A major bidding war appears imminent.
What you need to know
- AT&T was previously reported to be interested in selling off the WB Games division.
- Activision, Electronic Arts and Take-Two Interactive were all reportedly interested in making a purchase.
- Now, Microsoft appears to also be interested in bidding on the division.
- WB Games includes Rocksteady, Monolith, NetherRealm and several other studios.
A few weeks ago, we shared the news that AT&T was the Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment division. This division includes studios like Rocksteady, NetherRealm, Monolith and others, as well as some classic gaming properties such as Mortal Kombat. AT&T was reportedly seeking a price somewhere between $2 billion and $4 billion, with Take-Two Interactive, Electronic Arts and Activision all interested in making a bid.
Now, it appears that there's another big company considering bidding for the acquisition. According to a new report from , Microsoft is also interested in bidding on Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Microsoft has acquired several new game development studios over the last two years, including Double Fine Productions, Playground Games, Ninja Theory and others as a part of growing Xbox Game Studios.
Regardless of who (if anyone) ends up making this purchase, it means a dramatic shift for the gaming industry and the loss of a major publisher. It's not the only rumored big purchase around though, as PlayStation parent company Sony is reportedly interested in , who own Warframe developed Digital Extremes and Gears Tactics developer Splash Damage.