Microsoft buys Obsidian (and inXile)

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

I had to do a double take but sure enough, the news is real. Microsoft have bought Obsidian Entertainment and inXile Entertainment. In just another thread discussing favourite studios, I mentioned Obsidian amongst mine.

Starting at Interplay and working on the original Fallout game(s), a small team went on to become Black Rock Studio, contributing to Baldur's Gate II and other Infinity Engine games. When Black Rock shut up shop, the core went on to found Obsidian, creating games like Knights of the Old Republic 2, Neverwinter Nights 2, Alpha Protocol, Fallout: New Vegas, Southpark: Stick of Truth and more recently, some kickstarted games with their own IPs, Pillars of Eternity 1 and 2 and Tyranny, isometric RPGs in the same vein as the Infinity Engine games of yesteryear.

InXile, perhaps not so well known, headed by legendary Brian Fargo, made Torment: Tides of Numeneria, a "spiritual successor" to the beloved Planescape: Torment. They also kickstarted Wasteland 2 and are working on 3 as well as also releasing a modern Bard's Tale sequel (that's actually in continuity with it's 30 year old predecessors!)

I saw the news in an Obsidian announcement on YouTube. (New drinking game, take a shot every time you hear the word "partner".)

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Link incase embedding doesn't work.

A bit sneaky that they spent half the video beating around the bush before dropping the bombshell. Before Pillars was such a successful kickstarter, the company almost went under, so I can sympathise why Urquhart sold the company, but they were one of the last great, independent RPG makers left, since EA murdered BioWare a decade ago. It begs the questions, will future Obsidian games exclude the PS4? Are their days of PC exclusive RPGs over? Will the company change now that it's corporate owned and if so, to what extent? Will they lose Urquhart and Sawyer as BioWare lost the doctors?

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On a similar note, CCP Games, the Icelandic independent studio behind Eve Online (and formerly owners of the World of Darkness IP) have been wholly sold to a Korean publisher called Pearl Abyss for $425mill (Link: https://www.ccpgames.com/news/2018/black-desert-online-creators-pearl-abyss-to-acquire-ccp-games-makers-of-eve). VentureBeat goes into a lot more details here, where they quote CCP Games CEO Hilmar P?tursson:

But negotiating a deal was a complicated thing. It wasn't a desperate move, as CCP Games still has about $40 million in the bank. P?tursson said the company has open positions in its London studio, but it isn't immediately going to expand its staff in a big way.

"But the best time to raise money is when you don't need it," P?tursson said. "That's why we did this."

Some speculation and whispers that it's as a result of the failure of their heavy investment into VR that never paid off, the result of which was the shuttering of their Atlanta (USA) and Newcastle (UK) studios. Other suggestions are that an Asian corporate owner is what the company needs to break into the lucrative Korean and Chinese markets.

 

[mad825]

...Could be worse...Right? I mean Mojang hasn't completely gone bad even though they haven't done much in the way of games but Minecraft is still being heavily updated. State of Decay is doing pretty well from UndeadLabs and 343 Industries...While not exemplar it's doing pretty mediocrity.

Still better news than EA taking over.

To be honest, Microsoft might very well follow the money and develop a sequel to the Barter 3 game as opposed to the current release.

 

[Trunkage]

PoE? Wasteland 2? The developers that believed that their games had so much better writing and choices that Fallout 3? But ended up making a bit of a mess with their story and their choices mattered as much as a Mass Effect game. I.e. not at all.

And Alpha Protocol... by far the best game on the list with actual good writing and choices matter and it doesn't matter if your positive or negatively for people becuase both will benefit you. That's what you call an actual RPG.
And then really terrible gameplay...

These two have always struggled with money and it shows. Half fulfilled ideas that are a huge detriment to their games. Perhaps with extra money they can properly finish their games.

Edit: Here is what I actually predict. Everything that goes wrong will be Microsoft fault, irrelevant of whether it is or not. It's a dangerous gamble on their behalf...
You know, like everyone blames Bioware on EA without realising they had exaggerated their ideas of what Bioware can do

 

[Neurotic Void Melody]

There is something incredibly annoying and unsportsmanlike about Microsoft always just buying up the competition instead of actually bothering to compete with their own ideas and products. I despise that tactic on every level at all existing angles.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

...Could be worse...Right? I mean Mojang hasn't completely gone bad even though they haven't done much in the way of games but Minecraft is still being heavily updated. State of Decay is doing pretty well from UndeadLabs and 343 Industries...While not exemplar it's doing pretty mediocrity.

Still better news than EA taking over.

Totally agree. Some articles suggest that it's actually Microsoft's intent to leave them "independent" tho how true that can be is anyone's guess. EA turned BioWare into EA Canada, shut up Bullfrog, Origin, Westwood, Pandemic, Visceral, Maxis and many others. It would be a shame to see any of these go the same way.

Another point is that it could be Microsoft adding to their stable of IPs, something they're sorely lacking when compared with Sony and Nintendo. Microsoft already own Mojang, Ninja Theory (who I keep mixing up with Team Ninja), Turn 10, 343 Industries and Rare, 13 altogether including these two.

So it isn't the worst news, but it does mean they're no longer independent. Will it mean future titles won't see cross-platform releases? Will Microsoft let them make a Pillars 3/Tyranny 2 on PC? Does it put paid to any chances of another Obsidian developed Fallout game? I'd love it if Microsoft bought the Alpha Protocol rights from Sega and revisited that world. It also means the financial worries of keeping the doors open are alleviated.

So yeah, "They aren't EA" is totally legit. It would be nice for some more news about what Obsidian are working on (I think inXile are gonna finish Wasteland 3, which they Figged). There was PC Gamer tour/documentary not long ago where there were secret things happening secretly and as far as I'm aware it's still secret :-(

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

So if we go by history we can probably look forward to more canceled projects and another belly up studio or two? The whole ?when you can?t beat ?em, buy ?em? approach kinda taints the well from the onset.

Ehhh. How about simply focusing on making Windows as good as it can be, Microsoft.

 

[meiam]

Worth noting that obsidian was hemorrhaging money like crazy, PoE 2 didn't sell well, at all, not even a little bit (or rather they spend way too much money developing it, also they kinda screwed over paradox in the process of making it). The company was just horribly mismanaged. They weren't going to be making any more games has independent, so even if Microsoft mismanaged it and no game comes out from it, nothing will changes except MS wasting money.

I'll also say that alpha protocol was there best game and they should make more like it (not necessarily a 2, but a game where choice matter, including how you play, and reputation is not just about picking red or blue option). I didn't particularly like Pillar of eternity world/lore, so them not continuing it is cool by me.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

I know we're all supposed to hate Microsoft, but historically they've treated their devs much better than the industry standard. Now those guys have steady jobs. And Microsoft needs more game developers, so they can't really afford to drop the ball here. Obsidian will now have all the funding they need to create a more polished game instead of a mess.

I'm still not going to buy a single goddamn MS Store title though, so there's that. Release on Steam or GoG or don't even try to talk to me.

 

[BreakfastMan]

Jesus christ, it seems like every dev who isn't like 5 people in a basement is either being bought out by one of the 10 remaining big publishers, or some random Chinese F2P giant. Depressing news.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I will say the same thing here as I said on WhatCulture's Youtube video on the subject; a big company absorbing a smaller company is never EVER a good thing.

 

[Elfgore]

I'm mixed. Microsoft does have a habit of driving studios into the ground *cough* Rare *cough, but they seem to be attempting to chance their ways. Right now Bethesda owns the open-world RPG market, I'd love to see Obsidian or inXile with Microsoft's backing try and compete with that. With Obsidian making a fantasy one and inXile doing a Fallout style one. Maybe it'll make Bethesda step their game up with actual competition.

We shall see.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

I also just now remembered the Microsoft did buy Lionshead and shut them down a few years back.
Might also explain why Fable 3 isn't Steam....seems to be a recurring theme of late.

They aren't EA, and it's not like Lionshead were quite so beloved as Westwood or some of the others, but there is one example.

Anyone have thoughts on CCP's acquisition also?

 

[mad825]

I also just now remembered the Microsoft did buy Lionshead and shut them down a few years back.
Might also explain why Fable 3 isn't Steam....

I thought that was because Fable 3 had Games For Windows Live (GFWL, remember it?)DRM being integral to the game and DRM shutdown happened long after Fable 3 became discontinued for software support.

 

[Hawki]

So yeah, "They aren't EA" is totally legit.

Not being as bad as EA is a pretty low bar.

 

[wings012]

While I was kinda a supporter of InXile and Obsidian for bringing back the CRPG genre - that was before I played Wasteland 2 and PoE.

I did enjoy both games, but they also tired the hell out of me and never really scratched that itch for a new BlackIsle Fallout that will never be. I never bothered with their newer titles like Tyranny or Tides of Numenera.

I might have felt a bit more dread at this news some years back, but I'm just largely indifferent.

I just hope they don't shut these studios down for poor sales cause they forced their games to be MS store exclusives.

 

[Abomination]

I just hope they don't shut these studios down for poor sales cause they forced their games to be MS store exclusives.

Now you've said it, you know only this can happen now.