Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) scores another acquisition and this time its the popular PC game Minecraft for about $2.5 billion. This could possibly be a big move for the company’s Xbox gaming empire. Microsoft announced the acquisition on Monday and added that the deal won’t be final until the end of the year.
Minecraft offers a big opportunity for Microsoft
The tech giant’s chief executive officer Satya Nadella stated, “Minecraft is more than a great game franchise, It is an open world platform, driven by a vibrant community we care deeply about, and rich with new opportunities for that community and for Microsoft.”
Minecraft initially launched in 2009 as a personal computer game. It is a unique open-world game that allows players to roam around a simple landscape with beaches and forests. Game players can break apart the environment and build new objects. Its like a completely digitalized version of Legos.
The immense popularity of Minecraft
Just in the last five years, Minecraft surged in popularity. It has even topped 100 million downloads. The game has also been available on iOS for almost three years and it’s actually considered the second most popular paid app for iPhone. There are also versions of the game for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. The games are the third best-selling titles last month in the United States.
This game also allows users to build landscapes inspired by popular television shows (like Game of Thrones) and movies (The Hunger Games). Mojang’s (the company behind Minecraft) CEO Carl Manneh claims Microsoft’s recent acquisition will add something to the story. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) added that the game will remain on current platforms even rival platforms.
Minecraft’s creator Markus Persson claimed he would leave the company once the deal is finalized. He thanked Mojang for turning the game into the game it is today and turning it into something big. He added that it belongs to Microsoft now and in a larger sense it belonged to everyone.
