I haven't wanted to really post anything about all the news that Microsoft may buy Minecraft developer Mojang, even if there was every reason to believe it, until we got confirmation. Well, today we have it. The official Mojang blog has a statement about it this morning.
https://mojang.com/2014/09/yes-were-being-bought-by-microsoft/
Currently, details are sparse, there's a lot of "We don't know" in this statement, and that's fine. It's still early days.
In short, Notch wanted to focus less on running a massive company and decided to sell. Mojang and Microsoft have a good relationship, and it seemed like a good fit for continuing Minecraft's development.
I'll say it seems like a great deal for Microsoft too. $2.5 billion seems pretty cheap for the game every 7 and 8 year old can't stop talking about.
https://mojang.com/2014/09/yes-were-being-bought-by-microsoft/
Currently, details are sparse, there's a lot of "We don't know" in this statement, and that's fine. It's still early days.
In short, Notch wanted to focus less on running a massive company and decided to sell. Mojang and Microsoft have a good relationship, and it seemed like a good fit for continuing Minecraft's development.
I'll say it seems like a great deal for Microsoft too. $2.5 billion seems pretty cheap for the game every 7 and 8 year old can't stop talking about.
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Notch wrote his thoughts on leaving Mojang. http://pastebin.com/n1qTeikM
I totally understand his reasons, if the news isn't a bit sad.
An interesting information nugget. Disney bought LucasFilm+everything for 4 billion.
This news makes me kind of sad. I remember watching the Minecraft documentary and seeing how overwhelmed and humbled Notch was upon the explosion of the game. It got way bigger than he ever dreamed. I some how feel that I can understand his point of view. He is just a programmer having fun, not a CEO or someone who wants to lead a large company. I don't hate Microsoft and I feel that this news only reflects the huge success that Minecraft has been. Still, I wonder about the game's future. I hope it continues to evolve as it has been.
They've said that they won't mess with the platforms that it's on, so we don't have to worry about them taking away the Linux and Mac versions, so that's good news. I can't imagine Microsoft would make the major mistake of messing up Minecraft. What I hope is that they'll take what they have and continue down the same path.
Now, Minecraft 2, if such a thing comes to exist, I do wonder about. But I hope they'll realize how amazing an open-to-all game like Minecraft was and continue down the same path. They have to know they'd have egg on their faces for years if they try to interfere with what's been working for years.
I agree with you, I can't quite imagine them messing it up either. It would be interesting to know what Microsoft has in store for Minecraft. I'd like to see development continue. I think there are still very many things that could be added to the game. For instance, there no birds. I swear in one of the videos Vinny was watching there were birds in the game. Maybe it was just a mod. I think bugs would be a cool addition, too, and if they could be used as bait like in Terraria. Currently fishing doesn't require any kind of bait. There are lots of other animals I thought it would be cool to see in the game.
I agree with you Travis, but I would find it hard to believe Microsoft wouldn't do something special for XBox One or make it an exclusive for some time. That said, it's all speculation and I do hope for the best with Minecraft.
If they did that, exclusives for XBox One, etc, that would just piss off too many people, and I think they know that. I hope it works like Skype-- they bought Skype, and with the exception of being able to log in with your Microsoft account, nothing has really changed.
I wonder who else was in the market to buy Mojang? Microsoft has the money, but I question whether or not they have the passion for such an investment, beyond their own corporate needs (i.e. making more money). They likely won't mess with the current iteration of Minecraft, but future releases are now inevitable, and it's what they could do that bothers me. Microsoft is better at making deals than making things. If they are smart, they'll leave it alone and just throw money at the people that stay on at Mojang, and let them do what they do best. It seems, though, that any time this much money is involved in a deal, the buyers input also becomes part of the deal. I wonder what Microsoft's input will be.
Thinking Minecraft 2 might be some kind of MMO or online game where you get/rent worlds or something. That said, in such a case I could see a fair amount of exclusivity.
Will they change current Minecraft? That seems less likely. That said, Notch originally said he wanted to release Minecraft as Free Software, kind of think there is little chance for that happening now.