Microsoft has acquired Obsidian Entertainment

Deleted member 268 · Nov 12, 2018

Phil's track record as someone with real authority is evident.

The only reason he's been spending money on studios now is because of his recent promotion to Executive VP of Gaming.

Phil's efforts have always correlated with the most he could do with the role and authority he was given.

As Head of Xbox he got rid of Kinect, made BC happen and produced XB1S and XB1X.

Now he's the EVP of Gaming he's got a real budget to play around with and we've seen some impressive moves thus far, and more are on the way - and not just in acquisitions I suspect. I don't think "second party" efforts have effectively been killed off altogether.

All in all, there's a reason Xbox fans are by and large very happy with Phil's leadership. He doesn't cheat anyone on effort.

Raspyberry · Nov 14, 2018

Pryme said:
You'd prefer they went the Telltale route? Totter on and on until the lights finally went out?

Sometimes that could be best

Rodjer · Nov 14, 2018

Raspyberry said:
Sometimes that could be best

Yes, it's really good when people are losing their jobs.

Premium · Nov 14, 2018

Raspyberry said:
Sometimes that could be best

Developers closing doors is definitely in everyone's best interest amirite?

Mr.Deadshot · Nov 14, 2018

Agent Orange said:
I hope that MS gives the Shadowrun IP to Obsidian and let's them be to create something magical!!! there is soooo much potential there.

Do they even own the licences anymore? What about Mechwarrior and Crimson Skies? All of these would make for great RPG settings.

zedox · Nov 14, 2018

Mr.Deadshot said:
Do they even own the licences anymore? What about Mechwarrior and Crimson Skies? All of these would make for great RPG settings.

Yes, MS owns those IPs

Breqesk · Nov 14, 2018

Mr.Deadshot said:
Do they even own the licences anymore? What about Mechwarrior and Crimson Skies? All of these would make for great RPG settings.

They licence them out every now and then - HBS Shadowrun, BattleTech - but they still have the video game rights for sure. A AAA Obsidian Shadowrun would be incredible—I absolutely love those HBS games.

Sky pirates and mechs, in an RPG?! That's.... brilliant. I mean, I think I'd still take Shadowrun first, but I can't say I'd be unhappy with Obsidian getting to work with any of those franchises.

Mr.Deadshot · Nov 14, 2018

Breqesk said:
They licence them out every now and then - HBS Shadowrun, BattleTech - but they still have the video game rights for sure. A AAA Obsidian Shadowrun would be incredible—I absolutely love those HBS games.

Sky pirates and mechs, in an RPG?! That's.... brilliant. I mean, I think I'd still take Shadowrun first, but I can't say I'd be unhappy with Obsidian getting to work with any of those franchises.

If they still own these licenses they would be STUPID to not use them for RPGs. Both Shadowrun and MechWarrior already have big, established RPG-universes. Not sure about Crimson Skies. Shit, that would be SOOO good.

Deleted member 268 · Nov 14, 2018

Gimme Mechwarriors with cloud compute destruction tech online.

Please.

Armoured_Bear · Nov 14, 2018

Tragic news, such a great developer.
We all know the chances of them not being ruined are slim.

Alexious · Nov 14, 2018

Mr.Deadshot said:
If they still own these licenses they would be STUPID to not use them for RPGs. Both Shadowrun and MechWarrior already have big, established RPG-universes. Not sure about Crimson Skies. Shit, that would be SOOO good.

Indeed. Though I would say Shadowrun might have more mass appeal than MechWarrior. Either way, it should be something right up Obsidian's alley.

christocolus · Nov 14, 2018

Armoured_Bear said:
Tragic news, such a great developer.
We all know the chances of them not being ruined are slim.

We? who is "We"?... Ruined? Lol.. what is this? The devs made a choice that best suits them and so did MS. You could have saved them from "ruin" by getting them a better deal ..and so you know Devs getting shut down isn't new in this Industry... Activision, EA, and Sony have all shut down underperforming devs.

Kage Maru · Nov 14, 2018

I would much rather Obsidian work on what they want than to have an IP assigned to them. Whether that's PoE, Shadowrun, or a new IP. I just want them to be given the freedom we're being told they'll have.

Raspyberry said:
Sometimes that could be best

You either have never been laid off or you're just an incredibly naive individual.

I'm not going to pretend that I care about Obsidian more than any other studio just because they got acquired but I'm still happy that they have some financial security. I hate seeing any studio be shut down, regardless if I'm a fan of their games or not. Just because people move around in this industry, we shouldn't accept this as a continued norm.

Armoured_Bear said:
Tragic news, such a great developer.
We all know the chances of them not being ruined are slim.

We don't know anything and neither do you. We all should hope the best for them instead of spewing out ignorant hot takes.

Mr.Deadshot · Nov 14, 2018

Alexious said:
Indeed. Though I would say Shadowrun might have more mass appeal than MechWarrior. Either way, it should be something right up Obsidian's alley.

I'd say Cyberpunk with Orcs and Elves or giant Robots fighting each other both resonante well with the mainstream. Crimson Skies not so much. Any of these settings made into an AAA-RPG would be amazing though.

yankeeh8er · Nov 14, 2018

Armoured_Bear said:
Tragic news, such a great developer.
We all know the chances of them not being ruined are slim.

LOL this is such a ridiculous post.

Voodoopeople · Nov 14, 2018

Armoured_Bear said:
Tragic news, such a great developer.
We all know the chances of them not being ruined are slim.

989 Studios, BigBig Studios, Guerrilla Cambridge, Contrail, Evolution Studios, Incognito Entertainment, Studio Liverpool and Zipper Interactive say hello.

Or more specifically, don't.

There are very few things as normal in this industry as studios closing down. It happens all the time and isn't something one company, or MS in particular, do much more than any other.

litebrite · Nov 14, 2018

Mr.Deadshot said:
If they still own these licenses they would be STUPID to not use them for RPGs. Both Shadowrun and MechWarrior already have big, established RPG-universes. Not sure about Crimson Skies. Shit, that would be SOOO good.

I believe the ownership rights for MechWarrior isn't as clear cut and a bit of mess, which is why MS have steered clear from using it. At least I could've sworn I read something to that effect somewhere about a year ago.

ccieag · Nov 14, 2018

Obsidian hasn't really put anything good out in awhile. Still, at least MS saved them from going under

Deleted member 268 · Nov 14, 2018

ccieag said:
Obsidian hasn't really put anything good out in awhile. Still, at least MS saved them from going under

Pillars of Eternity are recent and critically well received - 89 and 88 respectively on metacritic.

Before that, their last big IP title in South Park is at 85.

Their weakest title in years is Tyranny at 80.

Obsidian is a great studio. They're about to eat.

Mr.Deadshot · Nov 14, 2018

ccieag said:
Obsidian hasn't really put anything good out in awhile.

Tell me how ~~Path of Exile~~ Pillars of Eternity 1+2 and Tyranny are not "good" by any standard.
I am still disappointed with the Pathfinder Card game adapation because - as far as I read - it STILL has bugs to this day, but PoE and Tyranny are great CRPGs.

litebrite · Nov 14, 2018

Mr.Deadshot said:
Tell me how Path of Exile 1+2 and Tyranny are not "good" by any standard.
I am still disappointed with the Pathfinder Card game adapation because - as far as I read - it STILL has bugs to this day, but PoE and Tyranny are great CRPGs.

I know you meant Pillars of Eternity. Grinding Gear Games developed Path of Exile.

Mr.Deadshot · Nov 14, 2018

litebrite said:
I know you meant Pillars of Eternity. Grinding Gear Games developed Path of Exile.

Yeah thanks, I am really tired :\

Terror-Billy · Nov 14, 2018

ccieag said:
Obsidian hasn't really put anything good out in awhile. Still, at least MS saved them from going under

What is this bullcrap? Their last games have been highly acclaimed.

Brown Intruder · Nov 14, 2018

RPGs with expansions are imo a perfect fit for gamepass.

Can't wait to see what they are up to.

cowbanana · Nov 14, 2018

I guess it is better than them closing down. Let's see if anything good comes from this.

Joco · Nov 14, 2018

Any word on what's happening with the IP they had in development with Take-Two?

severianb · Nov 14, 2018

Rumblebones said:
Gimme Mechwarriors with cloud compute destruction tech online.

Please.

Oh yeah, that would be sweet. I used to be DEEP into the Mechwarrior/Battletech universe back in the day. Enjoyed the video games and boardgame. There was multiplayer (unlicensed, I think) version of the boardgame on Amiga that was loads of fun.

Fun fact: Titanfall used Cloud Compute for some things like the physics of armor blowing off the Titans in addition to all the NPC grunts. So we have some precedent for giant mech games and cloud compute.

litebrite · Nov 14, 2018

Joco said:
Any word on what's happening with the IP they had in development with Take-Two?

Supposedly it's still being worked on and will come out with Take Two publishing it.

Armoured_Bear · Nov 14, 2018

What do Sony have to do with this?
You basically proved my point, more often than not, when good studios get taken over by the big boys, their quality decreases, they change or end up getting shut down.
I really hope I'm wrong, I'd love MS to give them financial backing and let them get on with it but I doubt it.

Armoured_Bear · Nov 14, 2018

Voodoopeople said:
989 Studios, BigBig Studios, Guerrilla Cambridge, Contrail, Evolution Studios, Incognito Entertainment, Studio Liverpool and Zipper Interactive say hello.

Or more specifically, don't.

There are very few things as normal in this industry as studios closing down. It happens all the time and isn't something one company, or MS in particular, do much more than any other.

What do Sony have to do with this?
You basically proved my point, more often than not, when good studios get taken over by the big boys, their quality decreases, they change or end up getting shut down.
I really hope I'm wrong, I'd love MS to give them financial backing and let them get on with it but I doubt it.

Shadout · Nov 14, 2018

Yeah, certainly seems much more likely that this will end up bad for Obsidian than the opposite.

Voodoopeople · Nov 14, 2018

Armoured_Bear said:
What do Sony have to do with this?
You basically proved my point, more often than not, when good studios get taken over by the big boys, their quality decreases, they change or end up getting shut down.
I really hope I'm wrong, I'd love MS to give them financial backing and let them get on with it but I doubt it.

Or they stay open. Many many more studios than have been closed by either MS or Sony have closed all on their own. The price of games development means either mega projects or indies these days. There's no middle ground. Apart from now with Gamepass.

Atom Heart Mother · Nov 14, 2018

Breqesk said:
They licence them out every now and then - HBS Shadowrun, BattleTech - but they still have the video game rights for sure. A AAA Obsidian Shadowrun would be incredible—I absolutely love those HBS games.

Sky pirates and mechs, in an RPG?! That's.... brilliant. I mean, I think I'd still take Shadowrun first, but I can't say I'd be unhappy with Obsidian getting to work with any of those franchises.

Shadowrun done with a big budget with Obsidian would be amazing, especially since if Cyberpunk 2070 revives the cyberpunk craze.

Armoured_Bear · Nov 14, 2018

Voodoopeople said:
Or they stay open. Many many more studios than have been closed by either MS or Sony have closed all on their own. The price of games development means either mega projects or indies these days. There's no middle ground. Apart from now with Gamepass.

How many studios have thrived after being taken over?
I can't think of any bar Nintendo studios such as Retro and monolith Soft

ThereAreFourNaan · Nov 14, 2018

Armoured_Bear said:
How many studios have thrived after being taken over?
I can't think of any bar Nintendo studios such as Retro and monolith Soft

In general? Most big third party studios were acquisitions. DICE, Treyarch/Infinity Ward, Blizzard etc.

More Butter · Nov 14, 2018

Rumblebones said:
Gimme Mechwarriors with cloud compute destruction tech online.

Please.

Give me Phantom Dust 2 with cloud destruction

Kill3r7 · Nov 14, 2018

Armoured_Bear said:
How many studios have thrived after being taken over?
I can't think of any bar Nintendo studios such as Retro and monolith Soft

That is because you are not trying. See Naughty Dog, Bungie, Guerrilla Games, Media Molecule, Sucker Punch, Arkane Studios to name a few.

Voodoopeople · Nov 14, 2018

Armoured_Bear said:
How many studios have thrived after being taken over?
I can't think of any bar Nintendo studios such as Retro and monolith Soft

Guerilla, Media Molecule, Sucker Punch, Bend......it goes on All were bought not grown from scratch by Sony. All doing well for them.

Others outside Sony or MS include Bungie, as mentioned by others.

EDIT :beaten.

Deleted member 268 · Nov 14, 2018

More Butter said:
Give me Phantom Dust 2 with cloud destruction

I ~HATE~ YOU

Armoured_Bear · Nov 14, 2018

Kill3r7 said:
That is because you are not trying. See Naughty Dog, Bungie, Guerrilla Games, Media Molecule, Sucker Punch, Arkane Studios to name a few.

Maybe I'm wrong then, I certainly hope so.

Anoregon · Nov 14, 2018

Mr.Deadshot said:
Tell me how ~~Path of Exile~~ Pillars of Eternity 1+2 and Tyranny are not "good" by any standard.
I am still disappointed with the Pathfinder Card game adapation because - as far as I read - it STILL has bugs to this day, but PoE and Tyranny are great CRPGs.

You're never going to convince someone who doesn't like Pillars that they are actually very good games that a lot of people like. The "Obsidian hasn't made a good game since New Vegas" narrative is too strong.

NCR Ranger · Nov 14, 2018

I am a huge Obsidian fanboy but lets be real here, their last two games bombed. If no one bought them their future seemed to be mass layoffs or going under completely. In the absolute worst case scenario this acquisition by Microsoft delayed that by a few years. In a more hopeful scenario this will give them the breathing room to hit new heights.

The idea that a few people across the internet have that Obsidian was this financially successful independent developer that is now being gobbled up by wicked old Microsoft is divorced from reality.

Mr.Deadshot · Nov 14, 2018

Anoregon said:
You're never going to convince someone who doesn't like Pillars that they are actually very good games that a lot of people like. The "Obsidian hasn't made a good game since New Vegas" narrative is too strong.

I don't want to convince someone. I just wanted to know what makes them "not good".

Shadout · Nov 14, 2018

Different opinions and all that, but Pillars of Eternity (after expansion) is pretty much one of the best games in the last decade. The kind of failures I want more of.

Betty · Nov 14, 2018

Shadout said:
Different opinions and all that, but Pillars of Eternity (after expansion) is pretty much one of the best games in the last decade. The kind of failures I want more of.

I'd bet a lot of money that the majority of Xbox fans would take a 3D RPG from Obsidian over an isometric one, no matter how good the isometric one will be.

Shoot · Nov 14, 2018

Almighty said:
I am a huge Obsidian fanboy but lets be real here, their last two games bombed. If no one bought them their future seemed to be mass layoffs or going under completely. In the absolute worst case scenario this acquisition by Microsoft delayed that by a few years. In a more hopeful scenario this will give them the breathing room to hit new heights.

The idea that a few people across the internet have that Obsidian was this financially successful independent developer that is now being gobbled up by wicked old Microsoft is divorced from reality.

Seeing the sales of Pillars of Eternity 2 really put it into perspective for me. While it is unfortunate that I will not be able to play another one of their games on PS4, that has nothing to do with this acquisition. Pillars of Eternity 2 was going to be the last one regardless. At least this way we can get something, even if it is not on my preferred platform.

OneBadMutha · Nov 14, 2018

When people here tell you they'd rather see a studio close their doors than make games under Microsoft...who's trying to get these games on multiple non Microsoft devices...you know what you're dealing with. Don't aknowledge them.

Deleted member 268 · Nov 14, 2018

Can't believe nobody reposted this.

Obsidian devs recreate Star Wars Mos Eisley spaceport in Unreal Engine 4

This was a 17 man project they whipped up just dicking around.

Next gen is gonna be lit.

Heid · Nov 14, 2018

Rumblebones said:
This was a 17 man project they whipped up just dicking around.

Next gen is gonna be lit.

Inb4 Disney sees how badly EA handled the IP and decides no one can have it

Shadout · Nov 14, 2018

Betty said:
I'd bet a lot of money that the majority of Xbox fans would take a 3D RPG from Obsidian over an isometric one, no matter how good the isometric one will be.

Sadly, that is likely true. Exactly why this seems guaranteed to be bad for the kind of games coming from Obsidian going forward.

Microsoft has acquired Obsidian Entertainment

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