When Microsoft bought ZeniMax Media and the publisher Bethesda Softworks, the management of the Redmont giant beat their chests that they did not intend to violate the already existing agreements related to the release of Bethesda games on Sony and Nintendo consoles, and that in no case did they sit down and start solving how players on other platforms pick up games. During the federal court case FTC vs. Microsoft, which happened this summer, however, it turned out that this may not be entirely true. That’s when it became clear that Microsoft has requested an amendment to the agreement between Bethesda and Disney regarding the development of a new game starring Indiana Joneswhich is being prepared by the authors of the newer Wolfensteins from the Swedish studio MachineGames in cooperation with Toddem Howardem z Bethesdy Game Studios.
Source: Bethesda SoftworksMachineGames will expand with a second studio
Although according to the agreement, which was concluded even before the purchase of Bethesda by Microsoft, the new game Indy was supposed to be multi-platform, Microsoft pushed the terms change to boast another exclusivity for its ecosystem (Xbox, PC, Game Pass, cloud). And at Disney they complied. However, we did not learn what exactly was behind this change. Newly, however, the Axios server he offered interview with Seanem Shoptawemthe head of Disney’s gaming division, who finally shed some light on the whole thing, albeit in vague managerial terminology.
“Since Xbox is still one of the bigger gaming markets, we didn’t feel like we were excluding anyone too much. We believed the game would still reach a wide audience, and we believed it made financial and strategic sense at the time.” said Shoptaw. In other words, at Disney, which also includes Lucasfilm, which is directly in charge of the Indiana Jones brand, they believed that a multi-platform release was not necessary for the success and sufficient reach of the upcoming Indy game.
This is an interesting finding especially in the context of the recent revelation of Arkane Studios’ Marvel’s Blade project. Both Indiana Jones and Blade are games to be published by Bethesda Softworks. A like Lucasfilm, Marvel is owned by Disney. Nevertheless, in recent days we have already heard from several places that in the case of Blade, Disney insisted on a multi-platform release, while in Indy, none of the parties involved had a problem with exclusivity for PC and Xbox. And although this information has not yet been confirmed, we fear that it is just that another indication that, in the eyes of Disney, Indiana Jones as a brand is simply not that important like Star Wars, which is also managed by Lucasfilm, or anything from Marvel.
Speaking of Star Wars, Sean Shoptaw also bit the cursed Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic – Remake from Aspyr and Saber Interactive, with the growing belief that we simply will never see it. “I don’t have much to say about this for some probably obvious reasons, but of course KOTOR is an incredibly popular game that we’re extremely proud of, and we think there’s still a lot of demand for it. That’s all for me.” So we’re none the wiser, but looks like no one wants to break the stick over Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic just yet. Does this mean a remake is still in the works? Won’t the Lucasfilm Games division, which oversees all game projects using Lucasfilm brands (including the upcoming Indiana Jones), try again, differently and with someone else? We probably won’t find out that soon. Those who still believe that a remake will see the light of day, however, can take the latest statement as a tiny glimmer of hope.
2023-12-12 15:16:00
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