Bethesda Softworks, the publisher of The Elder Scrolls and Fallout video game franchises, has officially been acquired by Xbox producer Microsoft.
Microsoft Gaming Executive Vice President Phil Spencer confirmed that Xbox had officially completed the acquisition of Bethesda’s parent company ZeniMax Media and that it was "an exciting day for Xbox." He also praised the Bethesda team and shared his hopes that the acquisition would help both Xbox and Bethesda thrive, writing, "At every step building toward this moment, I've been inspired and motivated by the creativity, insight, and community-first approach of the talented people at Bethesda. Our goal is to give these teams the best foundation for doing their greatest work and to learn from them as we continue to build Xbox into an inclusive platform for all players."
Spencer went on to confirm that some future Bethesda titles will be exclusive to Microsoft platforms. "This is the next step in building an industry-leading first party studios team, a commitment we have to our Xbox community," he shared. "With the addition of the Bethesda creative teams, gamers should know that Xbox consoles, PC, and Game Pass will be the best place to experience new Bethesda games, including some new titles in the future that will be exclusive to Xbox and PC players." Spencer had previously announced that future Bethesda games could be released on other consoles on "a case-by-case basis" following the initial announcement of the acquisition. More Bethesda games will be available through Xbox Game Pass later in the week.
Spencer also gave his condolences to Bethesda co-founder and CEO Richard A. Altman and shared his dedication to continuing Altman's work with Bethesda. "I will miss the opportunity to work directly with him on the future of our combined teams but I know that his spirit will live on in the shared work we do and motivate us to make this partnership all he envisioned," he wrote.
It's currently unclear if Bethesda's upcoming Indiana Jones video game will be exclusive to Xbox and PC. The company recently shared a teaser for the upcoming action-adventure video game that features Indy's iconic fedora and whip.
Source: Xbox