Microsoft has gone on record stating that the company intends to purchase external studios to make Xbox games, and now some cogs may already be in motion. Rumor has it that Microsoft has its eyes on Japanese companies that it wants to acquire.
Why Microsoft Is Targeting Japan
This news comes to us from Bloomberg, which first heard the rumor. It appears that Microsoft is attempting to exploit a flaw in Sony’s armor after Sony moved its attention elsewhere.
For a long time, Microsoft has accommodated the Western market with its games, while Sony focused on the Asian market. For a while, each company defended its home turf from its rival. However, Sony may be abandoning Japan with the PS5.
This would allow Microsoft to get a foot into the Asian market, especially in Sony and Nintendo’s stronghold of Japan.
Analyst Hideki Yasuda said the following:
The Xbox has a chance to make Japan its second-largest market after the U.S. if it takes the right steps for years to come. Sony’s attention is drifting away, and fans have started to notice that.
Why Is Microsoft Buying More Studios?
Microsoft has carved itself a powerful niche in the gaming industry. Neither Nintendo nor Sony gives the raw value-for-money that Microsoft offers its customers.
For example, the Xbox Game Pass has been heralded as the “Netflix of games” due to its giant library. Not only that, but Microsoft is now trying to bring the huge catalog to as many devices as possible.
There’s a problem with Microsoft’s Game Pass model, however. It requires constant content to release on the Xbox Game Pass; else, gamers will tire of it and cancel their subscriptions.
The only way to keep the Xbox Game Pass fresh is to put more games on it. And to ensure more games arrive on the Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft requires direct control over game developer studios to ensure its competitors don’t steal them away for different consoles.
The only question is, which companies does Microsoft have its eyes on? We don’t know for sure, but there’s a good chance it’ll include companies that aren’t currently making PlayStation exclusives.
Microsoft will have an easier time bending the arm of a cross-platform developer over one that has sworn to make games only for the PS4 and upcoming PS5.
Is This Microsoft’s Chance to Take Japan?
With Sony’s gaze turned elsewhere, Microsoft is creeping into the Japanese market with hopes of making a mark in a once-impenetrable market. As for right now, however, we can only speculate on which companies Microsoft wants to pick up.
Microsoft has already begun stuffing its Xbox Game Pass library with tons of content. For instance, it recently purchased Bethesda, the developer behind the Elder Scrolls series.
Image Credit: Mr.Mikla / Shutterstock.com