Brian]

Surprised Netease didn’t try to buy Bungie after investing $100M.  I guess Netease wanted that payout for some other acquisition.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

 

[XxEvil AshxX]

Bungie is such a slut.

 

"Hello Microsoft... No! I want to be single!"

*Shacks up with Activision*

"Activision is so yesterday."

*Sony walks by*

[Fizzzzle]

21 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

I hate media consolidation, but I also am taken back to the old days of being a teenage console warrior and this makes me smile

This is one case where I think it's ultimately... better? for gamers question mark? I don't know yet.

 

But like, Sony and Microsoft are playing the long game. Activision/Blizzard, Bethesda, Bungie, as well as obviously EA and Take-Two (who are probably too big to buy) have become so focused on short term cash crabs that they kind of stopped making games. Better to make one game every 10 years and milk it for as much as possible. Rockstar has like 9 development studios and has made 2 games in the last decade. Blizzard hasn't made a single player game in a decade. Bethesda owns Arkane and id, but their own in house studios haven't released an actual new game since 2015 (Fallout 76 was basically a Fallout 4 mod that they shat out because shareholders were getty antsy). EA basically releases one single player game every 3 years across all of their studios because multiplayer games are easier to monetize.

 

Point being Sony and Microsoft aren't interested in short term cash grabs. They want your attention on their platforms, and that means more games. In that sense, I think this particular instance of media consolidation is potentially good for consumers. At least for now. Because it means we might actually get studios making new games again.

[TwinIon]

18 minutes ago, Fizzzzle said:

This is one case where I think it's ultimately... better? for gamers question mark? I don't know yet.

 

But like, Sony and Microsoft are playing the long game. Activision/Blizzard, Bethesda, Bungie, as well as obviously EA and Take-Two (who are probably too big to buy) have become so focused on short term cash crabs that they kind of stopped making games. Better to make one game every 10 years and milk it for as much as possible. Rockstar has like 9 development studios and has made 2 games in the last decade. Blizzard hasn't made a single player game in a decade. Bethesda owns Arkane and id, but their own in house studios haven't released an actual new game since 2015 (Fallout 76 was basically a Fallout 4 mod that they shat out because shareholders were getty antsy). EA basically releases one single player game every 3 years across all of their studios because multiplayer games are easier to monetize.

 

Point being Sony and Microsoft aren't interested in short term cash grabs. They want your attention on their platforms, and that means more games. In that sense, I think this particular instance of media consolidation is potentially good for consumers. At least for now. Because it means we might actually get studios making new games again.

I don't really disagree with your reasoning, but the end game should always be kept in sight. They're consolidating these content creators to get more long term investments in their platforms with the goal of increasing the revenue from those platforms. However, we're so early in this transition period that I don't think we can really predict how that revenue increase will take shape. Yeah, we all know gamepass will get more expensive, but what else?

 

We've often seen other consolidated industries all follow each other into predatory pricing schemes. Wireless ISPs is the easiest example. While at the moment we might see Sony and Microsoft forego some of the less desirable monetization schemes, it's easy to imagine a future where they have much more control of the industry and end up both normalizing the worst possible practices across their entire portfolios.

 

Of course, even with these recent acquisitions, it's likely that games remains far more competitive that ISPs, so hopefully the worst won't happen.

[best3444]

And again this doesn't effect me in anyway as a gamer. 

[Brick]

Phil Spencer is crying right now. He's a big Destiny fan.

[SaysWho?]

12 minutes ago, Brick said:

Phil Spencer is crying right now. He's a big Destiny fan.

 

 

[Kal-El814]

I categorically refuse to accept that there is anyone who wants a new Killzone.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

7 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

I categorically refuse to accept that there is anyone who wants a new Killzone.

 

If there is one, it should have Rico as the protagonist

[Kal-El814]

2 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

 

If there is one, it should have Rico as the protagonist

 

[SaysWho?]

12 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

I categorically refuse to accept that there is anyone who wants a new Killzone.

 

You'd be wrong.  

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

1 minute ago, Kal-El814 said:

 

 

Rico Velasquez | Killzone Wiki | Fandom

KILLZONE.FANDOM.COM

---

"What the fuck's a Shakespeare?" —Ricardo Velasquez[src] Ricardo "Rico" Velasquez (born November 1, 2329) is a soldier of the Interplanetary Strategic Alliance in Vekta who...

 

[Kal-El814]

4 minutes ago, SaysWho? said:

You'd be wrong.  

 

The world is full of liars, some of them say they would want a new Killzone game.

 

4 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

 

Rico Velasquez | Killzone Wiki | Fandom

KILLZONE.FANDOM.COM

---

"What the fuck's a Shakespeare?" —Ricardo Velasquez[src] Ricardo "Rico" Velasquez (born November 1, 2329) is a soldier of the Interplanetary Strategic Alliance in Vekta who...

 

 

However did I forget this classic character.

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

2 minutes ago, Kal-El814 said:

However did I forget this classic character.

 

I have no idea because Rico Velasquez is memorable for being widely-considered as one of the ABSOLUTE WORST characters ever devised!

[Kal-El814]

4 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

I have no idea because Rico Velasquez is memorable for being widely-considered as one of the ABSOLUTE WORST characters ever devised!

 

Perhaps it is because nobody plays or cares about Killzone.

[Brian]