Todd Howard Interview on Microsoft Acquisition

Back in September, Microsoft acquired ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda, Arkane and a few other, less RPG-focused, studios. And now that the dust surrounding that acquisition has settled, Bethesda Game Studios’ director Todd Howard had a chat with GamesIndustry.biz, discussing his studio’s future, cloud-based gaming, and how Microsoft’s Game Pass service can help revive such acclaimed but not top-selling franchises like Prey and Dishonored.

Here are a few paragraphs to get you started:

“I don’t know that it portends some other big consolidation. In other industries, that happens from time to time,” he says. “All of the games I’ve done we’ve partnered with Microsoft in some way. So as we come to Starfield and Elder Scrolls 6, I guess this is partnering in a bigger way.”

Compared to Microsoft’s numerous other acquisitions over the last few years, Bethesda still holds a degree of autonomy. At the time, Bethesda’s Pete Hines said the company will still be publishing its own games — a stark contrast to Double Fine Productions, which, according to Gang Beasts developer Boneloaf, is winding down its own publishing operations now it’s part of Xbox Game Studios.

This perhaps explains what Howard means when he tells us Bethesda is “giving up very little,” adding: “[Microsoft is] very creator-driven, we’re still going to get to be who we are. We’re a subsidiary, but we’re still running our games and pushing everything the way that we have.

“We felt very strongly about their view of access; games for everybody that we can bring to anybody regardless of where they are, what devices they’re playing on. We’re very, very passionate about that, and at the end of the day we’re convinced we’ll make better products and get them to more people easily by being part of Xbox as opposed to being just a third party.”