Latest in wave of big money acquisitions in gaming industry
They say things come in threes, and here's three.
January saw Take-Two Interactive buy out Zynga, Microsoft's blockbuster acquisition of Activison, and January has come to an end with Sony getting in on the action.
Sony is planning to buy out 'Destiny' developer Bungie for $3.6 billion dollars according to reports.
The news broke on Monday evening that Sony is planning to buy out the developer who made their name creating the blockbuster 'Halo' franchise before creating the 'Destiny' series in 2014.
Bungie was once a subsidiary of Sony's direct rivals Microsoft, developing the first three 'Halo' games for the Xbox and Xbox 360 consoles, before splitting away from the tech giant in 2007.
The company signed a 10-year publishing deal with Activision in 2010, which spawned the two hit 'Destiny' games before going independent in 2019.
Similar to the Microsoft buyout of Blizzard meaning that 'Call Of Duty' games will stillremain multi-platform, today's announcement said that 'Destiny' will remain a multi-platform title.
After the deal closes, Bungie will be "an independent subsidiary" of SIE run by a board of directors consisting of current CEO and chairman Pete Parsons and the rest of the studio's current management team.
As part of the deal, Bungie will remain a multiplatform studio, with the option "to self-publish and reach players wherever they choose to play."
"We've had a strong partnership with Bungie since the inception of the Destiny franchise, and I couldn't be more thrilled to officially welcome the studio to the PlayStation family," said SIE president and CEO Jim Ryan.
Bungie is currently maintaining 'Destiny 2' and working on a new original title, as per the original article that broke the story.
"This is an important step in our strategy to expand the reach of PlayStation to a much wider audience. We understand how vital Bungie's community is to the studio and look forward to supporting them as they remain independent and continue to grow."
"Like Bungie, our community is core to PlayStation's DNA, and our shared passion for the gamer and building the best place to play will now evolve even further," he said.
"Our original universes have immense potential and, with SIE's support, we will propel Bungie into becoming a global multimedia entertainment company dedicated to delivering on our creative vision."