The $7.5 billion Microsoft-Bethesda acquisition has just become official, after a week of approvals from different authorities.
One of the biggest complaints about Xbox supporters was the lack of titles that are exclusive to the platform. The major selling point for consoles definitely is the existence of exclusives since consoles can do little other than play games (or watch rented movies or TV series – something which is being phased out slowly in the next-gen consoles). Among the incessant criticism from potential console buyers, Microsoft announced the acquisition of Bethesda Studios – absolutely shattering the gaming industry at large. The announcement following the acquisition has shed light on a slew of facts regarding the developer’s future.
Bethesda will be joining Xbox Game Studios along with a host of other studios also owned by ZeniMax Media – id Software, ZeniMax Online Studios, Arkane, MachineGames, Tango Gameworks, Alpha Dog, and Roundhouse Studios. All existing as well as future titles would also come under the umbrella of Microsoft following the acquisition. Existing titles would continue to be on the platforms on which they are released, but future games would be exclusive to the Xbox and the PC. Yeah, this means that PlayStation fans would need to consider a switch for playing all future games released from any of ZeniMax Media’s many studios.
No acquisition of Microsoft is complete without an addition to the Xbox Games Pass – and an acquisition of this magnitude means a lot of new games for the Xbox Games Pass. This includes a host of announced titles like Starfield and Elder Scrolls VI as well as unannounced games like SpyTeam.
With the addition of the Bethesda creative teams, gamers should know that Xbox consoles, PC, and Game Pass will be the best place to experience new Bethesda games, including some new titles in the future that will be exclusive to Xbox and PC players. – Official Xbox Wire Blog.
Quite a few Bethesda game might be making their way into the Games Pass – though the titles have not been disclosed yet. This might just make the Xbox Games Pass an ever more valuable addition – if not a must-buy – for any Xbox customer.