The Wall Street Journal and PC Gamer are reporting that Microsoft is currently in talks to purchase Minecraft developer Mojang for at least $2 billion dollars.
The report is particularly extraordinary given Minecraft creator and Mojang founder Markus “Notch” Persson’s notorious commitment to independence, exemplified by his decision to pull the plug on the development of an Oculus Rift version of Minecraft when Oculus VR was acquired by Facebook. But even more to the point is the question of how this acquisition could possibly benefit Microsoft. Minecraft is hugely popular but it’s also hugely cross-platform the PlayStation 4 version launched less than a week ago, and the PS Vita edition is scheduled for November. Mojang’s other game, the collectible card-based Scrolls, has not been as popular as Minecraft
While these reports haven’t been confirmed as of yet, it’s likely that we’ll be hearing more about the topic in the near future from one of the parties involved. Assuming the rumors are indeed true, bringing on Minecraft as a first party title would greatly boost Microsoft’s game development catalog. Released in 2013, Minecraft is the 24th best selling game on the Xbox 360. Sales of Minecraft on PC, Playstation 3, Playstation 4, PS Vita, iOS, and Android are considerable as well.
Read the entire story at http://www.pcgamer.com/2014/09/10/microsoft-reportedly-in-talks-to-buy-minecraft-studio-mojang/
