Twenty years ago, ahead of the launch of the original Xbox, Microsoft had tried to do something that would have changed gaming completely for the generations to come. The company had pitched a buyout to Nintendo and the Japanese giant’s reply involved an hour or so of laughing at the offer. A new report that recounts the creation of the first Xbox console has revealed this interesting fact now.
It recounts that Microsoft had tried to use its monetary heft in order to grab everything from Xbox exclusive games to even EA, and Square Enix. In fact, EA was the first big fish on Microsoft’s radar, but its offer was met with a “no thanks,” according to then head of business development, Bob McBreen. This is when Microsoft turned its attention to Nintendo.
The director of the Xbox console’s third-party relations, Kevin Bachus says, “Steve [Ballmer, ex-Microsoft CEO] made us go meet with Nintendo to see if they would consider being acquired.” He adds, “They just laughed their a***s off. Like, imagine an hour of somebody just laughing at you. That was kind of how that meeting went.”
When Square Enix was approached by Microsoft, the studio had found the asking price to be too low. According to the Bloomberg report, Mortal Kombat developer Midway was approached as well, but the company was still attached to its business with PlayStation. That said, not all of Microsoft’s acquisition attempts were a failure, as the Xbox maker finally managed to snag Bungie, leading to Halo becoming one of its most successful long-running franchises.
Echoes of the same business model can be spotted in current times as well. Microsoft recently acquired Zenimax Media, which owns Bethesda Softworks, id Software, Arkane Studios, and a few other big studios.