After Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda who do you think Sony should go for?

[blazeadeel]

Let's say Sony has to react and respond to Microsoft's move and buy one of the major publishers. Who do you think they should go for and why ? 

P.S I am not saying Sony needs to, I just want different takes on who gamers think is a good suit for Sony. IMO Sony should buy Konami and rejoin Kojima and MGS. 

[I_Aden_I]

I'm just hoping that we won't get any trouble with future Elder Scrolls or Fallout titles like "hmm we are microsoft so let's just make it an exclusive one cause we can".

 

I'm really not a fan of buying publishers... Doesn't do much more to me then sounding like problems...

[thefourfoldroot]

They dont have to go after anyone. They have to compete with Gamepass, or try to stop the subscription model being the future of gaming. If the former then it would be cheaper snd less risky to put their own games on PS Now day one rather than buy out another company, but I have reservations about how that would have to impact quality.

 

In fantasy land, presuming they need to, I would say snap up some big Japanese developers and lean into that advantage Sony have always had. Maybe Square Enix, Konami or Capcom.

 

To match Bethesda though Sony would have to get Take Two, and they don’t have the money.

 

Another option would be to team up with Nintendo and do a joint PlayStation Nintendo Streaming Service. Ninty aren’t as immune to Gamepass as people presume. It only takes one generation of parents getting their kids Gamepass because it’s cheaper and Ninty games start losing their nostalgic appeal.

Edited September 23, 2020 by thefourfoldroot

[SnowxSakura]

Sony has a net worth of 45 billion, they can't afford to buy any of the big studios.

[Crispy_Oglop]

I'd like Sony to buy all of the IP's that Konami is currently neglecting through pachinko machines or just sitting on because reasons. I think buying the company outright would be a bad idea and would probably be more hassle than it's worth. That organisation is a living hell by the sounds of it and would be like marrying a crazy person.

 

But those poor neglected IP's like Silent Hill, Metal Gear, Castlevania etc need some love and to not be relegated to fancy CGI in a gambling hall.

 

I'd also very personally love to see Sony own Metal Gear and then reunite Kojima with it again. Especially after what they did with MGSV. That would be just perfect.

 

Honestly though I don't think Sony necessarily need to acquire anyone right now, they have some pretty fantastic titles already and it's likely that many of the potential games that could come out of that buyout probably won't be here till 2022. Elder Scrolls 6 is pretty much still concept art and a few environment renders. Starfield is just a teaser cinematic right now.

 

If Sony need to do anything right now it's to start getting generally more competitive, because they've been so very complacent for years now. This might give them a kick up the arse to start changing things up a bit. Competition makes things way more beneficial for us as consumers.

[BlackCatBurrito]

Konami. 

 

If Sony was to acquire Konami or just it's IP & free it. Big dick energy, big good guy points.

 

I don't even care about Bethesda but buying a company like that the was Microsoft has, has a smell to it. These games that have not had the right amount of money or time put into them over the last 5+ years & are now owned buy a company that doesn't put enough time into making anything.

 

 

 

 

[majob]

Sony should do nothing except what they're doing now. 

34 minutes ago, SnowxSakura said:

Sony has a net worth of 45 billion, they can't afford to buy any of the big studios.

Microsoft dropped double Bethesda's actual market worth. More as a show of flex than anything but it doesn't take a Sony acquisition out of the realm of possibility

[locoporkko]

I believe that a good work will be combined ps plus more ps now 

[cometowner]

why would sony go for

 

 

 

this bad for gamers ... Microsoft is not talent so they start spending money 

[TheArcadeKid]

Given that Sony doesn't have the money to buy up major publishers in the way Microsoft can, their best bet is to foster indie games, like they did early on in the Vita and PS4's lifecycle. It's the smartest way to secure a lot of exclusives without spending billions of dollars, and it gives gamers something to play between triple-A releases.

 

If Sony absolutely had to buy a big publisher though, I'm not sure who to suggest. Probably not a Japanese one - Sony already have good relations with most Japanese publishers, and Japanese gamers themselves are consistently more engaged with PlayStation platforms than Xbox. So they should probably go for an western company, but no reasonable suggestions come to mind.

[Abby_TheLastofUs]

None.

 

Media consolidation is bad.

Edited September 23, 2020 by Abby_TheLastofUs

[xh117]

- Buy Konami IPs

- Have bluepoint remake Silent hill quadrilogy

- New MGS with kojima or have platinum make a new rising

- Have From Software make a Castlevania

 

[SnowxSakura]

19 minutes ago, xh117 said:

 

- New MGS with kojima or have platinum make a new rising

 

 

Hope not, kojima has been saying for the past 2 decades that he's wanted to be done with metal gear and move onto something new

[Leenewbe]

housemarque, let them make those arcade, twin stick shooters, also reogun 2.

bluepoint would be a good option too, give them access to the whole library of shelved sony ips.

[JEDLander]

I think this is pretty shitty of Microsoft. I'm cool with exclusives (Halo, Gears etc.) but what they're essentially doing here is dropping huge loads of cash so that popular games just don't release on PS5. It feels like they're trying to make PS5 worse rather than making XSX better. 

 

They cant come up with their own exclusives so they're buying out studios and holding their games to a £400 ransom

[DaivRules]

Sony’s doing pretty well without throwing billions at companies to bolster their business.

 

For the sake of the hypothetical, they could buy Ratalaika and take the good that they do of getting indie developers onto PSN, but they could revamp the trophy implementation. Mostly to calm down the whining. 

[Conor]

Scores of generation-defining games came from Sony studios and third parties not acquired by Microsoft yet

 

How many such games did Bethesda make or publish this entire generation compared to their output? Three? 

 

Sony will be fine, plus Bethesda games will still come out on PlayStation for years to come 

[SpacebarPlays]

30 minutes ago, JEDLander said:

I think this is pretty shitty of Microsoft. I'm cool with exclusives (Halo, Gears etc.) but what they're essentially doing here is dropping huge loads of cash so that popular games just don't release on PS5. It feels like they're trying to make PS5 worse rather than making XSX better. 

 

They cant come up with their own exclusives so they're buying out studios and holding their games to a £400 ransom

 

They wont release them as Xbox-Console exclusive. They would lose a TON of money doing it like that.

 

They bought the publisher so they could include Bethesda games in their 'gamepass' subscription service and it looks a ton more attractive. Im probably going to purchase my first Xbox for a decade because of it and the relatively low price of the Xbox Series S combined with a Gamepass that is going to have some great games on it at launch.

The Gamepass is what is going to sway a LOT of casual players to buy an Xbox and them basically guaranteeing that Fallout/Elder Scrolls/Doom etc are all going to be on it is great.

[Crispy_Oglop]

In other news, it's looking likely that Microsoft have acquired SEGA too based on some little hints that are being picked up online.

[majob]

8 hours ago, TheArcadeKid said:

 

If Sony absolutely had to buy a big publisher though, I'm not sure who to suggest. Probably not a Japanese one - Sony already have good relations with most Japanese publishers, and Japanese gamers themselves are consistently more engaged with PlayStation platforms than Xbox. So they should probably go for an western company, but no reasonable suggestions come to mind.

if anything Sony should absolutely go for a Japanese studio because it shores up fans of those games and gives security to their place in the Japanese market, which they lose ground to Nintendo to daily. Don't let Microsoft's prior Japanese performance fool you. The Japanese enjoy Bethesda games as much as anyone else and MS now owns Tango which produced Evil Within ad has the father of Resident Evil, Shinji Mkiami at the helm. Sony doesn't have to make a desperate grab at anyone right now but I think  long term they need to grab up someone if they want to stay a contender. Sega would be perfect to ensure Persona stays exclusive.

Edited September 23, 2020 by majob

[RadiantFlamberge]

Presently, I don't think Sony need to go picking up any more studios. They have plenty on their side for now. I am never thrilled with console makers buying well-established companies like Tango, id, and Arkane (Bethesda). If it were Namco or Square Enix buying Beth, I wouldn't mind so much.

 

I don't see Microsoft buying Sega as being likely. Sega isn't really hurting. Another rumor is that Microsoft had its eyes on CD Projekt Red (beside Witcher and Cyberpunk, also the parent company of GOG)... not plausible either. CDPR is doing great and have no reason to sell. Witcher 3 is still selling wildly.

[PhyrxianLibrarin]

If we're disregarding joke answers, I think they'd pick up someone like Square Enix or Konami, or maybe even the video game division of Warner Bros. But realistically, if they want to compete with Microsoft on the same level they need to start competing with Gamepass and Steam, and I think the best way to do that is to restructure how PS+ and PSNow work.

 

Sony is sending a message that buying new hardware will let you play the latest games, while MS is sending a message of bringing the latest games to hardware you already own. It sure worked for Netflix!

[Tecnal1]

- To buy Square Enix and/or THQ;

 

- It needs to consolidate itself as platform for japan games in the west region;

 

- Partnership to expand streaming service and to invade pc market (with the right strategy, Sony wouldn't needs to bring exclusive games to pc market and streaming service at day one)

[MidnightDragon]

On 9/23/2020 at 9:22 AM, Crispy_Oglop said:

In other news, it's looking likely that Microsoft have acquired SEGA too based on some little hints that are being picked up online.

I think people are reaching big time with those.All those rumors were started by some people speculating and posting conspiracy theories on Twitter. It would be something more solid than that. Too many gave random tweets WAY too much credibility.

 

I hope most studios stay independent. Last thing we need is a few big players gobbling everything up. The games will suffer for it in the long run. Dunno why so many people are hoping Sony will or encouraging Microsoft.

Edited September 25, 2020 by MidnightDragon

[Crispy_Oglop]

4 hours ago, MidnightDragon said:

I think people are reaching big time with those.All those rumors were started by some people speculating and posting conspiracy theories on Twitter. It would be something more solid than that. Too many gave random tweets WAY too much credibility.

 

I hope most studios stay independent. Last thing we need is a few big players gobbling everything up. The games will suffer for it in the long run. Dunno why so many people are hoping Sony will or encouraging Microsoft.

Yeah for sure, it's complete speculation, fun speculation, but speculation all the same. That RGB joypad comparison was a bit of a stretch. I was going by the SEGA dev Tweeting out an image posing with the X symbol next to a box, which is either a troll or just really good foreshadowing. I think for me it's the amount of different connections that are being made that's compelling. Could be something, could be nothing.

 

I honestly think that this buyout will fundamentally change things now for gaming for better or worse and it's tough because most of the change can only be predicted rather than guaranteed.

 

This is actually a really good theory-crafting/analysis video from Gameranx around the implications of what this could mean for things like exclusives and how companies will be acquired in future. Worth a watch to the end.

 

 

Edited September 25, 2020 by Crispy_Oglop