Game Informer confirms the MS and Bungie SPLIT..... OH BOY

This is still not a confirmation

and besides, bungie is owend wholey by MS, which means bungie sharholders, are MS... now its possible for former, bungie shareholders or anyone else to buy bungie from MS, but why would MS sell, esp now with halo only just coming out, and future halo games on the far horizon

I would question if MS was doing the right thing. I am not sure I am seeing the same vision they are. They should not lose Bungie. I would indeed Think about jumping ship should they lose the one developer that holds my allegiance to the 360. akuma303x

Who says they are losing them? Did you miss the part where they still own Halo and they would still have publishing rights to all future Bungie games? Sounds like they set their terms to make sure they were not losing anything of real value. Nothing really changes, except for ownership

[QUOTE="akuma303x"]I would question if MS was doing the right thing. I am not sure I am seeing the same vision they are. They should not lose Bungie. I would indeed Think about jumping ship should they lose the one developer that holds my allegiance to the 360. thinicer

Who says they are losing them? Did you miss the part where they still own Halo and they would still have publishing rights to all future Bungie games? Sounds like they set their terms to make sure they were not losing anything of real value. Nothing really changes, except for ownership

They pretty much lose creative control in exchange of not having to pay for the overhead costs or eventually bail Bungie in case something goes wrong (say, they make a huge flop or something, unlikely as it is).

They pretty much lose creative control in exchange of not having to pay for the overhead costs or eventually bail Bungie in case something goes wrong (say, they make a huge flop or something, unlikely as it is).

Grive

Fine by me. I think Microsoft owns and controls plenty. It would definitely be a shock if they actually sold something after acquiring it.

First Fasa then Bizare Creations and now Bungie.....MS is getting owned left right up and down lol future of 360 first party titles worries me :( mingo123

Bizzare was not owned by MS, and was making other games for other systems. I first became aware of Bizzare on Dreamcast.

Fine by me. I think Microsoft owns and controls plenty. It would definitely be a shock if they actually sold something after acquiring it.

thinicer

Yeah, I don't feel too bad about it, either. I've always enjoyed Bungie's games, even that Oni bad-apple :P

What does surprise me is if it came to pass. I'd be baffled that MS wouldn't agree to let Bungie roam as free as they want, especially considering the studio already has considerable more liberties than other internal MS studios...

what happened M$, i thought you are rich and can buy everything in the world :lol:

Game13a13y

They can. Doesn't mean they want everyone.

In effect, what MS bought was the game Halo.

Sometimes when you buy a studio, you are buying that studios technology. But Bungie doesn't make middleware or anything. ANd MS still owns the Halo franchise. So they could sell Bungie (especially if they retain the rights that are being mentioned).

[QUOTE="thinicer"]

Fine by me. I think Microsoft owns and controls plenty. It would definitely be a shock if they actually sold something after acquiring it.

Grive

Yeah, I don't feel too bad about it, either. I've always enjoyed Bungie's games, even that Oni bad-apple :P

What does surprise me is that it came to pass. I'm baffled that MS wouldn't agree to let Bungie roam as free as they want, especially considering the studio already has considerable more liberties than other internal MS studios...

let's try to read the entire article before you make any related topics about it ehgnr112

Seriously. In the first two sentences, the onlyl thing they confirm that this is only a rumor. Next bit cites an unnamed, therefore unconfirmed source.

Let's not jump the gun until there's a press release.

Yeah, I don't feel too bad about it, either. I've always enjoyed Bungie's games, even that Oni bad-apple :P

What does surprise me is that it came to pass. I'm baffled that MS wouldn't agree to let Bungie roam as free as they want, especially considering the studio already has considerable more liberties than other internal MS studios...

Grive

Well because Microsoft owns Bungie, they have direct say on all matters regarding video game development, planning, ideas, vision, etc. Bungie may have other ideas on the table for games, but Microsoft may be at odds with those ideas because they may determine them to not have the potential to be big money-makers and would rather Bungie, instead, use their time, resources and energy on making another Halo game because it's a sure thing. It's a safe investment. A new IP is not - there is risk involved, a risk that could have the potential to be an expensive loss for Microsoft.

It's all speculation of course, but perhaps Bungie was alll Halo'd out and many employees were possibly thinking, or threatening, about leaving and starting their own separate development studio.

When faced with this situation, Microsoft has three options on the table:

1) Allow Bungie whatever creative freedom they want and just incur any risk involved with the development of new games not named Halo

2) Refuse creative freedom to Bungie and have all that development talent jump ship thereby leaving Microsoft with a defunct game company that is now rudderless

3) Sell its interests in Bungie, except for Halo, and retain all publishing rights of any future games Bungie releases in the future. This would enable them to still have access to that talent in Bungie and would also still ensure Bungie is making exclusive games to Microsoft platforms.

When you think of it in this way, it's entirely possible that they sold Bungie in order to save it in a wierd way.

"For an unstated, but significant amount of money, Bungie shareholders bought the studio name back from Microsoft. jedigemini

Hmm, Bungie shareholders bought it back? Can anyone link what Bungie is traded under on the market? Oh, that's right, it's owned by Microsoft and doesn't have any tradeable shares. So how are they going to buy shares of Bungie if none exist?

[QUOTE="Grive"]

Yeah, I don't feel too bad about it, either. I've always enjoyed Bungie's games, even that Oni bad-apple :P

What does surprise me is that it came to pass. I'm baffled that MS wouldn't agree to let Bungie roam as free as they want, especially considering the studio already has considerable more liberties than other internal MS studios...

thinicer

Well because Microsoft owns Bungie, they have direct say on all matters regarding video game development, planning, ideas, vision, etc. Bungie may have other ideas on the table for games, but Microsoft may be at odds with those ideas because they may determine them to not have the potential to be big money-makers and would rather Bungie, instead, use their time, resources and energy on making another Halo game because it's a sure thing. It's a safe investment. A new IP is not - there is risk involved, a risk that could have the potential to be an expensive loss for Microsoft.

It's all speculation of course, but perhaps Bungie was alll Halo'd out and many employees were possibly thinking, or threatening, about leaving and starting their own separate development studio.

When faced with this situation, Microsoft has three options on the table:

1) Allow Bungie whatever creative freedom they want and just incur any risk involved with the development of new games not named Halo

2) Refuse creative freedom to Bungie and have all that development talent jump ship thereby leaving Microsoft with a defunct game company that is now rudderless

3) Sell its interests in Bungie, except for Halo, and retain all publishing rights of any future games Bungie releases in the future. This would enable them to still have access to that talent in Bungie and would also still ensure Bungie is making exclusive games to Microsoft platforms.

When you think of it in this way, it's entirely possible that they sold Bungie in order to save it in a wierd way.

[QUOTE="jedigemini"]

"For an unstated, but significant amount of money, Bungie shareholders bought the studio name back from Microsoft. myke2010

Hmm, Bungie shareholders bought it back? Can anyone link what Bungie is traded under on the market? Oh, that's right, it's owned by Microsoft and doesn't have any tradeable shares. So how are they going to buy shares of Bungie if none exist?

But selling them results in the same situation as #1, only MS now has absolutely no control over Bungie's operations. It makes no sense.PBSnipes

Nope, it's not the same as #1 because Microsoft is not assuming all of the risk if a new IP is an expensive flop. They are not assuming it because they are no longer the owners. They may lose something in the publishing costs, but it's Microsoft's choice on how much they want to promote and market the game before distribution.

[QUOTE="myke2010"][QUOTE="jedigemini"]

"For an unstated, but significant amount of money, Bungie shareholders bought the studio name back from Microsoft. PBSnipes

Hmm, Bungie shareholders bought it back? Can anyone link what Bungie is traded under on the market? Oh, that's right, it's owned by Microsoft and doesn't have any tradeable shares. So how are they going to buy shares of Bungie if none exist?

Even so, this rumor doesn't make a lot of sense. Bungie doesn't gain all that much out of it and MS loses nothing. That's a lot of money to change hands over something so little. If Bungie heads truly want creative freedom it would be cheaper to leave and start a new company from scratch.

Hmm, Bungie shareholders bought it back? Can anyone link what Bungie is traded under on the market? Oh, that's right, it's owned by Microsoft and doesn't have any tradeable shares. So how are they going to buy shares of Bungie if none exist?

myke2010

Something does not need to be publicly traded on the NYSE to have shares. Bungie was originally a company, aka a corporation, and all corporations have shares (interests) that determine ownership of the company. A corporation can be a large multinational one like Sony and Microsoft, or it can be a small one that exists soley in a folder of somebody's filing cabinet.

Microsoft owns all the shares in Bungie, and it is their choice if they want to sell them off to another party.

anyone that thinks this is some sign of the 360 being in decline is seriously delusional.

this is MS repaying studios that they've bought and rekindled from the brink of death by selling controlling shares back to said company. end of story.

this isn't some mass exodus of MS owned studios from the flock, this is people acting like people should... i know it seems strange for a corporation, but it's true if you look at the cold hard facts, esp with the bungie deal.

[QUOTE="thinicer"][QUOTE="Grive"]

Yeah, I don't feel too bad about it, either. I've always enjoyed Bungie's games, even that Oni bad-apple :P

What does surprise me is that it came to pass. I'm baffled that MS wouldn't agree to let Bungie roam as free as they want, especially considering the studio already has considerable more liberties than other internal MS studios...

PBSnipes

Well because Microsoft owns Bungie, they have direct say on all matters regarding video game development, planning, ideas, vision, etc. Bungie may have other ideas on the table for games, but Microsoft may be at odds with those ideas because they may determine them to not have the potential to be big money-makers and would rather Bungie, instead, use their time, resources and energy on making another Halo game because it's a sure thing. It's a safe investment. A new IP is not - there is risk involved, a risk that could have the potential to be an expensive loss for Microsoft.

It's all speculation of course, but perhaps Bungie was alll Halo'd out and many employees were possibly thinking, or threatening, about leaving and starting their own separate development studio.

When faced with this situation, Microsoft has three options on the table:

1) Allow Bungie whatever creative freedom they want and just incur any risk involved with the development of new games not named Halo

2) Refuse creative freedom to Bungie and have all that development talent jump ship thereby leaving Microsoft with a defunct game company that is now rudderless

3) Sell its interests in Bungie, except for Halo, and retain all publishing rights of any future games Bungie releases in the future. This would enable them to still have access to that talent in Bungie and would also still ensure Bungie is making exclusive games to Microsoft platforms.

When you think of it in this way, it's entirely possible that they sold Bungie in order to save it in a wierd way.

[QUOTE="PBSnipes"]But selling them results in the same situation as #1, only MS now has absolutely no control over Bungie's operations. It makes no sense.thinicer

Nope, it's not the same as #1 because Microsoft is not assuming all of the risk if a new IP is an expensive flop. They are not assuming it because they are no longer the owners. They may lose something in the publishing costs, but it's Microsoft's choice on how much they want to promote and market the game before distribution.

[QUOTE="myke2010"]

Hmm, Bungie shareholders bought it back? Can anyone link what Bungie is traded under on the market? Oh, that's right, it's owned by Microsoft and doesn't have any tradeable shares. So how are they going to buy shares of Bungie if none exist?

thinicer

Something does not need to be publicly traded on the NYSE to have shares. Bungie was originally a company, aka a corporation, and all corporations have shares (interests) that determine ownership of the company. A corporation can be a large multinational one like Sony and Microsoft, or it can be a small one that exists soley in a folder of somebody's filing cabinet.

Microsoft owns all the shares in Bungie, and it is their choice if they want to sell them off to another party.

True enough, guess I'm tired and not thinking it through all the way. The rumor still makes no sense to me. For what Bungie is worth, I can't see how it would be worth buying back the name. Why not break off into a completely new studio as past bungie devs have done? In any case, what do I expect, it's an internet rumor and has to run it's course.

Even so, this rumor doesn't make a lot of sense. Bungie doesn't gain all that much out of it and MS loses nothing. That's a lot of money to change hands over something so little. If Bungie heads truly want creative freedom it would be cheaper to leave and start a new company from scratch.

myke2010

Do you know how much the shares would be sold back for? Keep in mind that the transfer of ownership does not include Halo, and Microsoft retains publishing rights. Therefore the value of the shares would be significantly less than they would otherwise be if it did include the Halo IP and freedom to publish with whomever they wish.

I think that Microsoft would retain some ownership of Bungie, but the end result is that Bungie has more creative control and can pursue other projects. If one of those projects looks promising, Microsoft will move in and be the sole publisher. If a project does not look very promising, then Microsoft will not offer to publish and Bungie can choose another publisher and release a game on multiple platforms.

[QUOTE="thinicer"]

[QUOTE="PBSnipes"]But selling them results in the same situation as #1, only MS now has absolutely no control over Bungie's operations. It makes no sense.PBSnipes

Nope, it's not the same as #1 because Microsoft is not assuming all of the risk if a new IP is an expensive flop. They are not assuming it because they are no longer the owners. They may lose something in the publishing costs, but it's Microsoft's choice on how much they want to promote and market the game before distribution.

Maybe, maybe not. Maybe Bungie is just tired of working for Microsoft. I can totally understand why.

Does this mean we'll be seeing Master Chief in the next SSB? :P0rin

that would be kinda funny, but no, MS owns all rights to halo, but hey they could spilt a deal to allow1 appearance, providing nintendo has the umm...........pockets, if you know what i mean.

good, means we can get sequels ot Myth and maybe start up the Marathon franchise again....rocktimusprime

You sir, have the best sig ever. OK, maybe not the best, but I like what you did there. Classic stuff!

good, means we can get sequels ot Myth and maybe start up the Marathon franchise again....rocktimusprime

another marathon?!, OMG your saying theres another MARATHON??!!!, i need to go update my BLOGG!!!!!!!= confirmation, next gen marathon in the works!!!!!!!!!!......OMG!!!!.....

see what i did there? took a statment out of context, expanded upon it without any relevent data and turned it into a rumor, sound familiar??......... another marathon would be hell though.

[QUOTE="rocktimusprime"]good, means we can get sequels ot Myth and maybe start up the Marathon franchise again....TBoogy

You sir, have the best sig ever. OK, maybe not the best, but I like what you did there. Classic stuff!

yeah i got sick of those pansies who have the You can not own me because I am a cry baby sig

[QUOTE="TBoogy"]

[QUOTE="rocktimusprime"]good, means we can get sequels ot Myth and maybe start up the Marathon franchise again....rocktimusprime

You sir, have the best sig ever. OK, maybe not the best, but I like what you did there. Classic stuff!

yeah i got sick of those pansies who have the You can not own me because I am a cry baby sig

Have any of the people who's sig you are mocking said anything to you?

If this is true MS will be publishing all of Bungies games. How is this any different?TOAO_Cyrus1

If the rumor is true MS won't have any say in what Bungie works on. Which means no Halo 4 from Bungie

[QUOTE="rocktimusprime"][QUOTE="TBoogy"]

[QUOTE="rocktimusprime"]good, means we can get sequels ot Myth and maybe start up the Marathon franchise again....TBoogy

You sir, have the best sig ever. OK, maybe not the best, but I like what you did there. Classic stuff!

yeah i got sick of those pansies who have the You can not own me because I am a cry baby sig

Have any of the people who's sig you are mocking said anything to you?

no thier pansies, theyll never say anything, plus if they really have this so called "logic" they posses, they'd do the logical thing and leave SW. I mean thier sigs say how much they hate SW so much, why not use that logic they are bragging about and leave...

[QUOTE="TOAO_Cyrus1"]If this is true MS will be publishing all of Bungies games. How is this any different?AdrianWerner

If the rumor is true MS won't have any say in what Bungie works on. Which means no Halo 4 from Bungie

This is still not a confirmation

and besides, bungie is owend wholey by MS, which means bungie sharholders, are MS... now its possible for former, bungie shareholders or anyone else to buy bungie from MS, but why would MS sell, esp now with halo only just coming out, and future halo games on the far horizon

Bandit_Haze

Bungie guys could just threaten all to leave if MS doesn't sell the company. TMS would be left just with a hollow name. It would be better to let Bungie go and retain the chance to publish all their upcoming games.

Look at Barkin Dog (makers of Homeworld: Cataclysm and Global Ops), Rockstar bought them, but people grew more and more frustrated and eventualy almost everybody left the company (mostly to create Kerberos and Ironclad games), which lead to horrible delay of Bully (they bassicaly had to hire whole staff from scratch)

[QUOTE="AdrianWerner"]

[QUOTE="TOAO_Cyrus1"]If this is true MS will be publishing all of Bungies games. How is this any different?KungfuKitten

If the rumor is true MS won't have any say in what Bungie works on. Which means no Halo 4 from Bungie

Your recap isn't bad, but you forgot one major point (and others here have overlooked it as well).

If Halo 3 is a big success, the money goes to MS. All Bungie gets is their salary, plus maybe a bonus check if MS so desires.

If Bungies next project is a hit, they will get the bulk of the money from it.

The downside therefor for MS is that they will make less money on Bungies games. The upside is that they do no have to fund anything for them that they don't want to.

The downside for Bungie is that if they make a game that flops, they will not get paid and the company could fold. The upside is if it hits, the owners will be rich. Do that and they could start to publish their own games, becoming even richer.

Higher risks for bigger rewards.

Does this mean we'll be seeing Master Chief in the next SSB? :P0rin

that would make me buy it.

[QUOTE="KungfuKitten"][QUOTE="AdrianWerner"]

[QUOTE="TOAO_Cyrus1"]If this is true MS will be publishing all of Bungies games. How is this any different?TBoogy

If the rumor is true MS won't have any say in what Bungie works on. Which means no Halo 4 from Bungie

Your recap isn't bad, but you forgot one major point (and others here have overlooked it as well).

If Halo 3 is a big success, the money goes to MS. All Bungie gets is their salary, plus maybe a bonus check if MS so desires.

If Bungies next project is a hit, they will get the bulk of the money from it.

The downside therefor for MS is that they will make less money on Bungies games. The upside is that they do no have to fund anything for them that they don't want to.

The downside for Bungie is that if they make a game that flops, they will not get paid and the company could fold. The upside is if it hits, the owners will be rich. Do that and they could start to publish their own games, becoming even richer.

Higher risks for bigger rewards.

Hello - is there anyone in here with a brain? MS OWNS Bungie. There are no Bungie shares, only MS shares. Bungie is not a publically traded company - it is part of Microsoft, which is a publically traded company. Only Microsoft can decide what happens to them. You people are so gullible...EscobarPR_basic

I can see a hypothetical situation where this very rumor can be true. Not saying it is true, just saying how it possibly can be. First, all the important people of Bungie can give MS an ultimatum: Sell us all of our shares back, we'll give you Right of First Refusal, etc., or we'll pack up, leave, and form a new studio. So MS can give into their demands, or be left holding an empty studio and IP rights with nobody to develop. Again, it's hypothetical, and entirely plausible ... just not sure how likely.

[QUOTE="TBoogy"][QUOTE="KungfuKitten"][QUOTE="AdrianWerner"]

[QUOTE="TOAO_Cyrus1"]If this is true MS will be publishing all of Bungies games. How is this any different?KungfuKitten

If the rumor is true MS won't have any say in what Bungie works on. Which means no Halo 4 from Bungie

Your recap isn't bad, but you forgot one major point (and others here have overlooked it as well).

If Halo 3 is a big success, the money goes to MS. All Bungie gets is their salary, plus maybe a bonus check if MS so desires.

If Bungies next project is a hit, they will get the bulk of the money from it.

The downside therefor for MS is that they will make less money on Bungies games. The upside is that they do no have to fund anything for them that they don't want to.

The downside for Bungie is that if they make a game that flops, they will not get paid and the company could fold. The upside is if it hits, the owners will be rich. Do that and they could start to publish their own games, becoming even richer.

Higher risks for bigger rewards.

Well, most assume that there was a claus in the contract that they could not leave for a period of time after being bought out, and that it has expired, leaving everyone free to leave.

But also, they obviously wanted to make a deal with MS so that they could use the Bungie name. Obviously, they feel that the name is worth millions (and they are probably right now).

After selling this many games for the last 6 years, being able to put the name Bungie on a title is like free advertising.

Thanks. The mistake was made because i'm learning from the people who made the same. I don't know anything about accepted systems and normalities, i've always been a bit rebellious in terms of thoughts.
So one more thing, why aren't Bungies people just walking away?
I mean, that seems to be the main question throughout this thread, aside from the question whether this is in any way credible information.
Asking because i again, know nothing about business models or jobs in general, but i would think it's weird if they could just walk away like that. Don't they have some form of obligations? Contracts what not?KungfuKitten

There are several reasons. One, Bungie is a known quantity. It is known for creating halo 3, most successful game in NA this year. All systems are in place. You can close on a repurchase Sunday and be developing on Monday. If they walk away, first, paychecks stop.A new entity must be formed. A new entity may take months to develop, it may take a week (corporate bylaws, shareholder agreement if any, etc.). Next capital must be placed in the corporation (this isn't tooo bad, since they had to lay out some capital to buy back shares) but then the capital must be put to use, i.e. finding a place to rent, new computers, new programs, new employees, new third party service providers. Etc. The list goes on and on.

So you can remain Bungie, developers of supermassive Halo 3, and not even take any dev time off, or you can be "former developers of Bungie" months later.

sense
TBoogy and jdang307

Yes! now I can play Halo on my PS3/Wii!!!!!!!

Of course not, but that what everyone else wants, so they are putting hope into this obvious rumor.

Guys, just think a little bit would you.

The Halo universe has transcended Bungie Studios. Ensemble Studios is working on a game. So is Weta Interactive. Microsoft doesn't actually need Bungie for another game with "Halo" in the title. Most consumers won't even think twice if there's a game with "Halo" on the cover with a Spartan, even if it was made by Guerilla Games.

Bungie have proven themselves to Microsoft. They can do almost anything they want. But they've already stated that they are working on a new IP, and that they may also like to make a few games that are within the Halo universe, but are not FPSs.

So this means that Halo isn't overrated anymore right ... ? :|Elektrik-Blu