Microsoft planned to acquire the game giant Blizzard Entertainment for US$68 billion, but this transaction was rejected by the British Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). ) against. In a 418-page report, CMA elaborated on its research and reasons. One of the important arguments is that the current game development costs are already unaffordable, and Microsoft’s acquisition will further intensify market monopoly and weaken competition.
The report cites research from market analyst firm IDG, which expects blockbuster game development budgets to grow from an average of $50 million to $150 million on previous console generations to more than $200 million in the next few years. In 2014, that figure was only around $60 million. The report also cites what Blizzard said about its flagship Call of Duty: “We have to produce so much content for Call of Duty that we can no longer rely on one major studio. Now we need close to 1.5 major jobs per year There is pressure to outsource more and more studios to make Call of Duty, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.”
In addition to Blizzard, other game publishers have also said that the development costs of their popular game series are rising. Some series have even surpassed the $300 million development budget, and future blockbuster games like the next-generation Grand Theft Auto are expected to cost $250 million or more. One of the publishers revealed that its most expensive game cost $660 million to develop, with a marketing budget of $550 million.
CMA believes that these data show that it is difficult for other companies to produce games that can replace Call of Duty in the short term, so Microsoft’s acquisition will harm the interests of consumers and competitors. But this also reflects that the development of masterpiece games has become unsustainable. Because masterpiece games are costly, time-consuming, and face huge market risks and player demand, game publishers have to continue to rely on their most trusted IP. Ubisoft has publicly stated that it will increase its investment in series such as “Assassin’s Creed” and “Far Cry”, and half of the current host generation has passed, and Sony fans are still waiting for new IP to appear.
