Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer considered buying Nintendo at one point, a leaked email revealed in 2020. Several documents from Microsoft’s lawsuit with the US FTC were leaked on Tuesday, one of them showing an informal discussion about purchasing the Mario maker, where Spencer called it a “career moment” and hinted that a collaboration would be a “good move” for either company. It’s worth pointing out that this conversation took place in August 2020, before Microsoft acquired ZeniMax Media, Bethesda’s parent company, for $7.5 billion (roughly Rs. 62,431 crore). The leaks also revealed Bethesda’s release schedule, as well as details about Microsoft’s planned mid-generation console refresh.
“I’ve had many conversations with Nintendo’s LT about working more closely and I feel like if an American company had a chance with Nintendo, we’re probably in the best position,” replied Spencer to Microsoft executives Chris Capossela and Takeshi Numoto. email (via The Verge). He then listed some obstacles to the acquisition, starting with the fact that Nintendo is happy to sit on a “big pile of cash”, making any attempt at a hostile takeover futile. He said it took Nintendo a long time to realize that its games would thrive better if they weren’t just exclusive to their own platform. In the same email, Spencer also discussed the acquisition of Valve Corporation – whose president Gabe Newell previously worked at Microsoft – noting that Microsoft’s board would be fully supportive if positive action occurred.
In addition to ZeniMax, it appears that Microsoft has been actively engaged in takeover discussions with Warner Bros. Interactive, which published Hogwarts Legacy, earlier this year. However, this interaction raised issues regarding intellectual property – for example, Microsoft would not own the rights to DC Comics characters and others, which hurt “long-term flexibility”. On the other hand, with ZeniMax, the issue was more monetary, in the sense of what its founders expected from the acquisition.
The leaked documents also revealed a list of unannounced Bethesda games, which include remasters for Fallout 3 and Cyrodiil’s open-world RPG The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. The chart of planned titles was established in July 2020, and as such, there are several changes to the launch timelines. The Oblivion remaster was originally supposed to release in 2022, but the only update we’ve heard so far was from a rumor claiming Virtuous Games was working on it. This studio is currently co-developing the Metal Gear Solid 3 remake with Konami. The Fallout 3 remaster was planned for next year, and the listing obviously mentions Starfield DLC for 2022. Of course, the game was delayed and so the timelines differ drastically now.
According to the chart, the long-gestating Elder Scrolls VI was initially eyeing a 2024 launch. But it recently entered the first phase of development and isn’t expected to release until 2026 on PC and Xbox. Other major releases on the horizon include the Indiana Jones game from MachineGames, a sequel to Ghostwire: Tokyo and Dishonored 3, marking Arkane’s return to the stealth franchise after Deathloop and the poorly received Red fall.
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