Microsoft Bought Bethesda To Prevent Starfield From Becoming a PS-Exclusive

Microsoft didn't want Bethesda's upcoming game to be a PlayStation exclusive.

Xbox head Phil Spencer recently revealed that Microsoft bought ZeniMax Media, Bethesda's parent company, to prevent Starfield from becoming a PlayStation-exclusive game for some time.

Microsoft is encountering obstacles in its acquisition of Activision - the FTC and UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) are against it due to it preventing competition from competing properly in key aspects.

Microsoft's Reason For Buying ZeniMax Media

Spencer claims Microsoft is fighting a losing battle when it comes to competing with Sony and Nintendo in the so-called console wars during the recent hearing for the FTC's current case against the company, per PC Gamer.

He explained that part of the reason why Microsoft bought ZeniMax Studios was the idea that Starfield might not come to Xbox, considering that Bethesda made a timed exclusivity deal with Sony for two of its other games: Deathloop and Ghostwire.

When it heard that Starfield might end up becoming a limited-time PlayStation exclusive, Microsoft's leaders decided the company couldn't be in a position as a third-place console where Xbox would fall further behind on its content ownership. This thought eventually lead the company to purchase ZeniMax Media.

He added that releasing games on both consoles handed money to Sony every time, with the latter company capturing 30% of the revenue Microsoft does on their platform. Sony would then utilize this 30%, among other revenue that it had, on things that try to reduce XBox's survival on the market.

Spencer said that while Microsoft tries to compete, it has failed to do so for the last 20 years. He then connected Microsoft's acquisition of ZeniMax to its acquisition of Actision, saying that it was the company's way to compete with Sony.

"...we've had to secure contnet to remain viable in the business," Spencer said.

Spencer's testimony is noticeably revolving around the idea that Sony is an aggressive and hostile competitor, painting the Japan-based company in a bad light, per The Verge. However, Spencer remained vague if it would make The Elder Scrolls 6 exclusive to Xbox and PC, as it is still difficult for Microsoft to nail down what platforms it's launching on due to how far out the game is.

Microsoft's Progress With Its Activision Deal

Microsoft and Activision have had victories worldwide, with many international regulators, including the EU's European Commission, giving them the go-ahead for their acquisition deal to continue. However, the CMA blocked it - it concluded that Microsoft would find its acquisition of Activision commercially beneficial since it could make Activision's games exclusive to its cloud gaming service.

The FTC also blocked Microsoft's acquisition deal as it believes it would give Microsoft's Xbox platform exclusive access to Activision games, removing the possibility of those games being played on Nintendo and Sony's gaming consoles, per the BBC. It also believes that Microsoft would have the ability and "increased incentive" to withhold or degrade Activision's content that would substantially lessen competition, such as in pricing, quality, and innovation.

Despite these obstructions, Microsoft remains optimistic that its acquisition deal with Acitivion will proceed.