Microsoft Acquires ZeniMax Media, Parent Company of Bethesda; Holy Shit

Microsoft announced that they’ve acquired ZeniMax Media, the parent company of Bethesda Softworks. The full catalog of studios under the umbrella are Bethesda Softworks, Bethesda Game Studios, id Software, ZeniMax Online Studios, Arkane, MachineGames, Tango Gameworks, Alpha Dog, and Roundhouse Studios.

The studios are made up of 2,300 developers who have worked on some of the best games of this year, including DOOM Eternal. Other titles IPs that the developers hold are The Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Wolfenstein, Dishonored, Prey, Quake, and Starfield.

Microsoft aims to support the studios with their creative endeavors as they prepare to launch their next-generation consoles Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.

It’s unclear as of now how Microsoft will handle this acquisition and if they plan on bringing their games to other consoles. We can expect the game games to release on PC, but these studios have had relationships with the likes of Nintendo recently with the release of several Bethesda titles for the console hybrid.

If anything, this serves as a huge game-changer for those thinking about getting a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X this November. Starting on September 22, fans can pre-order the console at the following times:

• United States (8AM PT): Microsoft Store, Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, Walmart, Target, Sam’s Club, Newegg, and other participating retailers
• Canada (8AM PT): Microsoft Store, Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, EB Games, The Source, and other participating retailers
• UK (8AM BST): Microsoft Store, GAME, Amazon, Dixons, Currys PC World, Argos, John Lewis, Smyths Toys, VERY, AO, Tesco, Simply Game, Shopto and other participating retailers
• Australia (8AM AEST): Microsoft Store, JB Hifi, EB Games, Telstra, Harvey Norman, and other participating retailers
• New Zealand (8AM NZST): Microsoft Store, JB HiFi, EB Games, Spark, and other participating retailers

This organization is something that fans of PlayStation 5 could have hoped for as many of those consoles went to scalpers.

How do you feel about this new acquisition? Let us know in the comments below.