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| Microsoft owns Bethesda and receives European approval |
The European Commission has agreed to Microsoft to acquire ZeniMax Media, parent company of game developers Bethesda's Doom and Fallout, for $ 7.5 billion.
Microsoft's agreement was approved unconditionally by the European Union because it left no serious doubts about its compatibility with the Common Market.
The acquisition requires EU approval before Microsoft can close the deal with Bethesda and incorporate future games into Xbox Game Pass subscriptions.
With the increase in Bethesda sub-studios, the number of Microsoft's studios will reach 23.
Bethesda owns studios like Arkanes "Dishonored", Wolfenstein's MachineGames, Doom's Identification Software, and Tango Gameworks in The Evil Inside.
After working with Mojang, LinkedIn, and GitHub on this approach, it appears that Microsoft has plans to continue operating Bethesda separately under its current leadership, and they will all continue to operate independently following the acquisition of Microsoft.
Microsoft initially announced plans to acquire Bethesda in September and promised to keep Deadloop and GhostWire: Tokyo's Exclusive Promise for PS5, but it continues to support games like The Elder Scrolls: Online.
Microsoft has to deal with future Bethesda games on a case-by-case basis, according to a September review by Microsoft's director of games Phil Spencer.
Microsoft doesn't even have to launch future Bethesda games on Xbox specifically, because launching these games with the Xbox Game Pass on the first day is enough to get players to sign up.
Spencer recently questioned the viability of exclusive gaming offers. Microsoft's plans for the Xbox platform mostly focus on Xbox Game Pass and xCloud to offer games that can reach millions of other people.
Microsoft is reportedly planning to unveil its Xbox plans later this month.
There are rumors that the Future of Games event may take place on March 23rd. For Microsoft, this is a great opportunity to discuss the future of Bethesda and xCloud on iOS, and Xbox Game Pass plans.