In a shocking turn of events, Microsoft has purchased ZeniMax Media, which owns Bethesda Softworks, for a whopping $7.5 billion.
Yes, you read that right.
As a result of this massive and industry-changing deal, Microsoft will soon own the rights to DOOM, Dishonored, Fallout, Wolfenstein and The Elder Scrolls, not to mention other Bethesda published and developed franchises, including Deathloop and Ghostwire: Tokyo, which have timed exclusivity deals with Sony and PlayStation 5.
“We’re still working on the same games we were yesterday, made by the same studios we’ve worked with for years, and those games will be published by us,” said Bethesda’s Head of Marketing Pete Hines. This move will give us “access to resources that will make us a better publisher and developer.”
The timing of this acquisition — or, at least the announcement of it — isn’t shocking. After all, Microsoft’s Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S are set to become available for pre-ordering at 11am (EST) tomorrow.
Going further, could this also mean that all future Bethesda titles will hit GamePass on day one?