Sony Can Make a Huge Splash for PS5 Fans By Acquiring One Studio

Responding to Microsoft's Bethesda deal, PS5 fans are calling for Sony to make a counter acquisition, and one studio would make a world of difference.

[Sonyslave3]

From software is already owned lol do people even do their research.

[RazzerRedux]

lol....what? Just because a developer is owned by a parent company doesn't mean it cannot be sold.

The question is whether a) Sony is interested in buying From Software and b) Kadokawa is interested in sellling. Both have to be true for this to even be possible.

[porkChop]

This would be like Take Two selling Rockstar. They aren't going to sell their most prestigious dev.

[DiRtY]

Well there are a couple of more questions than these two. For example: "How much?"

[SullysCigar]

^ Everything has a price, @porkChop

[RazzerRedux]

@porkChop

Maybe, maybe not, but that isn't the point I made. They could sell if both parties were interested.

@DiRtY

Both parties have to agree to be at the table before they can start negotiations.

@olivier1

Nothing stopping from Kadokawa from inviting bids from anyone.

[UltraNova]

Sully gets it, and after MS spending 7.5 frickin billion on a single purchase (Zenimax) all of you should have been able to get it too. It's a matter of how deep is Sony willing to put their hand in their pocket and anything is possible.

That said, Sony doesn't need to respond to anything, they only need to keep making the games everyone wants to play. To that end MS, barring any bad decisions, now has the IPs that everyone wants to play as well. This is to our benefit in the end - the heat is up and consistency to quality will crown the ultimate winner.

This gen is poised to be the most competitive and exciting yet, and I for one can't wait to see how it will turn up!

[Marquinho]

Why in this world would Kadokawa Corporation be willing to sell their golden egg chicken?

That would only happen over a ridiculously overpriced sum of cash... and that doesn't sound likely to happen.

This guy obviously wrote this "article" over wishful thinking and zero research. He doesn't even mention Kadokawa anywhere. lol

If anything, Sony should go for Bluepoint.

[umair_s51]

Sony doesn't nearly have the revenue compared to MS. They have to be very conscientious. There is a reason why PS5 is overclocked compared to Series X.

[bouzebbal]

What a dumb subject people are starting to have.. xbox can buy all devs in the world, talent cannot be bought. Sony worst 1st party quality and talent wipes the floor with all we've seen from xbox game studios this gen combined.
Sony bought insomniac, that's better for me than a publisher who has been making flawed games lately..

[East76lands]

There's no need, people shouldn't overreact about the Bethesda takeover, it's a huge statement of intent but as it stands Sony is still the company with the established quality.

[Rimeskeem]

Did Notch not sell Minecraft? His entire career to MS

@porkchop

[Army_of_Darkness]

Not from software. A lot better developers out there like blue point (Sony will buy them if demon souls sells very well), house Marquee (love their twin stick arcade shooters) just imagine what they could do with dev funds by sony! Or even platinum games! They are also awesome!

[derek]

Sony has been too slow at buying obvious talent when they were in a position to do so. They are way to conservative in securing content for their brand. That being said I think the Zenimax purchase is a terrible buy for Microsoft, overpaying for a bunch of ip, whose popularity is in the past and could very well continue to decline. I've said it b4 having a big fat bloated entity like Microsoft involved is bad for gaming. They don't have the patience or commitment to contribute new or fresh ip to the industry and compete creatively. They just want buy their way to dominance like they did with their windows operating system. Ultimately it won't work and they'll eventually abandon the xbox brand, like they've done with mobile etc..

[Greatball1987]

Just because a company can be sold doesn't mean that it's for sale lmfaooooo

[TakeTori]

Also, just don't buy From Software, man. They're my favourite Japanese company and I want to continue playing their games on PC.

[Bathyj]

Well there are no stray developers.

Everyone's already owned, including you now.

[The_Sage]

Ouch... Bathyj from the top rope.

[Jin_Sakai]

Sony should buy Bluepoint Games for sure. They could also acquire Square Enix. They always work close with Sony.

[neutralgamer1992]

I would love to see Sony be aggressive but they usually buy studios who have worked with sony in some exclusive manner in the past

Bluepoint games are next in my opinion

Some publishers I would love Sony to buy

Capcom due to their history and how many valuable IP's they own

Sega for same reason as capcom even more IP's

Square enix because a decade or so ago Sony bought a bunch of shares when share were struggling to help them out. So I could see approaching them

Now I don't think none of these studios alone will cost Sony 7.5 billion

They could also approach AT&T to buy WB games which was estimated to cost under 5 billion

We saw Sony made a multi billion dollar offer warframe developers parent company

Let's see in any case I think bluepoint are next (rumor has it they want to remake all 3 jak and Dexter games into one large game with improvements)

[throne]

that'd be cool if it happens....I wouldn't want sony to just make some panic buy but I feel sega would be a good fit for them especially coz of their history with yakuza,persona not to mention the new ip judgement is synonymous with playstation all these years

[jjacks49]

Bluepoint games makes too much sense. I think something not talked about enough is Sony Bend. I’d argue it’s the weakest of the Sony developers, but it has grown and put out a good game with days gone. It just took forever. I hope Sony bend grew to the size of the other developers under Sony’s umbrella. If Sony bend can make the jump in quality int makes Sony’s first party that much stronger. Even with the acquisition of Bethesda Sony developers take the top two or three spots. Naughty dog.. Sony Santa Montica and we have seen gurillia games developer into a top notch dev team.

What people aren’t talking about is over the next year and half ( if they don’t get delayed which admittedly is a big if) Sony will be releasing a new god of war/ a new horizon/ a new Spider-Man/ all of them are gang busters.

[Shikoku]

@porkchop and no one thought bethesda would sell themselves off either everything has a price

[ArthriticPowers]

That's incorrect. Rumours had been circling for 2yrs

[UltraNova]

Ever since Fallout 76 crashed and burned, then kept crashing and burning, Bethesda's foundation was shook. It was the best time for them to sell. And what a deal they've cut for themselves huh...

[Sayai jin]

It comes down to the companies strategy and cash on hand. Just because some people who are caught up in the so called console war or uoset, now want Sony to buy a studio. If it is not in Sony's Strategy it won't happen and even if it was something they were interested in, it comes down to the number 2 I mentioned. Cash on hand. Sony as a whole has $33 billion. In contrast, Microsft has $137 billion cash on hand. These numbers are for thr companies as a whole.

[neutralgamer1992]

Sayai jin

33 is a huge number too and because PlayStation is sony's top earner and bread/butter they could a realistically spend 10 to 15 billion

Because it's in their best interest their PlayStation generates more money because the more money it generates the more profit they will make. On the other hand Microsoft is not dependent on Xbox brand to earn them a profit

I feel like a lot of times people don't understand the priorities of what companies are very different

Sony could one to two big publishers from Japan and that would help them a lot. For example square enix and capcom

[attilayavuzer]

@neutral

Just a quick note-Sony's financial services division is generally their most profitable. PS has far more revenue, but is really expensive to run. Their financial reports are a little funky to read, but I can't imagine them cannibalizing that many of their divisions to funnel billions into acquisitions for gaming. Makes sense for Microsoft-trying to own the game subscription space-but there's virtually no reason for Sony to buy studios that are going to continue to release on Playstation anyway.

[Indo]

@porkChop and @SullysCigar you guys both right. Sony as far i know, got enough money to make a purchase and not scared to buy a property per say. But it has to be worth it, from personal experience BeThAsDa needed this deal from Microsoft.

[LordoftheCritics]

Souls games don't even come close to the audience numbers of Bethesda's games. Sony would need to buy a more non niche game type maker.

Also Sony doesn't need From Software, those games are pretty much already on PS devices and Sony seems to have a good relationship with them.

[RgR]

Considering games sell lots more on playstation I think they have a good relationship with all devs

[DEEHULK88]

That wasn't always the case during the 360 generation

[Bathyj]

You should watch from bedrooms to billions. Before Sony platform holders didn't really like 3rd party Devs at all. Gaming would not be where it is now without them. Very interesting show

[Unspoken]

Didn't Sony just buy Insomniac?

[Neonridr]

when you have over 2x the install base, you better hope the game sells more on your platform. That's just simple statistics though.

[Abnor_Mal]

"Also Sony doesn't need From Software, those games are pretty much already on PS devices and Sony seems to have a good relationship with them."

Same could be said of Bethesda games being on Xbox, yet here we are commenting what company can Sony buy to "counter" that mega purchase.

[enkiduxiv]

If they could somehow acquire From Software, they could hold news Souls games for ransom. Perhaps they could even strike a deal with MS to allow Elder Scrolls on Playstation in exchange for Bloodborne on GamePass.

[badz149]

@LordoftheCritics

LOL somebody is overselling Bethesda big time now that MS owns it. check your fact and you'll see the only major selling games Bethesda has made this gen is Fallout 4 and to some extent FO76. their other games didn't really lit up the chart that much. sorry if that disappoints you.

[SullysCigar]

I enjoyed FO:NV, but Fallout 4 lost something and I couldn't get into it. Obviously 76 was an abomination and one lie after another.

Skyrim's a tricky one; I was very late to the party on purpose, because I knew how mad everyone was that it was such a bug fest. Literally played it 3-4 years after release and it hooked me big time. I didn't expect it. So I went for full completion, put ridiculous hours into it, watching that completion percentage move up through the nineties, and then BAM - quest bug that they never bothered fixing. It was all over their forums and they just didn't bother patching it. I was livid. P!ss poor show on their part.

[badz149]

@MagicLebronJordan

I didn't make this shit up, OK? just look it up yourself. I never said their games are bad but aside from Fallout and Skyrim, not a single game from Bethesda has light up the sales chart this gen. did you say Doom? Wolfenstein? see these charts:

https://www.npd.com/wps/por...

https://venturebeat.com/202...

where's Doom Eternal?? Where is Wolfenstein YB??

it's no secret that Bethesda is kinda struggling to sell their games this gen and their reputation is dwindling fast after the abomination that was FO76!

[Profchaos]

Exactly they do well in gaming circles but that doesn't appeal to the cod crowd

[Neonridr]

@badz149 - why would either of those games be listed in an August chart when neither game were new anymore?

[badz149]

@Neonridr

wow you're so quick to call me out you didn't look at the whole chart. those pages I put there also list the top 10 selling software to date for the whole year. Doom Eternal is not up there in 2020 as it released this year and Young Blood was not up there either when it launched last year.

[enkiduxiv]

I don't think they need to acquire a Japanese Studio at all quite honestly. They seem to have a pretty solid advantage in that market already. I would go after some of the promising European indie developers. There are plenty that seem to be just one big hit away from becoming the next CD Projekt Red. Imagine if Bloober expanded for instance and started creating titles with actual game play.

[gold_drake]

u overestimate Bethesda games a little bit there.

[Class_Viceroy]

What do you consider niche? Souls series has sold tens of millions of copies. Souls-like is very much a mainstream brand now.

Fallout 3, 4, 76 and New Vegas have sold roughly 34 million world wide as of March 2020.

Dark Souls series as of May 2020 hit 27 million. Probably add another 5 to 6 million for Sekiro.

While I'm not saying it's as big.....you can't compare Bethesda's entire portfolio to Dark Souls. That's not a fair comparison. But if we do a franchise comparison, you can see Dark Souls is very competitive with the Fallout franchise. With factoring in momentum (thanks Fallout 76), you could argue the Souls franchise IS more valuable than Fallout.

So while it wouldn't put a huge dent into this acquisition, acquiring FromSoftware would possibly chip away at maybe say 10-15% of what Microsoft just did if they made the Souls Franchise exclusive to PS, and whatever other IPs come down the road. Nothing will even be able to compete with Elder Scrolls, but if Sony makes 3-4 good acquisitions they can make a good dent into this arms race.

Let's also remember Microsoft is playing from way behind (Like less than half of consoles sold). And MS still has to produce good games. We won't know who wins this generation until 7 years from now.

[Bobertt]

Fallout 4 sold 13 million copies and Dark souls 3 sold around 10 million. The problem isn't the audience the problem is From software is only 1 game company. Microsoft bought the parent company of Bethesda and that includes 5 or 6 other game studios like ID software (Doom) and Arkane studios (Dishonored and Deathloop). Buying From software alone wouldn't compare to what Microsoft gained. Buying From Software parent company wouldn't matter either cause they are a media company not just a game developer they have a lot more groups they control that Sony probably wouldn't care about.

Sony could try to buy Konami so they could get Metal gear, Castlevania, Silent Hills, and all their old franchises but Konami is on some bs and probably wouldn't sell it to them because they want to make mobile games. Sony could try to buy Konami's parent company but similarly they got other subsidaries like Konami real estate and a sports club that Sony wouldn't be interested in.

[P_Bomb]

Article nominates From Software. I’d counter that they don’t need From since Demons Souls can already spinoff into sequels without them and Sony also has console exclusivity on masocore cousins Nioh/Nioh 2.

I’d go after the Konami trinity of Silent Hills (PT), Castlevania, Metal Gear. Maybe make a full fledged Contra TPS while you’re there. That’s the most budget free agent checkmate I see. Legend IPs that also happened to be in limbo.

[Atom666]

Agreed. And they wouldn't need Konami itself. Just secure the IP or even just the gaming rights to those IP.

[knickstr]

They could probably do it for a reasonable price too since Konami doesn't really have any interest in gaming anymore.

[IGiveHugs2NakedWomen]

Konami would be the obvious choice.

Metal Gear and Silent Hill would sell millions of PlayStations.

[Good-Smurf]

I could see them buying their subsidiary KDE game division (not the whole company as they're do more than just making games) they have too many IPs old and new not putting to good use.
Other than their hugely successful Baseball series in Japan they don't do much with their IPs nowadays.
But that's just me they still have other choices line up it just when and who they will acquire.

[ssj27]

You forgetting PES which is always suffering from not having enough budget to buy licenses for soccer leagues teams etc. Under sony perhaps they can this way compete against fifa in those fields. Pes and fifa are multi-billion dollar franchises. With yearly releases and full on online microtanstration. PES is a gold mine that konami never took the risk to invest in licensing

[SpeedDemon]

That would be a good fit, some great IP's there and a few that have a good history with PS. It would also help with the negativety that the people currently running the show at Konami have created.

[Rocketisleague]

Konami is worth over 3 billion, lol, Sony couldn't afford that

[PhoenixUp]

One developer alone can’t compare to the weight of a AAA publisher like Bethesda

That being said if Sony does acquire another dev it’s probably be Bluepoint

[Atom666]

Not sure why they haven't moved on Bluepoint yet. Maybe they don't need to, but the price tag is only going up for them.

I'd buy Blupoint, triple their size, and turn out a steady flow of PS1, PS2, and PS3 classic remakes.

[-Foxtrot]

Yeah this is what I would do

Want to resurrect a franchise? Get Blue Point to do a remake of the original games and then a year or so later get another studio to make a brand new sequel.

[darthv72]

I think BP has been working on older titles to make a name for themselves in order to break away from being typecast into only making remakes.

[Sunny_D]

I mean sure but they also haven’t really had an amazing game since Skyrim. Doom is good but that also undersold for them so 🤷‍♂️

[SullysCigar]

Dishonored was a bit of a sleeper hit too.

The Wolfenstein titles had some charm, but they've churned out some real turds lately, like Wolfenstein Cyberpilot.

[FyBy]

Sony doesnt have to buy a studio. They can make business agreement with advantages on both sides. If PS5 will sell half as good as PS4, Sony can do extra promoting, special packages, etc... So games from some studio can sell very well in exchange of (console) exclusivity. Its always about outcome for both companies. Even MS and ZeniMax transaction is about future outcome. No one cares about players. Phil has a task to make Xbox profitable and conquer whole market. Easy. MS need to destroy Sony (as every competitor needs to "destroy" the others). No one is your friend in business.

[Father__Merrin]

They don't need to make a huge splash to keep ps5 fans happy. All publishers will make games for them anyway. People up and down the High Street don't quickly check what Gamerant is ranting on about before they make any purchase. What a stupid notion that there needs to be an acquisition from Sony lol absolutely laughable this is proof some people are only here to win arguments

[Bathyj]

They should buy the Dev making Little Devil Inside.

[Rainbowcookie]

Yup and for r.p.g's the guys that made divinity. Let them make Legend of dragoon 2. Bluepoint for some ps remakes. Konami for the mgs, silent hill, ip's... and if you really want to shake the planet...nintendo and let them make a compatible ps5 handheld. Then its game over.

[RgR]

Id prefer they not buy studios...how about opening new ones.
The latter adds to the industry whereas the former robs consumers.

[Sunny_D]

They did make one recently. But to make new studios takes much longer and to get devs to join, you have to take them from somewhere. But I agree over time, they should definitely make more. This is the best way to protect your assets from someone like MS or other trillion dollar companies that might soon make their way into the gaming industry.

[Espangerish]

Rockstar? Now that would be a splash.

[ClayRules2012]

That’d be a megaton bomb. If only. But again, would Rockstar keep milking GTA5 with PS6?😂 And more importantly, would Rockstar actually start producing games at a more frequent rate? If so, that’d be awesome. Because with past games that fans have expressed wanting to see continued like Bully and Max Payne game to name a few, that’d be great. Something besides GTA/RDR which take basically an entire generation for them to make as we’ve seen.

[FPS_D3TH]

I’m dying for another Max Payne game. Hell they could just rerelease 3 and I’d be happy. That being said, I don’t think even Microsoft would want to have to put up the money to buy such a studio

[ClayRules2012]

@D3TH_D33LR

Can you imagine putting up that kinda money to buy the likes of Rockstar??? I can’t fathom that🤯🤯but I agree with you, I’d happy with a rerelease of Max Payne 3 too! Such a great game & one I always seem to forget in conversation, but when I remember it, I remember just how great it really was, and it offered some of the best “WOW” moments I had back on PS3, aside from the likes of Uncharted 2.

[nibblo]

That purchase would dwarf the 7.5 billion for Zenimax, does Sony actually have that type of money?

[attilayavuzer]

Can pretty safely say no. Aside from the fact that Take Two is a public company, their current value is around 19 billion. Playstation earns about 2 billion in profit per year. For comparison, Rockstar profits about 1/3 of that as a single developer.

[Rude-ro]

😂😂 Sony is the splash.
What Microsoft is doing has nothing on their entire track record of what actually happens when Microsoft’s money gets involved.

The ramifications are yet to be understood.
You also have the factor of what is going to be provided and the quality in said craftsmanship.

But! These moves are due to the demand for Sony products. “Splashes” turned how well with ALL the acquisitions during the Xbox to the Xbox 360?

Let’s go off history instead of the unknown future from a company that has a horrible history with said purchases... not only through gaming, but overall as a company.
How did Kinect, rare, phones, the ar glasses, streaming service plus contracts all turn out?

[Bathyj]

I'm sure Bethesda's buggy games will improve when they're relegated to gamepass shovelware.

[Rainbowcookie]

The bugs sometimes were the most fun part of Bathesda's games.

[Mulando]

From Software has it's fans, but it is still a niche market. Not all gamers love this type of hard games. Something like Sega would be way better for the mass market.
Sega has good games, but bad marketing since ages. The Sony marketing is really good, it would be a really good addition.

[ssj27]

What niche? The souls franchise already around 30 million sales. Over 30 if includes sekiro for 3 to 5 games is great numbers . Whats niche about it. It was o the ps3 era butnot anymore. Demon soul's will easily sale over 5 million o i lifetime with a very small install base and been a remake. I think is great not niche at all.

[WelkinCole]

You underestimate the value of the Souls games to hardcore gamers.

[jukins]

No sony does not need to aquire in response. Thats a dangerous game to play

[Killer73nova]

I agree with you. They don’t want to mess with Microsoft. To much money and from what Microsoft ceo said about buying more they should tread carefully

[ssj27]

Whats your goal? Sure sony should stay steady and not buy anything and let Microsoft tencen goggle abd apple buy everything men where were you when sega needed help? You could have saved them lol

[sourOG]

Capcom would be huge.

[WeAreLegion]

Capcom is the one to watch, IMO. That's a much bigger get than Konami. They have tons and tons of solid IPs.

[sourOG]

Yup. Pricey investment but the payoff could be huge.

[Lore]

Crema would be a smart purchase

[Ready4nxtgen]

Buy konami....pleaseeeee... save all the great franchises they have

[waverider]

What i really like was Sega. Because they got some of the best i.p. Also Capcom. But, again, i really dont like the path of monopoly that some are seeking. Of course after what Microsoft did. Well, its a reality. And gamers should be ready for what coming. It wont be good.

[ssj27]

sega got some of the best ips? Maybe 25 years ago lol

[WeAreLegion]

Don't sleep on Let's Go Jungle!

[Pancit_Canton]

Sony needs to buy more indie studios, so they can raised them to be a proper AAA studio. I feel like most AAA developers now a days are losing creativity, they just stick on what works and not taking any risk.

[badz149]

Ubisoft is the prime example

[Gaming4Life1981]

Sony might as well buy square enix because all their games are timed exclusives anyway. O thinl that would be a good buy for them more than any other company.

[Rainbowcookie]

Nintendo 😁

[Whitey2k]

I think capcom will be a megaton bomb aswell since u get street fighter , Resident evil, and monster hunter u also have devil may cry let alone megaman aswell that and ubisoft aswell for splinter cell farcry etc

[ColdSin]

They will end up buying Capcom I think. They have a mix of Japanese and Western games. They are also not that costly.

[Whitey2k]

Considering they have dead rising aswell which is normally exclusive to Microsoft. Even if sony did get that they could co exist with nintendo and Microsoft on monster hunter and dead rising exchange for fallout or he other one

[Sharingan_no_Kakashi]

They should aquire square enix. Their net worth is only 1.2billion. And they have a great working relationship. They keep getting exclusives from them too.

[Good-Smurf]

Right now it's tied for Square and Konami up for grabs.
But still seeing all those great old and new stuff from Konami and Hudson Soft they will get access to is tantalizing to say the least.

[thornh]

They could probably acquire both for less than MS paid for Zenimax and do much more with them, quality wise, then MS will do with Zenimax studios.

[Kados]

Take Two, Squeenix, or Konami would be comparable, but i'm not sure if Sony could afford any of them, or if they are even available to be bought out.

[attilayavuzer]

Square and Konami are comparable in terms of value, but T2 is in a totally different league. Their revenue is about 15x the other two.

[Kados]

Didnd't necessarily mean comparable in regards to monetary value, more just in the amount of hype it would bring for gamers. The big takeaway from Zenimax is Elder Scrolls and Fallout, i think alot of gamers would agree having Final Fantasy or Metal Gear fully PS exclusive would mostly balance it out. Same for GTA.

[SinisterKieran]

i'd love for them to have another studio but i think insomniac games was their power play. i don't think they could do the level of buy Microsoft just did with bethesda.
you know what i'd love...if they brought the rights to metal gear solid and Kojima remade MGS3 or they brought out the mgs collection exclusive to ps5..but i don't think konami is doing that kinda stuff.

[leahcim]

Totally agree.

[WillyC009]

Or, better yet. Take that money and invest into new studios and new IPs. Instead of just buying up companies. Personally, I would like there to be independent studios around for the foreseeable future.

[Npugz7]

Meh! No thanks!

[Thomaticus]

I feel that Sony missed out on Ninja Theory. .

[badz149]

if you think about Bleeding Edge, it kinda looks like Sony dodge a bullet there

[Moquiao]

Would love for Sony to buy Square-Enix or Konami. Wishful thinking, I know... But those two companies have so many brilliant IPs. If they could buy one of those companies it would - in my opinion - compete with Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda.

[kayoss]

SquareEnix would be a megaton purchase for Sony. But that’s unlikely. Lol

[Kaedro]

Sony should buy Square-Enix

[Pricey]

Platinum Games

[ironmonkey]

would be cool, is it necessary hell no sony is doing well over the top already. i hope ms does well with zenimax its gonna be a make or break for that studio. just like old beloved rare.

[mark3214uk]

do we really want tit for tat buying, the consumers lose out in the long run, ms could not make a good studio of there own so they had to buy one, very tacky but what do you expect from a company like Microsoft, it is short term boost for them, but it won't last, they ruin most franchises they own

[thornh]

No, we don't want this to continue. My fear is that it will not be Sony that responds but Microsoft who continues doing this just because their pockets are so deep. Remember the rumors about Warner Brothers Interactive. Who says MS is still not pursuing them? I think if they ever land WB too Sony would be forced to react and then we really have a mess.

[xetiro]

I am living this just for reference, since I see many comments with unrealistic suggestions.

As for September 23, 2020 (src: ycharts.com):

- Microsoft is valued at $1549 Billion (or $1.549 Trillion).
- Sony Corp is valued at $95.5 Billion.
- Nintendo is valued at $67.8 Billion.

- Square-Enix is valued at $7.6 Billion.
- Capcom is valued at $5.9 Billion.
- Sega is valued at $2.9 Billion.

Please notice that a company market value is the total number of a company's outstanding shares multiplied by the current market price of one share, and not necessary the money these companies have on the "bank account" lol

Realistically speaking, I believe Sony immediate step could be trying to buy a studio like Bluepoint games (order of $ millions) as a way of secure more quality to their PlayStation Studios. It makes a lot of sense, since it's another highly talented studio that has been making great quality remakes for Playstation. In fact, I am surprise this didn't happened yet. They should actually do this as a natural acquisition for them and not even as an answer to Microsoft move.

[thornh]

MS had ~136 Billion cash on hand prior to the Zenimax deal and Sony ~25 Billion.

[GamingSinceForever]

Look MS had to make a move in order to close the market gap and the talent gap between themselves and Sony. This does not automatically mean that Sony has to respond because to be honest the money game is not one that they can win.

They should stick to their guns and continue to nourish and grow their crop of talented studios. They have proven to build greats, not buy them. Leave that up to MS to close the gap however they may see fit.

[ActualWhiteMan]

Sony can’t afford a large acquisition like Zenimax.

[kingboy]

No need they already have the studio's for that , however I suggest talent recruitment that's the real magic

[mark3214uk]

this^

[System_Call]

It would be good to adquire Konami IPs.

[Petebloodyonion]

Yes From Software would make perfect sense in a perfect world but alas it's not the case.

[LoveSpuds]

I honestly dont think Sony should feel any pressure resulting from the Bethesda acquisition.

Sony still have the most talented stable of developers with proven track records and in my opinion, they still leave MS far behind despite their recent Bethesda purchase.

You dont have to look back very far to find articles commenting on Bethesda's serious issues with quality and problems with making games that sold well. Dont get me wrong, they have picked up some quality studios, but none of them to date have the track record of Naughty Dog, Insomniac or Santa Monica.

[Sayai jin]

Some pekple think it's a game to buy up studios, let alone a publisher. Sony has been signing up aeveral 3rd party games as rime exclusives for the PS5. They have spent at least $750 million for several big and/or new games. Now some people want them to aqcuire a new studio. Sony might be working on other deals. Microsoft maybe as well.

[OptimusDK]

Lol this must be a joke. From software vs Zenimax umbrella. What?

[AlexandreR]

Sony just needs one studio and is Remedy games.

[Braindeadninja]

They need remedy games and bluepoint studios to make Alan wake remake. Then remedy should start making Alan wake 2.

[OptimusDK]

Allan Wake is owned by MS

[StoneColdCrazy]

Here we go😂👍🏻

[Wrex369]

Be honest... The moment sony says "exclusive" from From Software again we'll hear microsoft buying Kadokawa 😂

[TheOtherMoon]

Do we file this article under Sad, Desperate or both?

[Mr_Luke]

They could get CDPR, if they want a counter-hit :P new studios are always welcomed but i think Sony can continue like it is now. But i repeat, new studios are a great thing, for any company.

[FlyGuyHung]

Lol I thought Sony's first party studios are so strong they dont have anything to worry about according to twitter after the Bethesda acquisition.
Suddenly there is a flood of articles about what studio Sony needs to buy. Lmfao

MS really shook some to the core.

[sourOG]

They need to buy WB games.

[stonecold3]

dont mind if sony get blue point or square enix capcom or konami

[greywolf39]

I think that Sony is going for more studios than one. I also think that there is something going on with Rockstar. Those talks are def not put of nowhere. There has to be something, and I think we will see Rockstar under Playstation Studio umbrella

[staticall]

«Sony Can Make a Huge Splash for PS5 Fans By Acquiring One Studio»
Xbox Game Studios /s

Just kidding, but imagine a flood of articles who would try to downplay that.

[OptimusDK]

They need to start printing money for the next many years. This is just to stupid.

[RabbitFly]

Nah. If such a purchase was on the table and it made sense for them sure. But whats up with this need to buy something in response. This is not some dumb neighbor fight about having the best looking lawn.

Sony is still way ahead when it comes to ciltivating their first party studios. This purchase by Microsoft has the potential to make a big difference for them, but potential is only that, potential. Sony doesnt need to buy something Just to come of as strong.

Business decisions arent made like that. People need to relax more. Let the chips fall, lets see how this turns out before claiming they have the answer. The answer ro what?

[Da12RespectA]

Sony don't have to do anything honestly

[Artemidorus]

Microsoft has more money than Sony many forget Sony isn't doing well outside of Playstation.

[OG_TK_Cole]

I have a question for some of you guys. Do any of you actually do "Research" and look into the "Finances" of some of the Companies you support?? Guys I have no horse in this race, but if you go and do your Research, you will see that SONY will not be purchasing any Parent Companies right now.

I honestly wish you guys knew how Corporate America worked. A lot these comments tells those of us who know better you honestly dont know what your talking about.

[GoodGuy09]

Buy sega and/or capcom. Just my wishful thinking lol.

[ssj27]

Ubisoft is economically adorable it will give you 2 or 3 studios with experience of western rpg. 3 huge studio wth exercise of 3rd person shooters. 2 huge estudios with experience of amazing fps. Dance dance. A beloved space ip beyond good an evil. Arcade rscer abd extream sport games studios. Huge name ips talented studios that need the order and balance sony got because ubisoft lovee rushing ips and milking them which hurt themselves.

Also buy kojima bluepoint returnal studios. Amber labs.

Buy th right to create a fantasy rpg in the games of the thrones universe and. See how xbox spend 100billion on rockstar to stay alive lol

[FPS_D3TH]

Honestly they’re fine as is. People forget how much of a shitty developer bethesda studios has become over the years and their poor decisions on live service, microtransactions and turning hobby modding into profits of their own. Just announce a new silent hill game lol

[ShadowWolf712]

Not to shoot the premise in the foot, but I honestly couldn't care less about FromSoft so... -shrug-

I can think of many better uses for that cash.

[RangerWalk267]

Well... One major thing stands in their way. And that is capital (cash). If it wasn't for the PlayStation division, Sony would have filed bankruptcy years ago.

[DefaultComment]

Doubt it, Sony doesn't have those billion dollars in their pockets at least not for that, considering that Sony is a conglomerate and even though the plastation division has been fairly successful, buying a new studio is big money unless they manage to buy a financial broke studio.besides Sony already bought Insomniac no long ago.

[Rhythmattic]

Why? Sony has nothing to prove. They've proven their worth to "Console" gamers...
As for MS, they've left the console space, but have a console service which is now called Xbox.....Which is no longer the console, but is.... But isn't.
Im all for GP, Hopefully I can play the games on Linux (its getting closer) and erase that damn Win Partition......

[FlavorLav01]

Several studios would make a nice splash and fitting additions to Sony’s 1st party lineup...Remedy, Konami, FromSoft, Capcom, THQNordic, BluePoint, or Sega just to name a few. Depends what Sony can afford to come out of pocket for. As exciting as acquisitions are, I think Sony is more in the business of building amazing teams over time. They’ve got an eye for talent and have done well to get their gaming division where it stands. Adding any other Big name teams or publishers behind them would be daunting for my wallet.

[frostypants]

I don't get the appeal to gamers of buying large established studios. It only really serves as a thumb in the eye for fanboy wars. I prefer Sony's tactic of developing a close relationship with smaller studios from the ground up, e.g. Naughty Dog and Guerrilla Games.

[jairusmonillas]

Sony doesn't need to respond to such thing, Bugthesda has been in a bad state lately. Fallout 76 was literally a big fat joke and their games are buggy as hell.

If gamepass doesn't go off even with Bethesda then Team Xbox will have a huge problem with that 7.5billion paperweight.

[SpinalRemains138]

FromSoft rules.

Love the idea.

[Christopher]

I don't know why people are cheering on there being less third-party developers. I mean, it's business, but the better goal for everyone is to make sure games go to where they've always gone when you can.

[sourOG]

It could be a good thing although it has yet to be seen. Studios working together under one banner has proven benefits. Sony set the standard on this. Every title broke the record of the last game. Can MS mirror the one banner approach? We’ll see. They are trying though and people are hoping for the best.

[zoks310]

Yeah, Sony trying to get FS from its parent company worth over $190 billion..... Not gonna happen.

[ssj27]

They could still be sold 1b for from software will be a good deal. And it will pay itself in about 5 to 10 years. Specifically if they build about 3 teams to work on few projects at the time. Their games have been the best when is on collaboration with japon studio. But definitely not necessarily this way more gamers get to enjoy their games and still hopefully sony get a exclusive collaboration from them every 1 generation. Perhaps bloodborne 2 nextgen will be amazing.

[Knightofelemia]

Depends who the studio is and what that studio has to offer to the Playstation brand. Sony isn't going to cough up 7.5 billion for just any studio unless they see the value and a return investment in that said studio like Insomniac is a great investment for Sony.

[RCslayer]

CD Red Project...Enough said.

[kryteris]

they have two games that are very similar. bad idea.

[Mr_Writer85]

Sony should buy Konami, or Square Enix (or both)

Would reinforce their Japanese development and give them a load of great and well loved IPs.

It wont happen though.

[Kran]

Somehow... I knew they would say FromSoft as I said this exact thing in a Facebook group the other day

[turnryn]

ok

[Gamer_1987]

Sony don't have that kind of money. Yes PS is a big plus for Sony but other things are not. They already have great studios

[Hedstrom]

I think they allready have bought a studio or two. Its just not announced!

[mastershredder]

This crap is just as bad as political tug ‘o war.

It makes me want to take a break from all brands involved.

[Greatball1987]

If it's possible, and I don't know, acquiring Konami would be a good one. Lots of IP strongly associated with Sony systems that Konami are just ignoring or driving into the ground.

[leejohnson222]

Why does PlayStation need to do this?

[Neonridr]

They would have to negotiate purchasing rights from the parent company, the Kadokawa Corporation.

[DivineHand125]

I don't think Sony needs to buy any studios at this time as this could turn into a dangerous game of monopoly. Let's be honest guys, we all saw the last ps5 show case, if Microsoft did not respond with something big like aquairing Zenimax and Bathesda for 7.5B, the Xbox would have been forgotten about after the initial launch. The magnitude of this announcement also set a precedent as I have never heard of a platform holder aquairing a publisher and it's holding company.

What I think would be massive though is if one of these companies can strike a deal with EA or Take two interactive to exclude Microtransactions from their games and rebalance that game for their platform.