or there must be nothing to report.because everytime i come to this site all they keep talking about is the three B'S leaving M$. when M$ only owned one of those studio's. so why do you keep reporting this news. must not be too much to talk negative about the 360. but just keep recycling the same story over and over again.

I would love to see Sabre Wulf and Underwurlde in XBLA.

Bungie has said their multiplat games are now coming to the PS3. LOL I don't care when comparing them to insomniac... you don't need bungie but I just think its funny. And Bizarre is making an exclusive franchise for the PS Brand beginning in 2009. Its so funny how buiness works. I can see Sony getting more wind in its sails everyday.

MAY DAY!!! MAY DAY!!!!!!! ----------------
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Microshaft already realizes where they are headed after this holiday season..... DOWN!

this article sux they didn't lose any studios.

Bizaare was never first party, neither was bioware or panedmic.

Bungie was the only first party studio, The deal MS made with bungie only allows them to release games on other systems, They still own 49% of the company, and they still have first dibs on publishing of all future titles.

None of these changes have any sort of negative effect on MS, and could actually be positive.

MS still has Halo and a good deal of influence at Bungie - they just no longer have to bankroll them. They get first refusal on all new Bungie IP, but Bungie pay the dev costs... sounds good for MS.

The PGR franchise was big, but no Forza or Gran Turismo. Technically they haven't lost it, they just might have to share it with Sony IF Bizarre decide to do PGR5.

Bioware... as others have mentioned... was never Microsofts' to lose.

Rare on the other hand was a bit of a poor decision by MS. Most of the best talent had already moved to other dev teams before MS even bought them. Their output has been mediocre at best (Kameo was OK I guess but not stunning), but more worryingly even though their output is poor, it's infrequent as well.

I think it's telling that Rare haven't produced sequels to many of their major or well loved franchises. Rare has a massive catalogue of quality franchises that could pull in a few nostalgic Nintendo fans.

Where's the sequels to:

Blast Corps (one of the best N64 games)
Killer Instinct
Jet Force Gemini

Not to mention releasing XBLA versions of the old Ultimate games (surely Jetpac Refueled didn't take long to knock together.. Where's the rest? Knightlore, Tranz-Am etc etc).

If rare was in healthy shape MS should be using it as the jewel in the Xbox 360 developer crown... but a pre-rendered Banjo 3 teaser, and an XBLA title are all we've seen from them since Viva Pinata (which was good, but hardly a AAA title and should have been so much better).

Probably more financially feasible for MS to just secure exclusive titles from these devs than to actually own any of these studios. And MS will throw more $ at these studios than Sony/Nintendo as well..not to mention the sheer amount of software sales from the 360 compared to the other consoles obviously make the 360 a more preferable choice for publishers and developers.

Hey... if Some idiot can write an article about how microsoft lost companies that they never owned and about losing exclusives that A) are not lost or B) were never exclusives... how come we don't see an article about...

How Sony lost Namco which is now making games games that used to be exclusive on the PS3... like Ace Combat... and all those games that used to be exclusive to the playstation on previous generations that are now multiplatform, exclusive or time exclusive on the xbox 360....

if that's not jumping ships than I don't know what is...

I wouldn't consider a company or developer purchased by EA a win for Sony... EA games are always reminding people why they should buy an xbox 360 if they want quality... are exclusive on the xbox 360 (C&C3), are timed exclusive on the xbox 360 (Orange Box)... .and run better and look better on the xbox 360 (every EA game)... ohh yeah.. and don't forget microsoft have people on EA that can move things around to give the xbox 360 the upper hand...

this supposed "console war" is lame..just enjoy the games people..you gain nothing out of defending your favorite system..the corporations could care less about the opinion of a single individual

people always accuse MS of being a monopoly and buying everything they see and how they are ruining gaming by doing so. now its the other way around, now MS is stupid for not buying companies and letting other people do so. makes no god damn sense at all.

Developers will jump ship... It may very well be MS as a company is difficult to deal with and they would prefer to do things their way, but they aren't going to abandon the console because 360 gamers buy games... and buy them in droves... that's all they care about in the end.

Sorry but this is dumb. I dont own nor never would own an Xbox product (dont want to give anymore money to Bill Gates than I have to with my PC).

And whilst I feel that way about Microsoft, I do think that to say that they are turning their back on the 360 is stupid at best. I do think they will think twice about a new console if Sony catches them up and overtakes them in the next 6months, but IMO that wont happen.

Most companies are now looking at multi format software. It maximises the profit and will eventually be better for console owners (as they learn to program for each individual console more effectively). I think there will be exclusives, but as time goes on fewer and fewer will hit the shelves.

meh,,,, one console one world!!!!!!

Bizarre and Bioware were never owned by Microsoft. Microsoft kept the PGR IP, but the developer was never theirs to lose. By keeping the IP, they can still make games in house.

The only dev they "lost" was Bungie. Microsoft could have retained the Bungie name, but they didn't own the people working in the studio. Had they not released Bungie, the key staff members could have and would have still moved on. Instead of sticking it to Bungie and keeping the studio name, they decided to maintain a partnership with them to insure quality games keep coming from them. This was the best possible scenario for both parties involved. Bungie moved on to the next level and have even more creative freedom and Microsoft will still get fantastic games in the future. This is the best example to show how commited Microsoft is to the future.

Rare is a perfect example of owning a studio name, but losing talented individuals. I have no doubt Rare will evolve and make some fantastic games, but they will need to work harder to get there.

Buying studio names and IP's doesn't mean anything without the people that got them there.

-Death

yea death is right and its not like microsoft now doesnt own their past games dont get them wrong they got contracts up ther waaaazoooo

And yes its Activision who has the rights to bond for the enxt few years for whoever asked up top.

Being a 360 owner the news is a bit disturbing but as some have pointed out Microsoft only owned one of these studios.

My guess is that after the huge investment they have put into companies like Rare and Bungie,they may reluctant to outright buy studios in the future.In the case of Rare they haven't produced a real hit in eons.Some of their titles were also in development for ages.So there hasn't been any positive returns for MS in this venture.In the case of Bungie they wanted to return to their independent roots and control their own destiny.Having the rights to own their own intellectual properties and benefit from them unilaterally is something they could never do under MS's wing.As Shane Kim noted in an interview a while back you can own the studio but you never own the talent.

As some may also remember MS tried to purchase Bioware unsuccessfully.I guess everyone has their price as they were acquired for a rather unprecedented amount of cash to EA.

With the PS3 surging and the recent developments with these studios it's imperative that they reverse this trend.Some new announcements on exclusives and a further price cut is needed in my opinion.

If the PS3's technical advantage in the next year proves to be more of a leap than a step that could also hurt their long term prospects.Hopefully we will see something really amazing out of the box yet!

I personally think the best game that Rare have released in a while was VP which was an excellent game but sold poorly because MS was hyping up Gears of War.

Hopefully Rare are working on PD2, VP2, BK3 (already working on) and some more arcade titles. Even a new Conker game would be awesome.

I love it. Not only are we approving blogs, but we're approving misinformed blogs.

1. Bizarre Creations was never owned by or was in anyway a part of MS.

2. Bioware was never owned by or was in anyway a part of MS.

3. MS has first dibs on anything produced by Bungie as per the contractual agreement of the separation that still shows MS having minority ownership of Bungie.

*slow clap* for the desperate moron that wrote this and the poor and petty people who approved it. I bow to your ignorance.

Learn a little about the industry you write about before looking stupid.

This means good news for Sony. Once Halo,Project Gotham and Mass Effect comes to PS3, what real reason would consumers want to purchase a Crapbox 360? PS3 will have a plethora of once Micro$hit exclusives plus Sony's exclusives on their own.

Good times to be a PS3 owner.

edit@Turdman

You're absolutely right. Fable 2? Dont make me laugh. Put Fable next to Final Fantasy and let's see which game/console/attach rate moves more.

Too Human? Once again. It's just Micro$hit picking up after Sony's crumbs. Played a beta over 8 years ago on PS1, it was crap then and it will be crap when it comes out.

Mass Effect 1,2,3? Yeah. Great games. Games that I will be enjoying on my PLAYSTATION 3. So you have a moot point.

Gears of War 2? No thanks. I'd rather play Uncharted Sequel w/online or Resistance 2.

XBOTS GET SHUT DOWN DAILY

P L A Y B 3 Y O N D

Well MS might as well pack up and go home...well after Fable 2 of course...and Too Human...and Gears of War 2...and well, after Bungie's next game they should leave the business...and um, well after all those third-party games from Japan, and after all the third-party games of 08 like Fallout 3...and they should really leave the industry after Mass Effect 1, 2 and 3...yeah they're dooomed.

..that maybe Microsoft is looking to get into pure licensing mode, and out of gaming hardware/software development aspect. Some other article (can't think of where I saw it) referenced possibilities of companies like Toshiba licensing Xbox technology and building it right into their own hardware (TV's, etc.). I wouldn't call it abandoning ship, but rather keeping the part that makes money for you (licensing) and shedding the part that doesn't (like the box itself, and maybe even software development).

"This means good news for Sony. Once Halo,Project Gotham and Mass Effect comes to PS3, what real reason would consumers want to purchase a Crapbox 360? PS3 will have a plethora of once Micro$hit exclusives plus Sony's exclusives on their own.

Good times to be a PS3 owner.

edit@Turdman

You're absolutely right. Fable 2? Dont make me laugh. Put Fable next to Final Fantasy and let's see which game/console/attach rate moves more.

Too Human? Once again. It's just Micro$hit picking up after Sony's crumbs. Played a beta over 8 years ago on PS1, it was crap then and it will be crap when it comes out.

Mass Effect 1,2,3? Yeah. Great games. Games that I will be enjoying on my PLAYSTATION 3. So you have a moot point.

Gears of War 2? No thanks. I'd rather play Uncharted Sequel w/online or Resistance 2.

XBOTS GET SHUT DOWN DAILY

P L A Y B 3 Y O N D"

Once again your an idiot, just STFU and GTFO off N4G please. The Halo IP is owned by MS, THE HALO IP IS OWNED BY MS. If you still keep on saying that any Halo IP will come over to another console then your very stupid, other people have pointed out to you many times and yet you keep on saying Halo will come over to the PS3.

Mass Effect 1 is only on the Xbox 360, as for 2 and 3 I do not known whether it will come to the PS3 as well as 360 and I the PGR IP is owned by MS.

TBH, Fable 2 > FF

FF is milked to hell and should go die in a fire, come on SE make a new IP instead of being a FF whore. As for Too Human, it may be very different to what it was 8 years ago. Maybe you should just quit being an ass and a troll.

Yeah with new features being added to the 360 all the time I can realy see MS dumping the 360. It's a game selling beast with great games that seem to beat out the Wii and PS3 both in sales and in quality. Some of the things that get approved on this website are just as stupid as the people who write them.

Microsoft is dumb they should have bought out bioware when they had the chance. They could of made mass effect a exclusive and they would have a developer that never makes bad games.

all the studios know they make alot more money goin Multi platform , look at GTA so the games will still be there just not exclusives.

ps, didnt this happen early on for the PS3? just a question

Typical, fickle gaming media. Nothing new here.

I don't know how many times i have to say it but I would rather have sony, nintendo and MS kill each other trying to satisfy us, the gamers, rather than anyone of them having a monopoly. These companies are all businesses and without competition you can kiss away innovation, fair pricing and quality.

that's why previous sony only franchises are coming to xbox. bioware, bizarre, and realtime worlds will always be ms partners. and as I said before more key japanese developers are enjoying enlarging their back accounts with xbox games.

(think capcom)

realtime worlds "crackdown would not have sold over half a mil if it wasn't for the halo beta.

we'll see after they release thier secretive next installment (APB) to see whether they have the chops to carry a title by virtue of their development expertise alone.

keeping these developers independant keeps them out of m$ pocket. but it doesn't mean they have turned against the 360, .. they still want to eat.

since they got Jay out of the business, m$'s Shane is much more shrewed and flexible as to who to publish, support, or aquire which is a good thing.

m$ is actuall becoming more competetive on the console scene and will remain strong for years to come (like it or not)

Does make it sound like the x360 is in trouble but in truth i don't think so. MS still has rights and a working relationship with all the devs that the article listed. Games such as Mass effect and PGR i doubt very much will every go multi. On a side note.I didn't know that rare developed Killer instinct. Man that is one of the best Fighting game on SNES. It certianly is much better than DOA and VF. I would be so cool if they make a x360 version. The N64 version though sucked.

As long as Microsoft thinks it can dominate your living room and make a profit (which I believe the 360 is now doing if you don't count the RROD refund money), it will continue to support videogames. Microsoft has shown that it actively pursues exclusives. People forget also that Microsoft has money, money and more money. And money talks, as well as buys exclusives. Also, if I were a betting man I would bet that Microsoft hasn't acquired its last game studio.

- X07 gets scrapped

- Ms admits that The 360 is having a very high failure rate (after they denied it over and over again)

- Peter Moore leaves the company

- Robbie Bach admits that there is a design fault in the 360 (after Ms denied it over and over again)

- MS gaming division suffering a 1.9 billion loss as a result of this.

- Bizarre Creations, the team behind the Project Gotham and Geometry Wars series signs on to develop games exclusively for Activision

- Ms loses Bungie as an first party studio.

- Ms misses the chance to buy BioWare and to secure the Mass effect franchise.

While the Bungie/ Bizarre Creations announcements was mired in "yeah, but"'s and "sure, if"'s by the Ms fans, the fact of the matter is that, while Halo may still be under Bungie's wing and in Microsoft's hands, there's nothing stopping the console first-person shooter developers from working its magic on competing consoles. Similarly, Microsoft may have the rights to Project Gotham, but there's nothing stopping Bizarre from creating a similar IP for Activision, to appear on all new-gen consoles.

http://www.lazygamer.co.za/...

http://www.joystiq.com/2007...

http://www.next-gen.biz/ind...

I suppose you really don't have anything better to do than TROLL about the 360 everywhere?!?!??

MS ***ALWAYS*** owns the rights to those second party games meaning the HALO & PROJECT GOTHAM IP.

They will never appear on other formats and Mass Effect will stay exclusive by the way.

Also, the ALAN WAKE franchise will never be on other formats. There's PLENTY of first party games that MICROSOFT merely publishes, rather than owning the whole studio.

Because for a fraction of the price, they can secure a THIRD PARTY GAME or FRANCHISE as exclusive and just retain the rights to the IP.

This is all about MONEY SAVING, not about "RUNNING AWAY" or "MONOPOLY WARS" ......they still own the IP.

Just like the GOD OF WAR DEVELOPERS are not any longer owned by SONY, but they're still working with SONY and SONY owns the IP.....

Are you fanboys just completely stupid now!??!? This has NO effect on any games, game sales, the XBOX division or anything else.

This is just merely them saying, "Hmmmm, now that we're dominating and doing even better in Japan lets secure some NEW content & stop rehashing the same first party games...Lets let BUNGIE, the only company we owned branch out and go independent with PC & DS etc, to make us more money since we can do that easily. Lets secure some NEW system selling franchises and give our system a huge boost..."

Its BUSINESS, you d*** morons! And don't think for a second Microsoft isn't eyeing the likes of GRAND THEFT AUTO, they sure are because they could just buy out the FRANCHISE in order to sell out their systems everywhere. Just be thankful that MS is a caring competitor, in that they would rather have NEW successful IPs then old sequels....

=D

there just now finding out that xbox will soon die.lol

because the future looks so sad for xbots....