微軟收購動視暴雪震撼社群 業界大談企業發展、玩家腦補跨界合作
微軟昨(18)日斥資鉅額收購動視暴雪,成為僅次於騰訊以及索尼的全球第三大遊戲公司。這枚突如其來的震撼彈無疑震驚各界,包含微軟高層陸續在社群媒體上發表看法。
針對收購,微軟執行長 Satya Nadella 再次強調重視職場文化,承諾會把玩家和創作者們放在第一順位,打造安全、包容且便利的遊戲環境。
Together with @ATVI_AB, we will usher in a new era of gaming that puts players and creators first and makes gaming safe, inclusive, and accessible to all. https://t.co/fF2Ig3gSfx
— Satya Nadella (@satyanadella) January 18, 2022
Xbox 總經理 Aaron Greenberg 也接續表示他對於 Xbox 和微軟所建立起的文化感到自豪,同時還收到許多來自動視暴雪團隊成員的正面鼓勵。
Love this focus from Satya and Phil, proud of the team and culture we have here at Xbox/Microsoft. It’s encouraging to get so many positive messages from folks working inside the Activision Blizzard teams who are so happy about what this means for their future. 💚 https://t.co/MtrxZZh019
— Aaron Greenberg 🙅🏼♂️💚U (@aarongreenberg) January 18, 2022
另一方面,動視暴雪的員工團體「ABK Workers Alliance」強調收購案完成後,仍會努力為職場環境的改善以及員工權利奮鬥,並持續要求動視暴雪執行長 Bobby Kotick 應該要下台負責。
Whatever the leadership structure of the company, we will continue our push to #EndAbuseInGaming, and appreciate the outpouring of support we've experienced in the last year. (6/6)
— ABetterABK 💙 ABK Workers Alliance (@ABetterABK) January 18, 2022
針對 Kotick 的去留,知名獨立遊戲開發人員 Rami Ismail 認為醜聞纏身的 Kotick 已不適任。雖然 Kotick 被解雇的機率微乎其微,但一切告一段落,很有可能會自請離職。
What I do think is that unless Kotick leaves before the acquisition completes or he's fired day 1, that will be an actual disgrace for Microsoft. Buying a corporation like this in circumstances like this and not changing anything when you take control is a statement too.
— Rami Ismail (رامي) (@tha_rami) January 18, 2022
除了討論人事異動與職場風氣,Game Pass 以及微軟各平台的遊戲拓展也是關注焦點。根據遊戲市場分析師 Daniel Ahmad 的說法,將重點放在 IP、內容以及人才的成長,是微軟多年下來不斷試圖推動的目標。
A reminder of the approach that Microsoft is taking towards gaming, which is informing its M&A strategy
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) January 18, 2022
As the value of IP, content and talent grows, the Xbox business is placing its bets on ensuring it can increase the value of game pass and reach all players across all devices pic.twitter.com/pDrWKysgzZ
至於 687 億美元的收購天價到底是甚麼樣的一個數字?《彭博社》記者 Jon Erlichman 整理微軟近年的交易案,為大家提供個概念。像是在收購求職社群平台領英公司(Linkedin)時,微軟花了 262 億美元,是動視暴雪之前最龐昂貴的一次收購案,進一步凸顯動視暴雪收購案的規模。
Microsoft’s biggest acquisitions:
— Jon Erlichman (@JonErlichman) January 18, 2022
Activision Blizzard: $68.7 billion
Linkedin: $26.2 billion
Nuance: $19.7 billion
Skype: $8.5 billion
ZeniMax: $7.5 billion
GitHub: $7.5 bilion
Nokia phone unit: $7.2 billion
aQuantive: $6.3 billion
Mojang (Minecraft): $2.5 billion
說到過去收購的案例,《毀滅戰士》開發商 id Software 聯合創辦人 John Carmack 回憶起曾差點被動視買下,最終納入微軟先前收購的 Bethesda 母公司 Zenimax。
Id Software very nearly got acquired by Activision, before winding up with Zenimax. Interesting that both roads would have led to Microsoft in the end. @BobbyKotick was always supportive, and it is quite an achievement to lead a company through that much growth over that long. https://t.co/Yov7kI2eO4
— John Carmack (@ID_AA_Carmack) January 18, 2022
面對微軟來勢洶洶,不少人開始猜想索尼接下來會如何應對。雖然 PlayStation 主機本身似乎不會受到太嚴重的衝擊,但當微軟成功收購動視暴雪,也在無意之間獲得一些過去與 PlayStation 有關的 IP,像是《袋狼大進擊》以及《寶貝龍》系列。
Microsoft now owns some of the most iconic characters of PlayStation and that is wild to me pic.twitter.com/0QqDg4Ak6p
— Ryan B. (@PrestigeIsKey) January 18, 2022
一口氣囊括眾多 IP,玩家與遊戲圈內人士紛紛腦補「跨界合作」機會。《爐石戰記》設計師就提議將《最後一戰》系列招牌主角「士官長」加入《爐石戰記》。
WAIT CAN WE PUT MASTER CHIEF IN BATTLEGROUNDS NOW?!
— Cora 💙 (@Songbird_HS) January 18, 2022
網友也改圖讓經典的迴紋針小幫手踏進《鬥陣特攻》的遊戲世界。
Overwatch after Microsoft acquries Activision Blizzard pic.twitter.com/SodkEHu7bn
— Winny Bojangles (@WinnyBojangleTV) January 18, 2022
最後,有企業認為這場收購案很有可能讓微軟有機會積極推動 NTF 和加密貨幣等區塊鏈技術,讓 Play-to-Earn 的模式更快速發展。
Activision Blizzard sold for $70b today and the community is going to see $0 from this
— GREG ISENBERG (@gregisenberg) January 18, 2022
Play-to-earn couldn't come sooner.
參考原文:PC Gamer