The scenarios that wanted Microsoft to negotiate the acquisition of Mojang – the Swedish companys behind the popular game Minecraft – instead of $2,5 billion.
Η Microsoft announced yesterday the agreement, pointing out that the team of the Swedish company will join Microsoft Studios, which are behind popular titles such as Halo, Forza and Fable. As noted in the relevant announcement, its investments Microsoft cloud and mobile technologies will enable players to "benefit from richer and faster worlds, stronger development tools, and more opportunities to network with the Minecraft community." The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of 2014.
Available in a series of platforms, Minecraft is one of the most popular games of gaming history, with over 100 million downloads only on the PC from the release of 2009. According to Microsoft, it is also the most popular online Xbox game and the top paid app for iOS and Android in the USA. His community is extremely active, with more than two billion hours played on the Xbox 360 alone in the last two years.
"Minecraft is more than just a great franchise game - it's an open-platform platform, driven by a vibrant community that we are very interested in and rich with new opportunities for the community and Microsoft," said Satiana Nandela, chief executive officer of the American company .
As highlighted in the announcement, the company plans to keep Minecraft available on all platforms where it can be played today: PC, iOS, Android, Xbox, PlayStation. This clarification comes to calm concerns from gamers about whether the acquisition of Mojang will signaline "exclusivity" of the game for its platforms Microsoft.
In a publication on the webσελίδα of Mojang confirmed its acquisition by Microsoft. "Change is afraid, and that will be a great change for all of us. But it will be for good. Everything will go well, "he says.
Regarding the reasons for the acquisition, it is noted that the creator of Minecraft, Markus "Notch" Persson (an ardent supporter of independent game development, who has criticized Microsoft in the past) decided that he did not want the responsibility of owning a company "of such global importance …the pressure της ιδιοκτησίας του Minecraft ήταν πολλή για αυτόν. Η μόνη επιλογή ήταν η πώληση της Mojang. Ωστόσο θα συνεχίσει να φτιάχνει ωραία πράγματα. Μην ανησυχείτε για αυτό». Παράλληλα, σημειώνεται ότι είναι λίγοι οι εν δυνάμει αγοραστές με τους πόρους που θα επιτρέψουν στο Minecraft «να αναπτυχθεί στην έκταση που του αξίζει. Δουλεύουμε στενά με τη Microsoft from 2012 and we are impressed by their steady dedication to our game and its development ". It also emphasizes that "there is no reason to stop developing, selling and supporting Minecraft versions for PC / Mac, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, Vita, iOS and Android. Of course, the Microsoft can not make decisions for other companies or predict the choices they can make in the future. "
Source: naftemporiki.gr
