Microsoft to Sony: “Game over” – MS the new Gaming King?
In the last few years Microsoft has acquired a lot of rather successful or notorious companies not just in the IT space, but also in the gaming industry. With the most notorious case being the recent and a troubled acquisition of industry giant Activision Blizzard
Not just to set itself apart from the competition of Playstation in the console market, but also to dominate the gaming industry as a whole, thanks to the wide unification of the long crossed console and pc gaming, with cloud gaming trying to fill the gap for the mobile industry. According to Newzoo, a known games data market analyst company, Microsoft’s new acquisition has significantly shaped the industry.
Microsoft acquisitions
Microsoft has been quite active in the last few years in terms of gaming acquisitions. It started back in 2014 with the significant acquisition of Mojang and all its properties, including the current best selling game ever, Minecraft. The other big acquisition has been that of Zenimax Media and its subsidiary in 2021, de facto owning the well known Fallout and Elder Scrolls series.
The last acquisition is an interesting case, as not only it meant getting the industry giant Activision Blizzard under their wing, the eye watering $68.7 billion but one that caused international government regulatory review. One that took over a year in process, from January 18, 2022 to October 13, 2023. One that was firmly opposed by Sony, fearing loss of publishing rights for multiplatform games, potentially losing the Call of Duty franchise, despite leveraging console exclusivity on their platform.
State of 2023
In Newzoo’s 2023 Global Games Market Report, we can see that the industry as a whole has grown about 0.6% per year, with an expected growth of 205.7 billion $ by 2026, from the current 184 billion $. In the whole picture Tencent comfortably holds 1st place, Apple a 2nd place thanks to the mobile gaming market( as well as optimizations and features for iOS), followed by Sony and at 4th place Microsoft.
Important to notice that the H1 shows Microsoft and Activision Blizzard as yet two separate companies. In fact the merger has now secured the 2nd spot in the most revenue for Microsoft. A growth that is also reflected in how in just the last year Activision Blizzard made a massive gain of +35.5%, thanks to the live service and premium titles.
What to expect in the future
As this analysis only focuses on H1 2023, we’ll have to see the rest of the second Half with the rest of the Sony lineups and new games by Microsoft. That said, it’s undeniable that Microsoft’s growth and acquisitions has also notoriously boosted the availability that they can offer, a thing that could easily reflect on their popular Xbox Game Pass service. While Xcloud still needs some work, it also tackles the mobile industry as well.
A reflection of new acquisitions can be seen in Starfield, which was “uncharacteristically” in good shape at launch, as opposed to the classic Bethesda bugginess and overall jankiness. As well as presentations being more curated and confident. It surely would be nice for fans of the Activision Blizzard IPs to finally see their favorite games in a better state. As acquisitions alone are not enough to win over the competition, as well as causing overall distrust in the consumers in the long run.
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Comments (1)
Microsoft's gaming empire is expanding! The acquisition spree, from Mojang to Zenimax and the mega-deal with Activision Blizzard, has certainly reshaped the industry. The recent Newzoo report sheds light on Microsoft's rise, but the real game-changer will be how they leverage this power. Exciting times ahead for Xbox Game Pass and, hopefully, a new era for beloved franchises.