A couple of weeks ago, news hit the gaming scene that AT&T (Which stands for Atkins and Keto probably) might have started testing the waters to see if anyone would like to purchase Warner Bros. Interactive. While I would have loved to have swooped in and bought them, I was unfortunately short a few hundred million dollars and my next payday from a glowing Call of Duty review is still months away.
That doesn’t mean that other companies aren’t interested in spending some coin on the mighty publisher of games and their lucrative library! Warner Bros. Interactive made a name for itself as a publisher by unleashing games based on several of the hottest properties: Rocksteady’s Batman series set the benchmark for superhero games while Monolith’s Middle-Earth Shadow of Mordor and Shadow of War games were blockbusters without the need to feature a filthy Hobbit.
Throw in Mortal Kombat and LEGO, and you’ve got one heck of an attractive property just waiting for an offer to be made. While AT&T is still mulling over the idea so that they can start chipping away at their debt bill of $165 billion right now, interest is there. According to CNBC, Take Two Interactive, Electronic Arts and Activision Blizzard have all expressed interest in purchasing the publisher and its gaming licenses, with some estimates claiming that Warner Bros. Interactive is valued at $4 billion currently.
According to The Information via Games Radar, Microsoft has also thrown its hat into the ring. Having already bolstered its ranks with many studios who’ll develop games exclusively for the brand on their Xbox Series X console and for PC, Microsoft is looking to secure the biggest weapon yet in its first-party arms race against Sony and the PlayStation 5.
Nothing’s official just yet, and I doubt July 23’s Xbox showcase will kick off with Phil Spencer announcing that Batman and Mortal Kombat will be sporting team green logos, but in this industry? Anything can happen.
Last Updated: July 7, 2020
Pieter Kruger
July 7, 2020 at 08:02
Those Developers alone is worth their weight in gold, and if MS also buy the IP’s that’d be the icing on the cake. If they are really smart though, they’d keep those existing IP’s multiplat and maybe only make all new IP’s exclusive.
The D
July 7, 2020 at 08:35
Timed exclusivity could work I reckon. After all, there’s a contingent of Xbox and PC fans who can’t wait for final fantasy VII Remake to head towards team green!
Lu
July 7, 2020 at 09:55
Definitely! No need for companies to be selfish.
I despise the whole exclusivity story due to unethical practices (EGS can burn in hell), but timed exclusives seem like a good midway point for everyone.
I don’t mind waiting to buy Sony exclusive games (Horizon Zero Dawn, Nioh being great examples), as long as I can eventually get them.
That way everybody wins.
CodeDisQus
July 8, 2020 at 20:44
I still don’t get the EGS hate. It costs you absolutely NOTHING to get the game unlike on consoles where you are required to buy a whole new piece of kit to play the game. Now, all you have to do is download a piece of free sopftware.
Lu
July 9, 2020 at 07:36
I have 387 games on my Steam library. I refuse to get another launcher for a single game. Especially when there’s already one who has gone through all the growing pains and is actually in an amazing state. Does EGS have even a quarter of the features Steam has yet? It’s why I’m so glad EA has seen the light and I can finally replay Mass effect and get Dragon Age Inquisition. The XBox games pass gets a pass as everything downloads through the Microsoft store, which is already part of windows.
But the main reason I will never install that trash on my computer:
Buying out games which were sold as going to Platform A and B at the last minute to make them exclusives to your half rate platform is seriously a dick thing to do, and for that I will NEVER forgive Epic games Store. Sure it’s legal. Sure they have to make money. BUT making lairs out of once trusted developers is not right and I do not support it. Mechwarrior 5 was something I looked forward to for years – even pre ordered it on the spot – but at the last minute it was bought out to become an Epic exclusive. I know this happened with several other games too.
There are more than enough games, and as I get older I really don’t care about the latest and greatest, so I’ll wait for them to release on my platform of choice. If they don’t, so be it, there are plenty more. But EGS will n ever grace my computer.
CodeDisQus
July 9, 2020 at 17:50
OK fair is fair…. Maybe it’s just me, I don’t give damn about Steams features, I just use it as a portal(lol) to play my games. I don’t see how the shortcut I click on should matter so much.
For me the stealing of games, again, am I buying milk from Pick and Pay or Spar…. Doesn’t really matter IMO.
I know that people will die on a hill for Steam and Valve, but if my favorite developer can get more money through EGS over Steam then more power to then I guess (whether that happens or not I dunno tbf)….
I just feel like pc gamers made the whole EGS vs Steam thing so unnecessary, the inconveniences (imo) were minor at best, having to download another launcher and not having access to steam features don’t seem like a reason to not enjoy your games.
Also Steam is rife with some really disgusting corners that Valve doesn’t seem to give a shit about addressing which is probably worse than what EGS does
Lu
July 9, 2020 at 19:10
Well whether its the built in voice chat + groups, remote platy together or Steam link, I use it all. My Steam Controller even saves my game profiles on cloud and allows me to configure several per game.
To use your analogy, lets say as an FNB user I buy all my groceries at Checkers (for the bonus ebucks). I despise shops so its a pleasure to buy everything in one place. A new item gets advertised on TV. For sale at ALL retail outlets. Cool. I’m excited. They even take pre payment so you get it the day of release. Sweet.
Then a week before its supposed to be released it comes out that not only will the item be delayed, but Spar has used its wealth to buy sole right to distribute said product. So not only was a bait and switch pulled, I cannot get what I paid for at my outlet of choice.
That’s what happened with Mechwarrior 5
There is no justifying that.
Ironically MW 5 is now included in my R50 a month Gamespass subscription.
Time and again Epic have approached developers attempting to purchase exclusivity and gotten the middle finger. And those are the developers I’ll support.
I agree many people blew the story out of proportion. My dislike for epic is out of personal experience, not other’s opinion. Sure I can download the client, but if I won’t download uPlay, or Origin, or even GOG Galaxy because I like a single library, why the hell would I want EGS?
Yes Steam has has and still has many issues, but many of them can’t be fixed with the snap of their fingers. But they are constantly improving. Ending the green light exploitation for example. The review filtering to remove troll reviews(Has egs even addded reviews yet?) . I follow a channel called SidAlpha where he exposes scamming developers and there is actual action taken by Steam staff regarding them.
At the end of the day I’m comfortable with my store, and my opinion/view is my own. Makes no difference to me what other people use.
Seeker
July 7, 2020 at 10:01
This is really not a good deal. Whoever buys then doesn’t get the rights to Batman, Harry Potter and Middle Earth. AT&T will charge them royalties for those IPs. So you are just paying for the studios.
With that money MS could buy a number of indie studios and that will help diversify Xbox exclusive games.
Fox1
July 7, 2020 at 10:48
2020 is all about BatRAGE!