(*Unofficial) Microsoft has just acquired Playground Games

[DynamiteCop!]

What an excellent move, I'm amazed it didn't happen sooner. I'm eagerly looking forward to where this partnership leads and what new experiences are in the pipeline.

https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/07057499/filing-history

 

[iconmaster]

The Forza Horizon people for anyone else who had to Google the name.

 

[Northeastmonk]

It makes sense. What other platform did Forza come out on? Xbox and PC

I'm glad, but the relationship was destiny.

 

[DynamiteCop!]

It makes sense. What other platform did Forza come out on? Xbox and PC

Yeah, they worked exclusively for Microsoft. I think they finally got the itch to make it permanent though. They're way too talented to risk losing.

 

[SamFo]

Great move.

 

[Omeggos]

Yeah, they worked exclusively for Microsoft. I think they finally got the itch to make it permanent though. They're way too talented to risk losing.

Thats my thought process. Imagine if theyd left the ip work for qnother, horizon is the only forza i like so thatd be a huge loss for me.

 

[octiny]

Great move MS.

 

[EBE]

Intrigued to see their work on Fable once that gets to a point where they're comfortable showing it

 

[Dlacy13g]

People wanted a move from MS ... this and the new studio in Santa Monica are positive moves for the brand.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

People wanted a move from MS ... this and the new studio in Santa Monica are positive moves for the brand.

Ms needs a lots of first party studios to bring exclusives games like sony did.

 

[Krappadizzle]

I thought.....they already owned them. Good move, excellent studio. Haven't they only released Xbox games?

 

[MrTroubleMaker]

Hopefully the employees get a bonus because of this.

 

[WaterAstro]

Ms needs a lots of first party studios to bring exclusives games like sony did.

Yeah, they do, but they canned some recently, so it's weird. Maybe just a reallocation of resources, but it's an expensive way to do it because you pay severance packages and all that.

 

[Koala Driving a Ferrari]

This probably should have happened two years ago. It's good news nonetheless. It's kind of like your son/daughter coming home from school with one B- and a couple of C++'s on their report card.

 

[DynamiteCop!]

Ms needs a lots of first party studios to bring exclusives games like sony did.

I know this is not intentional but it's disingenuous nonetheless. Most of the exclusive games Sony has are from third/second party developers. Sony themselves actually release about the same amount of first party games that Microsoft does, the difference is their second/third party is bloated while Microsoft's is not.

 

[MoogleMan]

I thought.....they already owned them. Good move, excellent studio. Haven't they only released Xbox games?

That's what I thought lol
Apparently they made the forza games and weren't owned by microsoft before.

I know this is not intentional but it's disingenuous nonetheless. Most of the exclusive games Sony has are from third/second party developers. Sony themselves actually release about the same amount of first party games that Microsoft does, the difference is their second/third party is bloated while Microsoft's is not.

I was under the impression that sony owned studios are in fact first party studios?
In which case they do own a ton more studios than microsoft, and do have a ton more exclusives.

 

[Dlacy13g]

Ms needs a lots of first party studios to bring exclusives games like sony did.

Sure, totally agree...but if they aren't making moves like this then they never could approach a level like that. So.... how about we praise good moves by game companies instead of downplaying them because they aren't on another's level? This is and remains a good positive move by MS.

 

[Barakov]

Surprised it took this long. I guess FH4 and maybe the new Fable impressed them enough for MS to buy them outright.

 

[DynamiteCop!]

I was under the impression that sony owned studios are in fact first party studios?
In which case they do own a ton more studios than microsoft, and do have a ton more exclusives.

Do you think this somehow shirks my statement?

How many first party Sony games released in 2017? How many in 2016? Apples to apples Sony and Microsoft sit in a near parallel in terms of first party development output. As I said the real difference comes from their 2nd/3rd party facilitating of exclusivity and deals.

Games like Persona, Detroit, Spiderman, Death Stranding, Yakuza, NioH, Nier etc.

 

[onQ123]

I actually thought they was already part of MS but good move

 

[Denton]

Great, another studio to butcher.

(Yeah I am not a fan of MS's history when it comes to treating their studios)

 

[dottme]

Great, another studio to butcher.

(Yeah I am not a fan of MS's history when it comes to treating their studios)

I'm the same. I'm waiting for them to be rename "Forza Studio" and the only thing they can do is a new Forza game or a new Forza Horizon.

Hopefully, I'll be proven wrong, but I'm not setting my expectation too high.

 

[rokkerkory]

fantastic move by MS

 

[MoogleMan]

Do you think this somehow shirks my statement?

How many first party Sony games released in 2017? How many in 2016? Apples to apples Sony and Microsoft sit in a near parallel in terms of first party development output. As I said the real difference comes from their 2nd/3rd party facilitating of exclusivity and deals.

Games like Persona, Detroit, Spiderman, Death Stranding, Yakuza, NioH, Nier etc.

Even comparing strictly first party to strictly first party, sony is way ahead in the exclusives department.

 

[Shpeshal Ed]

That's what I thought lol
Apparently they made the forza games and weren't owned by microsoft before.

I was under the impression that sony owned studios are in fact first party studios?
In which case they do own a ton more studios than microsoft, and do have a ton more exclusives.

Sony’s actual first party studios put out about the same give or take.

Most of the other stuff is third party games and default Japanese exclusives since so many of the Japanese publishers just don’t bother with Xbox.

This generation so far, the output from first party has been very close in number.

 

[DynamiteCop!]

Even comparing strictly first party to strictly first party, sony is way ahead in the exclusives department.

Not when it comes to AAA which is what all of this is always about.

 

[NahaNago]

Great move. Surprised it took them so long.

 

[bitbydeath]

Doesn’t look to be confirmed yet but would be a good move for them.

https://wccftech.com/microsoft-could-acquire-playground-games/

 

[WaterAstro]

Not when it comes to AAA which is what all of this is always about.

Man, you're just twisting whatever you can to fit your beliefs.

The fact is that Sony has a lot of great partnerships that are loyal to them while Microsoft just cancels their games like Scalebound and Phantom Dust.
It doesn't matter if it's first party or third party. All that matters is the number of exclusives, and Microsoft is lacking in that department.

 

[Soul of Cinder]

I'm the same. I'm waiting for them to be rename "Forza Studio" and the only thing they can do is a new Forza game or a new Forza Horizon.

Hopefully, I'll be proven wrong, but I'm not setting my expectation too high.

why would they do that? the studio will most likely continue to produce Forza Horizon titles along with rebooting Fable. Turn10 already handles everything Forza and works very closely with PG right now to deliver Horizon at the quality they have been able to achieve.

Also its not confirmed yet if they actually bought em just fyi.

All that matters is the number of exclusives

If you want to please gaming forums and social media sites like Twitter that isnt even remotely true. People want 10 AAA exclusives like God of War, TLOU2, Detroit etc not 20 AA/A exclusives like ReCore, State of Decay 1/2, Ori 1/2 and so on. This has been pretty much proven at this point.

I personally dont give a shit and actually like for the most part what exclusives MS has gotten.

 

[Allandor]

What?
I always thought this was a MS daughter company ^^
So, I think nothing will change.

 

[Whitecrow]

I dont see the relevance of this, honestly. Maybe now its 'on paper', but PGG has been of Microsoft since I can remember.

Maybe now we will get better Forzas with some extra cash¿?

 

[DynamiteCop!]

Man, you're just twisting whatever you can to fit your beliefs.

The fact is that Sony has a lot of great partnerships that are loyal to them while Microsoft just cancels their games like Scalebound and Phantom Dust.
It doesn't matter if it's first party or third party. All that matters is the number of exclusives, and Microsoft is lacking in that department.

I'm not twisting anything, this is about Sony and Microsoft first party development and what I said holds fast.

You're spinning right now to bolster Sony with 2nd/3rd party like the last guy, yeah they exist but they have nothing to do with Sony owned and operated studios or their output; which as I said puts out near the same amount of AAA games that Microsoft does. Microsoft doesn't have a first party problem, they never did, they have a 2nd/3rd party problem.

 

[Soul of Cinder]

What?
I always thought this was a MS daughter company ^^
So, I think nothing will change.

I dont see the relevance of this, honestly. Maybe now its 'on paper', but PGG has been of Microsoft since I can remember.

Maybe now we will get better Forzas with some extra cash¿?

If you think more money and people going into the studio and becoming the home of Fable is nothing than yea I guess nothing has changed.

 

[Breakage]

Makes sense. I see Playground as Microsoft's Bizarre Creations replacement for the Xbox One era.

 

[xool]

Makes sense, still no formal announcement of "Fable 4" - maybe at E3

[edit] It hasn't actually been bought has it. Having someone on the board doesn't mean they bought it..

https://wccftech.com/microsoft-could-acquire-playground-games/

 

[onlyoneno1]

It was inevitable, this announcement coming this close to E3 makes me giddy with expectations. Lets see what they produce out of this relationship.

 

[a multicultural team of v]

What is with Microsofts obsession with like centupling down on IP? I mean this is a smart move for them, but if Microsoft just turns them into a Forza machine, which history suggests they will, it will be a waste. Halo, Gears, and Forza every year til the heat death of the universe is such a tone deaf way to run first party.

 

[Redshirt]

If all PG ever does is FH every two years, that's fine by me because that series sets the bar for modern arcade racers.

But, I think the idea was to expand PG so that it can be a multi-title studio.

I don't really care about Fable at this point, but I'm excited to see what else they do.

 

[goldenpp72]

People wanted a move from MS ... this and the new studio in Santa Monica are positive moves for the brand.

Yes we can finally look forward to exclusive Forza Horizon.

 

[a multicultural team of v]

Also having a director appointed does not in any way mean they have acquired the company.

 

[Vawn]

Most of the exclusive games Sony has are from third/second party developers. Sony themselves actually release about the same amount of first party games that Microsoft does, the difference is their second/third party is bloated while Microsoft's is not.

I understand the ps4 list triples when you add in second and third party exclusives, but unless I'm missing something just first party exclusives isn't close either.

I own all three, but I'm more of a PlayStation guy, so maybe I'm just missing some Xbox ips?

PS4 first party franchises

Uncharted
Last of Us
God of War
MLB The Show
inFamous
Ghost of Tsushima
Killzone
Horizon Zero Dawn
Tearaway
Little Big Planet
Dreams
Days Gone
Gran Turismo
Knack
The Last Guardian
Gravity Rush


Xbox One First Party franchises

Forza/Forza Horizon
Gears of War
Halo/Halo Reach
Sea of Thieves

 

[Hendrick's]

I understand the ps4 list triples when you add in second and third party exclusives, but unless I'm missing something just first party exclusives isn't close either.

You are not missing anything besides straw grasping and delusions form that other poster.

 

[goldenpp72]

I understand the ps4 list triples when you add in second and third party exclusives, but unless I'm missing something just first party exclusives isn't close either.

I own all three, but I'm more of a PlayStation guy, so maybe I'm just missing some Xbox ips?

PS4 first party franchises

Uncharted
Last of Us
God of War
MLB The Show
inFamous
Ghost of Tsushima
Killzone
Horizon Zero Dawn
Tearaway
Little Big Planet
Dreams
Days Gone
Gran Turismo
Knack
The Last Guardian
Gravity Rush


Xbox One First Party franchises

Forza/Forza Horizon
Gears of War
Halo/Halo Reach
Sea of Thieves

Hey, don't forget Kinect Sports, probably getting another any time now.

 

[TheShadowLord]

I understand the ps4 list triples when you add in second and third party exclusives, but unless I'm missing something just first party exclusives isn't close either.

I own all three, but I'm more of a PlayStation guy, so maybe I'm just missing some Xbox ips?

PS4 first party franchises

Uncharted
Last of Us
God of War
MLB The Show
inFamous
Ghost of Tsushima
Killzone
Horizon Zero Dawn
Tearaway
Little Big Planet
Dreams
Days Gone
Gran Turismo
Knack
The Last Guardian
Gravity Rush


Xbox One First Party franchises

Forza/Forza Horizon
Gears of War
Halo/Halo Reach
Sea of Thieves

what about killer instinct, ori, and cuphead?

 

[AlexxKidd]

You are not missing anything besides straw grasping and delusions form that other poster.

And why is the guy even arguing for the NUMBER of exclusives, not all games are created equal. Who cares if you even matched Sony game for game, it wouldn't matter. The difference is the QUALITY of those exclusive titles. And who cares if it's first or third party exclusives, an exclusive is an exclusive. AND by the way, that's an outdated argument to make for the Xbox, as they have no real exclusives. Their games can also be played on PC. The new meta for Xbox arguments should include buzzwords like "ecosystem" and "game pass." Xbox fans must catch up their arguments with where the Xbox bosses are trying to take the platform, otherwise it's a losing argument because simply the company has a new direction.

 

[KyoShiRo330]

@ Vawn Of course you are missing a LOT of IP's, like Fable, Crackdown, Cuphead, Killer Instinct and a lot more but i'm lazy.
And I'm not a Xbox guy, just a gamer.

It should be really good if we could all agree that there is enough space for all without necessarily throwing spades constantly (not targeting anyone in particular on this, for real, just an overall feeling)

Now that everything is said...

 

[Horns]

I thought MS already owned them.

 

[Vawn]

what about killer instinct, ori, and cuphead?

Only listing stuff from first party studios. I don't believe any of those are first-party, am I wrong?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Studios#Owned_franchises_and_properties

If we're listing second and third-party games the lists will skew even more to PlayStation, but that wasn't what this thread was addressing.

@ Vawn Of course you are missing a LOT of IP's, like Fable, Crackdown, Cuphead, Killer Instinct and a lot more but i'm lazy.

The only first party franchise you listed is Fable. Did I miss a Fable game on Xbox One? I know there was Legends, but that was canned.

 

[Night.Ninja]

Why do you fuck boys always have to fill positive Microsoft threads with your console warrior bull shit