
These are slightly peculiar times in the games industry, with some eye-watering mergers and acquisitions in addition to high profile share purchases. Microsoft has been making shock moves such as launching the process to buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion, and Sony recently hoovered up Halo and Destiny creators Bungie for $3.6 billion. There's plenty of speculation that major moves like this will continue, and some fans are cheerleading from the sidelines.
There's been lots of chatter around which studios and companies could be well placed for potential takeovers, and PlatinumGames has certainly been mentioned. So far the major moves of Microsoft and Sony have focused on US-based companies, with business culture and legal factors making similar moves in Japan less prominent to date (though mergers between Japanese companies have happened, with famous examples like Square Enix and Bandai Namco).
It's also worth noting that regulations in the country have slowly been softened when it comes to corporate takeovers, and with its track record and experience PlatinumGames certainly fits the profile of a mid-to-large sized developer that could potentially be available.
PlatinumGames CEO Atsushi Inaba addressed the topic recently in an interview with VGC, with words that certainly suggest the company is open to proposals.
The most important thing for us is to have the freedom to make the games that we want to make. What I hear about the recent acquisitions, I don’t think Microsoft is going to start micromanaging Activision to where they take away all their freedom… I don’t think it’s going to be a relationship like that.
I think there’s going to be a lot of mutual respect there and I think Activision will be able to continue doing what they do best. That’s also what’s most important to us at the end of the day, whatever form that takes for us and our company. So I would not turn anything down, as long as our freedom was still respected.
PlatinumGames is currently in an interesting period. In addition to Inaba-san's new role the company has also been signalling potential changes in its approaches to projects, such as games that can be "enjoyed and loved for a longer period of time"; that could be a notable shift considering the company's long history of conventional single-player games.
Add to that talk about potential takeovers and its slate of ongoing projects - including Bayonetta 3 for Switch - and the company has a lot on its plate.
[source videogameschronicle.com]
Comments 46
Confirmed, MS acquisition imminent
I really hope Sony and Microsoft stay away from Platinum. I don’t expect Nintendo to bring them under, even with their close relationship on exclusives like the Bayonetta sequels, Astral Chain, Starfox Zero and, for a while, Wonderful 101. And it would be better all round for the industry if Platinum can churn out more quality multi-platform titles like Nier Automata.
Sony and MS should go pester Ubisoft - I’m sure they’re licking their lips at the prospect of being taken over.
Leave PlatinumGames games alone their fine as it is. Like PessitheMystic said go bother Ubisoft
Will we ever see Bayonetta 3? Could seem like they're in financial troubles. Why else would they want to sell, if it's so important to keep their independence?
@shgamer Nintendo is backing Bayonetta 3 so there's no worry about the game not coming out. PlatinumGames just had to wrap up the game. Also we got a trailer of that game last year on the October Nintendo Direct.
Basically "Hey guys, don't be shy and show me your money... With some respect"
When I buy something, I don't expect the previous owner to bring up any kind of freedom in the negotiation.
@Specter_of-the_OLED To some extent you're right, yes. BUT...
I doubt they just keep pouring money into a bottomless hole, if the game is in development hell or simply is not good enough by their standards.
I can't imagine Activision are that free to decide which platforms to release their games on.
Lol, they are literally begging Microsoft to buy them XD
@shgamer They already said last year that Bayo 3 is supposed to release this year so I doubt it's in a state which dissatisfies Nintendo
In other words, they must have received offers in the past, and have a standard for whether or not they accept such offers.
Don't worry, when Platinum gets bought by some company, they'll be fine. Only people who are afraid of change would think otherwise.
Good grief. Please platinum. Don’t let yourself be bought by anyone. You are great on your own. For Microsoft and Sony. Like what some people on here are saying, go freaking buy Ubisoft. Leave platinum games alone.
Freedom as in releasing their game on whatever platform they want? If so then I'm OK with them getting acquired unlike Bethesda who's "freedom" was taken away
Company buying is one thing buying to become a Troll IP lobbyists isn't going to survive in the long run. As long as the agreements doesn't stifle innovations and go censorship(ahem $ony) then we can have a good product for everyone.
Freedom is important in anything.
Platinum are really good at what they do… and what they do doesn’t really sell that well.
Anyone who wants to buy them is going to want them to make far less interesting games that will sell better.
Bringing this up will obviously open up the floodgates of speculation, and for good reason. The acquisition have started, and I imagine we'll be seeing quite a few more bug deals before it's over.
@BloodNinja people would have a genuine concern if it was in regards to exclusivity. The public declaration by Sony that Bungie will retain its independence and MS saying they want to keep many titles multiplat has been assuring, but it's not exactly a pleasant thought that a series you love could become exclusive to the plastic box you don't own.
@tkdboy1889 Exclusive games have been relegated to different plastic boxes for the past 40 years.
PlatinumGame & the Bayo IP are the only acquisitions I'd actually like to see Nintendo make, at least the Bayo IP anyways. Seriously Sega let it happen, without Nintendo Bayo would've been a one-off. Let her be an official Nintendo character.
@shgamer or it just takes a while to make games
My favorite CRPG designers Brian Fargo announced he would retire after Wasteland 3. Then Microsoft bought him out, all the Bards Tale and Wasteland games came to gamepass and he's decided not to retire and keep making games. So I don't see buyouts as always a bad thing.
Already happened with Tencent if that recent statement about their games was anything to go by🤪
hmm, do they need financial security from someone big like microsoft, sony or nintendo to burn money making games as service titles?
Going to state the obvious here but heyho... Buyouts can be good or bad. Once struggling studios can be given extra years to produce the games you love or IPs can be buried along with studios that the buyer deems 'unprofitable'.
And while we all hope that all these buyouts will be a good thing, especially after promises made regarding multiplatforms etc, having two major powerhouses owning everything does not sit well with me...
Hello Amazon and Google for example.
But it will happen regardless so what can you do. Much like NFT. The money suits want it so it will carry on regardless.
Ehh, when a well-known company is asking fans for millions of dollars to fund the porting of a Wii U game over to Switch, a buyout might actually be a good thing. I thought that was pretty lame.
Given that neither Sony ir Microsoft were keen to even finance Bayonetta 2, which already had dev work put in and was a sequel to one of their most critically and commercially successful titles, I don't exactly see them lining up to throw money and freedom at them.
I am wary about tencent tough, especially with the live service nonsense. I'd rather just have Nintendo buy them out if it must come to that, it's not like platinum has even released anything good outside the Nintendo banner since Metal gear revengeance, and automata (which wasn't even their own project)
Honestly even if Platinum is not in the greatest spot right now, they more than any studio I can think of deserve and need independence. And hot take, the current tencent investment (provided they don't buy PT outright) is better than the thought of Nintendo buying them outright. Nintendo actually has taken companies that were doing cool things and forced them to work on much bigger projects at the expense of smaller projects (namely 1up studio, formerly JRPG makers Brownie Brown.) Remember, when a big game company buys a smaller one, never place your faith in any one of them being the good guys.
@DABYX couldn’t have said it better myself. Main reason I only support indie studios and HAL nowadays.
@LordPieFace Yeah Brownie Brown works more as a studio that assists Nintendo's Tokyo studio, but that was probably understood when making the deal. I think they weren't developing their own IP at the time. They were just outsourced to develop games for IP of other companies.
There are counter examples.. like Monolithsoft is doing better under Nintendo. It has also become a more attractive destination because many employees get to work on Zelda as well. Next Level also appears to be doing well, though they are not developing their own IPs.
Babylon's Fall is likely to bomb though so they could be in somewhat of a bad position after that.
Yeah right, they can be promised anything but once they are owned by another company, that promise won't mean anything.
@Funneefox about to say… doesn’t Tencent already own PlatinumGames? Which they do t know it yet. 🙈😂
@SwitchForce
IP troll lobbying won’t survive in the long run but it will take the industry as it exists currently down with it when the leader of IP lobbying wants to devour as much of it as it can to support a subscription service where innovation will go to die in the name of retaining subscriptions.
Surprising comments considering the last time Platinum tried to work with Microsoft on what looked to be an amazing concept, ScaleBound, the project dissolved over creative differences.. which I usually take to mean Microsoft was demanding too much creative control and Kamiya wasn't having it.
@Xiovanni - It's Microsoft, pretty certain they'll just have better ways to shut it down before it gets public.
Openly violating Crash, however...
Platinum has failed to produce much in years. I’m really worried about what’s going on in there.
If that bit about them putting way more focus on live/GaaS models turns out to be true, they might be FAR more open to the idea in a few years...
PlatinumGames gets bought.... next.... 50% of the employees leave the studio to form a new studio therefore making the buyout worthless (Talent > IPs)
@PessitheMystic Forget Sony. They don't have the Microsoft money.
Sony can't afford any big company like UBI, Activision etc.
@rpg2000 Rare managed to keep their style even when so many quitted over the years.
I don't think Microsoft or Sony cares about Platinum since they don't own any IP of their own.
If anyone was to buy Platinum, it would be Tencent, who already owns a stake in the company and would presumably give them the creative freedom they desire.
@hakjie11
When you buy something both parties need to come to an agreement, and those terms can of courde include what happens after the contract has been signed - including the organizational structure and development freedoms.
Company acquisitions are not like you going to a store to buy a TV or whatnot (where the store cant dictate what you do with it)
@metroid02 Unless the buyer doesn't get 100% ownership of what he buys and that counts for buying up companies otherwise it is the same "When I buy something, I don't expect the previous owner to bring up any kind of freedom in the negotiation."
Platinum has freedom at Tencent...okay!
Nintendo would be so stupid if they let platinum games go.
Show Comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...