Immediately after announcing Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda starting in 2021, many wondered what Microsoft's plans for future acquisitions would be. Well, based on some news that emerged today, it does not seem to be so.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer recently spoke to GameReactor and was asked about the potential of Microsoft's acquisition of other companies in the future. Spencer claimed that to keep growing Xbox Game Pass, which is one of the company's biggest goals right now, further acquisitions will be needed.
“With the growth we are seeing, I expect that we will constantly be in this mode to engage more creators. If we look at what people are playing on Xbox, what Game Pass subscribers are playing, I think what is missing from our portfolio is casual content with broad appeal. Content with electronic classification (to use an ESRB classification) is not a strong point for us, ”Spencer explained. "Obviously we have Minecraft and we have other franchises, however I think it is critically important to expand the creativity of our teams."
Spencer's comments on the continued growth of Xbox Game Studios are also in line with what the CEO of Microsoft also expressed Satya Nadella. In an interview last month, Nadella said she expects Xbox Game Studios to continue growing. "where it makes sense". Given what Spencer said, trying to pick a studio that focuses on E-rated content could fill that bubble that would make sense for Xbox.
If Xbox ends up announcing a new acquisition of some kind in the future, it could apparently be disclosed at any time. Microsoft has largely made these takeover announcements on big stages in places like E3, while Bethesda's purchase was simply disclosed on a Monday morning in a blog post. In any case, the future continues to look promising for Microsoft as the release of the Xbox Series X / S is getting closer and closer.
