Microsoft Gaming boss Phil Spencer is considering taking over Nintendo, according to leaked emails as part of the US Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) investigation into Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
In these “emails” he exchanged with two Microsoft marketing executives in August 2020, as detailed in The Verge, Spencer agrees with one of his interlocutors that Nintendo is “THE biggest asset” to rely on for the technology company stands.
“I have had numerous discussions with Nintendo’s LT about closer collaboration and believe that if any American company had a chance with Nintendo, we would probably be in the best position,” the executive writes.
The good economic situation of Nintendo has not favored Spencer’s plans, which he does not ignore and which he sees as a long-term challenge in which the acquisition of shares in the Japanese company comes into play in order to create “opportunities” for a possible merger .
UNANNOUNCED GAMES FROM ZENIMAX MEDIA
The documents leaked by the FTC also reveal new, unannounced games being worked on by ZeniMax Media Studios (Bethesda and id Software), owned by Microsoft since 2020, as also reported in The Verge.
These titles include a remaster of The Oblivion, originally planned for fiscal 2022; a new Doom game and content (fiscal 2023 and 2024), the remastering of Fallout 3, the sequel to Ghostwire: Tokyo and Dishonored 3, all three for fiscal 2024.
Other games are also included, such as Indiana Jones, which Bethesda announced in early 2021 and was scheduled for fiscal 2022; Project Kestre and an expansion for fiscal years 2023 and 2024, respectively; Project Platinum and another unnamed game (mentioned as a licensed IP game), no data.
This information comes from a presentation made by Microsoft prior to its acquisition of ZeniMax Media, which mentions the potential purchase that may have influenced the aforementioned studios’ plans with these titles.
The documents leaked by the FTC also include plans for Microsoft’s gaming devices through 2030, with an update to the current Xbox Series X in digital-only format and a next-gen console for hybrid gaming.
