intheinbetween
Member
They simply don’t want to lose their advantages, like blocking CoD on Game Pass or exclusive content that made them the place to play CoD for most players.
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Microsoft / Activision Deal Approval Watch |OT| (MS/ABK close)
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They simply don’t want to lose their advantages, like blocking CoD on Game Pass or exclusive content that made them the place to play CoD for most players.
adamsapple
Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Menzies
Banned
Ass of Can Whooping
Gold Member
No defence.
Got it
You were making a point? My bad. Try rephrasing it into an actual argument then
DarkMage619
$MSFT
Why do people keep comparing it to the Switch if it is a high end device? Why in every comparison it made fun because of its lower resolution. Why does it actually cost even less than the Switch does? Are you really trying to argue the XSS is a 'high end device'?
If anything Nintendo and Sony have more in common than with Xbox. Those companies actually rely quite heavily on first party releases where Xbox never has. Blocking 3rd party titles hurts Xbox far more than the reverse. Still doesn't change the fact that carving up the console market this way makes no sense at all.
Ass of Can Whooping
Gold Member
Thirty7ven
Banned
It’s amazing really, it’s like those dogs that are a mirror of their owners.
Banjo64
cumsessed
Why are you only answering questions with questions? Do I compare it with the Switch? No? Ok. Do you want me to speak on behalf of Sony fanboys on GAF?
Ass of Can Whooping
Gold Member
You can speak on my behalf any day babe
R3claimer117
Member
Quite stupid the idea that Nintendo pumps billions into R&D to make hardware and software and has some of the biggest selling franchises in gaming history. Leads the current generation in hardware sales and does Nintendo direct and all these things just because they can careless about mindshare is the dumbest shit I’ve heard. Can’t wait to hear the bribery charges when the EC and CMA come out in a favorable position with Microsoft and see what hill they die on next.
DarkMage619
$MSFT
Apologies. MS calls it next gen because it's plays their latest offerings not because it's powerful. The whole point of the XSS was to offer a low end affordable console. No one not even MS claims it was a high powered device aimed at enthusiasts.
Yeah there isn't a logical argument here.
Captain Toad
Banned
You know if he doesn't know how, he won't be able to read you telling him to learn.
You'll have to tell him in person.
bentanchorbolt
Banned
The more I think about it, the more I look forward to the deal going through. Game Pass is already a good value for me and my family, adding ABK into the mix will only make it better.
It would be a shame if MS were allowed to have CoD as a console exclusive, I do hope that isn’t the case —however these boxes are not financially out of reach for most people, and those who primary PS can buy an Xbox if they want to play CoD.
If it doesn’t go through, I guess thens the breaks. I own all three major consoles this gen so personally I’m not worried about content being out of my reach, and I suspect if most people took a deep breath they’d likely feel the same way. I know it’s en vogue to be a doomer about this deal and others like it, but the alternative seems worse to me. The deal falls through and it’s bad news for Activision, and I suspect MS will repurpose those funds for other purchases. Also, I’d much rather see MS have ABK under their umbrella that Tencent, Google, or Amazon. This does seem like a “lesser of evils” sort of scenario.
It would be a shame if MS were allowed to have CoD as a console exclusive, I do hope that isn’t the case —however these boxes are not financially out of reach for most people, and those who primary PS can buy an Xbox if they want to play CoD.
If it doesn’t go through, I guess thens the breaks. I own all three major consoles this gen so personally I’m not worried about content being out of my reach, and I suspect if most people took a deep breath they’d likely feel the same way. I know it’s en vogue to be a doomer about this deal and others like it, but the alternative seems worse to me. The deal falls through and it’s bad news for Activision, and I suspect MS will repurpose those funds for other purchases. Also, I’d much rather see MS have ABK under their umbrella that Tencent, Google, or Amazon. This does seem like a “lesser of evils” sort of scenario.
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Topher
Gold Member
That's a good take, imo. Nothing wrong with recognizing how a big corp merger might benefit you. I know I seem to side with Sony on all this, but that's really only with specific arguments that I disagree with. For the most part this deal isn't going to affect me at all. I don't play Activision games. Like you, I have all the consoles so I'm not really worried about exclusivity.
Having said that, if this acquisition can magically turn Blizzard into the amazing studio they were years ago then I'll look back and be happy it happened.
Edit:
I’ve been blessed with the chuckling emoji of the prophet of laughter,
Ezekiel_
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feynoob
Gold Member
I can thank this deal for one thing.
I am writing a 5-6 page college thesis right now, as in white paper (tons of sources, and my own words), and this deal provided me enough insight to form a coherant argument for my papers.
At least that is one possitive thing for me about this deal.
Any way, back to work now. I am on page 2, and I need to finish them in 2 hours.
I am writing a 5-6 page college thesis right now, as in white paper (tons of sources, and my own words), and this deal provided me enough insight to form a coherant argument for my papers.
At least that is one possitive thing for me about this deal.
Any way, back to work now. I am on page 2, and I need to finish them in 2 hours.
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adamsapple
Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
Yeah, they (ABK) wanted to sell themselves off to Meta.
Imagine that future.
*shudder*
bentanchorbolt
Banned
I’m a glass half full kind of guy. Provided they don’t block CoD off, this puts MS into a more favorable and value oriented position, which means they are more competitive with Sony. Sony was on easy street last gen and they still managed to release banger after banger. If that was Sony with a comfortable lead, maybe a real challenger from MS is what they need to really come alive.
bentanchorbolt
Banned
Love my Quest 2 but jfc that company is bleeding money right now, and I’m not sure they’d be very good stewards in the gaming industry.
Mr Reasonable
Completely Unreasonable
I would love to see a fanboy world summit with delegates representing the interests of fanboys around the world.
"You have the floor metagarçon534"
"Thankyou, Mr moderator.
If Nintendo is for old ladies and 7 year olds, as WarGod_frostbite claims, then how come Metroid Prime was given a 12+ rating and is an fps when old ladies mainly like Sudoku and Mahjong?"
[Applause from the gallery]
bender
What time is it?
SoloKingRobert
Banned
That's a good take, imo. Nothing wrong with recognizing how a big corp merger might benefit you. I know I seem to side with Sony on all this, but that's really only with specific arguments that I disagree with. For the most part this deal isn't going to affect me at all. I don't play Activision games. Like you, I have all the consoles so I'm not really worried about exclusivity.
Having said that, if this acquisition can magically turn Blizzard into the amazing studio they were years ago then I'll look back and be happy it happened.
Edit:
I’ve been blessed with the chuckling emoji of the prophet of laughter,
This also benefits Nintendo, PC and Xbox. Jim Ryan is the only one saying it's anti consumer...
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DarkMage619
$MSFT
You have never heard the Xbox had no games argument? How about how Xbox this generation launched with 'no' first party titles and released no major titles this year? MS doesn't rely on first party like Nintendo and Sony do. It's not complicated. This acquisition will certainly boost their first party portfolio for sure though so that should make people who are concerned happy.
bender
What time is it?
This generation and this year =/= never has.
DarkMage619
$MSFT
My point is that Nintendo and Sony rely heavily on first party games. MS does not. Check those NPDs for Xbox representation. If we're going to segment up the marketplace Sony and Nintendo should be together before Sony and MS. MS in no way, shape, or form is anyway a threat to competition in video games.
bender
What time is it?
You aren't eloquent with your point when you ignore half of the brand history.
Banjo64
cumsessed
Thank you. I agree that it is an affordable console.
Just because it’s affordable doesn’t mean it’s low end, and MS have never advertised it as low end either.
This is the Series S announcement trailer.
The first words on screen are ‘next-gen performance’. Then ‘next-gen speed’. Then ‘next-gen performance’ a second time. Then ‘next-gen framerates up to 120fps’. Then ‘games optimised for next-gen’.
At 1:20 they list the features for us in one go. Including 1440p at up to 120fps, DirectX Ray Tracing, VRS, VRR, NVME storage.
I think you yourself know it’s not a low end device because I’m sure, like me, you’ve seen Gears 5 running @ 120fps on it, alongside games like Forza Horizon 5 and Requiem.
IFireflyl
Gold Member
It's hard for them to rely on first-party games when they have consistently shit the bed with their first-party output. You're acting like it's by choice, but it's only because they don't manage their studios properly.
DarkMage619
$MSFT
You clearly missed the Evil West thread where it was again accused of 'holding back gaming'. Something said about it frequently. Odd accusation for a high performance device. Regardless it doesn't mean that the XSS is in a separate market apart from the Switch which is what the FTC is arguing. No one calls the XSS a high performance device and you know that. It is a low end console that is competing for the same gaming dollars and time as all other consoles.
Facts are facts. MS is third in the console gaming space and it is total nonsense to believe that the acquisition of Activision will suddenly cause Sony to lose any significant market share.
Reality can sometimes be difficult to accept. MS is third in consoles has little first party presence unlike Nintendo and Sony. Maybe this acquisition can change MS's fortunes. We'll see if it makes them more competitive.
Banjo64
cumsessed
I mean, that’s true. But it’s not by design.
Do you not agree they’ve already taken significant strides to address this prior to ABK with Playground, Compulsion, Double Fine, inXile, Mojang, Ninja Theory, Obsidian, Undead Labs and the entirety of Zenimax?
MS care, they’ve just not managed to get their studios churning out games yet.
bender
What time is it?
The reality is you seems to have gapping holes in the history of the subject matter you are trying to discuss or are incapable of using precise language.
Banjo64
cumsessed
Those threads don’t hold any weight with me, I doubt you consider them to be relevant, and MS/CMA/FTC/EU certainly don’t care about them either.
As I’ve already posted for you, Microsoft themselves have provided internal documentation as part of their submission to the CMA that evidences Nintendo aren’t in ‘direct’ competition with them or Sony. Third parties have also supported this.
Performance is relative though? As I’ve already posted, the Series S is 7 or 8 times more powerful than the Switch, so how are they both in the low end category?
Warablo
Member
I mean you gotta give those studios time to make the games first. They only recently acquired a shit load of studios usually on the cusp of releasing a game. (Ghostwire, Deathloop, Grounded, Outerworlds)
They had like 4 at the start of Xbox One. Not sure when the spree started.
They had like 4 at the start of Xbox One. Not sure when the spree started.
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1) thanks to the person who gifted me gold, I was actually trying to spend a little less time here/online and more time doing other things so will see what happens.
2) hoeg's bias I think is more against 'over reach' from judicial and regulatory bodies and towards the current general idea of mergers and acquisition being an goal for start-ups. I think that's what he mainly does iirc.
Back to playing games and learning a bit more coding
2) hoeg's bias I think is more against 'over reach' from judicial and regulatory bodies and towards the current general idea of mergers and acquisition being an goal for start-ups. I think that's what he mainly does iirc.
Back to playing games and learning a bit more coding
Ass of Can Whooping
Gold Member
Banjo64
cumsessed
It is hard to consider one’s own behaviour I suppose (it’s not).
Bumblebeetuna
Gold Member
Agreed with all of that. As a primarily Xbox user, I want this deal to go through to make GamePass even better. Plus I think being under the MS umbrella could mean better things for Blizzard.
I personally don’t see MS making CoD exclusive, it doesn’t make sense money wise. Other ABK games, sure. But not CoD. And you’re right, ABK is wanting to sell, and selling to MS is better than those other options.
Topher
Gold Member
That's because Jim Ryan is only concerned about PlayStation consumers and thus, Sony stockholders, as he is paid to. As to who benefits, that remains to be seen.
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IFireflyl
Gold Member
This has nothing to do with what I said. If you're going to respond, at least take the time to read what you're responding to.
GHG
Gold Member
Call of Duty, Overwatch and Diablo VR sound like pretty amazing prospects to me.
At least it would have resulted in some interesting innovation that we wouldn't have got otherwise.
DarkMage619
$MSFT
It is the fact as it is. First party isn't the main driver of success on Xbox platforms. Certainly not like it is on PlayStation and Switch. Activision will assist though.
I think it's a work in progress. Who are you or anyone to say they are done? Seems pretty arbitrary and MS is on record saying they want in on mobile gaming. How big is that division currently and do the studios you've mentioned earlier cover that segment?
MS cares about expanding their number of studios. They have a service that needs to provide games day which no one else is doing. They'll need more studios to keep churning out those games regularly.
The deal is a lot more than CoD and there was really only one company that made it all about CoD from the very beginning. Few here even mention improving the work environment for Activision employees or pushing back against Apple and Google's real monopolies over trying to make one out of MS in video games. Hopefully the FTC's claims get a thorough review by a neutral judge then we'll see how many of these claims hold up.
I agree the Gamecube is certainly history.
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GHG
Gold Member
They've made it clear they aren't interested in VR for gaming at the moment so there's no "it depends".
Thirty7ven
Banned
Meta/Amazon/Tencent would have no incentive to take games away from PlayStation or Xbox. The whole boogie man what if story about them is a bunch of bullshit. No MS isn’t a white knight, unless you’re a die hard Xbox fanboy who has an axe to grind with PlayStation because of some stupid reason.
feynoob
Gold Member
If you guys want a retard argument, read this article.
Warning, you might get brain damage
reason.com
Warning, you might get brain damage
The FTC has no business trying to stop video game company mergers
It’s one of the most competitive industries in the world, and there’s no good reason to stop Microsoft from acquiring Activision Blizzard.
reason.com
feynoob
Gold Member
It's not about Xbox players. Those guys buying Activision might cause tons of shit stuff.
We know how they operate. So imagine them having a foot in gaming industry.
Whether MS buys Activision or these guys buying them, the outcome isn't good for gamers.
Both are shit options.
adamsapple
Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
That is the wrong takeaway. Ending with a console-war dig is also not helping the statement you're trying to pass along.
That's all very presumptuous that they would even pursue those ventures in the first place, let alone have the slightest of ideas of how to handle such a big gaming publisher well in the first place.
I would take a Tecent to buy Activision before Meta.
Banjo stahp, you're making it difficult for folks whether to use the like emoji or the laugh emoji on your posts
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xHunter
Member
Agree with this. People always argue how much worse it be when Tencent bought them, but till this day i dont understand why it would be. Spying on your software might be one thing, but then again, Microsoft probably already everything they need through Windows.
Other than that, their games are pretty much normal.
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FalsettoVibe
Member
Let's say this real goes through........what are the chances that MS is allowed to do another 6 or 7 billion dollar deal a year or so following?
Ronin_7
Member
Anywhere between March & August 2024.
FTC or Microsoft can of course appeal so 2025 seems likely.
"The FTC scheduled its in-house trial to begin on August 2, 2023. In prior merger challenges in the agency's in-house court, the judge issued an initial decision between seven and 12 months after the trial began, said Jennifer Rie, an analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. That would likely put a decision by FTC Administrative Law Judge D. Michael Chappell in early 2024. After that, Microsoft or the FTC staff litigating the case can appeal his ruling to the agency's commissioners."
~Bloomberg
FTC or Microsoft can of course appeal so 2025 seems likely.
"The FTC scheduled its in-house trial to begin on August 2, 2023. In prior merger challenges in the agency's in-house court, the judge issued an initial decision between seven and 12 months after the trial began, said Jennifer Rie, an analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. That would likely put a decision by FTC Administrative Law Judge D. Michael Chappell in early 2024. After that, Microsoft or the FTC staff litigating the case can appeal his ruling to the agency's commissioners."
~Bloomberg
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