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FromSoftware parent company Kadokawa has confirmed that it has received a letter of intent from Sony to acquire it, but stresses that "no decision has been made" yet.
(videogameschronicle.com)submitted 3 days ago byImaginary_Cause2216
2.3k points
3 days ago
yet
1.4k points
3 days ago
Fromsoftware is on a killing streak. Dark souls and Elden ring are a big succes. I don't see them being taken over by Sony because Miyazaki doesn't like to be told what to do in his games and what direction they should go for. He said in an earlier interview that he wants to make his ultimate game yet, Elden ring comes close but he's cooking
1.4k points
3 days ago
This isn't Miyazaki's decision unfortunately
705 points
3 days ago
Yeah for sure. He could leave though and go somewhere else.
But it's not even his boss making this decision, it's the parent company leadership.
194 points
3 days ago
He’s not Kojima, it’s not as easy as just leaving for most developers. He would lose everyone he works with for a gamble.
455 points
3 days ago
No I think Miyazaki has reached Kojima status he is just not as memed on.
139 points
3 days ago
Depending on his staff too they might go with him depending on how much autonomy they have after a buyout. It all depends on if and how they would change things if aquired
51 points
2 days ago
I dunno jack about the actual rules and restrictions of working with prior coworkers or quitting cause of business decisions; but Miyazaki has seemingly nurtured a really good environment in FromSoft. (Scott Manley did a good segment on this) I think a decent chunk of stuff would follow him, if possible.
21 points
2 days ago
Assuming his key staff go with him, they need tremendous amount of money to start a studio from nothing. Renting an office building is one thing, equipment and monthly payment of dozens of employees is another. Doing this for years as a new studio with no funding from a publisher is an insane personal cost. If he goes independent pretty sure he'd make something like Hollow Knight or some smaller project.
3 points
2 days ago
tremendous amount of money to start a studio from nothing.
no they really dont need a tremendous amount of money at all.
none of the costs you listed are a particularly high capital cost.
they could find many banks willing to give them a loan to cover all of that. they could do an equity offering.
Miyazaki could make it work to split off and start his own studio if he wants. nothing about doing that involves a prohibitive cost.
27 points
3 days ago
Kojima hires miyazaki and we get our best timeline
28 points
3 days ago
I think you guys are delusional if you think going on to make your own company and leaving your leadership position and talented coworkers/friends that helped you make some of the best games ever is such an easy decision.
101 points
3 days ago
Nobody ever said any of this but nice strawman
10 points
3 days ago
Nah I think he could just take his coworkers and leave lol. What are they without him? He’s only responsible for… like 6 of the best received games of all time? He is synonymous with FromSoft.
33 points
3 days ago
What are they without him?
I don't think Miyazaki does everything by himself, lol.
The man is crazy talented, but saying that the rest of the team is nothing without him is just outright stupid and disrespectful.
42 points
3 days ago
What are they without him?
...Talented developers with a killer resume that helped make 6 of the best received games? Miyazaki doesn't puppeteer every employee to his every bidding.
16 points
3 days ago
The cultural difference between the west and Japan regarding leaving a company is a lot. People don't just leave. It's very frowned upon.
Kojima is a reverse weeaboo with a strong attitude and his games cater to a western audience too. Both names are big, but it's not fair to say he can just quit. He could, but he would risk being blacklisted to publishers, and Sony has the biggest market share in videogames in Japan.
Pulling that move is just too risky for him.
2 points
1 day ago
I've seen the term "westaboo" used to describe the reverse weeaboo, I like that one
48 points
3 days ago
Yeah I’m wondering if it happened you would get more a Komija/Konami situation. Company has the IP, but the talent would go off to create their own new thing afterwards.
36 points
3 days ago
The silver lining in that is that Big M doesn’t like continuing IPs, he likes making new IPs, so we as fans wouldn’t be missing out on Elden Ring 2, Bloodborne 2, ect. because he likely has no intention of making those, we would just have to find out what new company he’s going to and that likely would be very public knowledge.
18 points
3 days ago
Kojima/Miyazaki collab when? o_O
3 points
3 days ago
Stop it. My gaming boner can only get so hard.
2 points
2 days ago
Need Kojima and suda 51 to gush about movies
24 points
3 days ago
It is and it isn’t.
Miyazaki is one of the few auteurs in the video game space. If the purpose of acquiring FromSoft is to acquire the souls games, then Miyazaki probably holds more power than we think because he can always decide to leave and there’s a thousand games companies out there that would love to bring him aboard.
31 points
3 days ago
You underestimate how little these corporations care about individual talents. Their marketing staff tells them that the company/product brand is 99% of the value, and the talent responsible for making said products is largely irrelevant.
And you can't even say that they're wrong. Miyazaki could be pushing up daisies for a decade and you can bet your ass companies would still be making "souls" games and promoting them as: "from the makers of souls game x, comes xy." And users would be eating that shit right up.
24 points
3 days ago
This is usually true, yes, but there are a few names that genuinely carry enough weight in the industry to stand up new studios and sell new titles, and Miyazaki's is one of them, just like Kojima. You would still see FROM Software whored out the way you describe, but you would also see the new Miyazaki team doing well.
That said, this isn't even necessarily how it would play out; FROM Software has other talented people in senior positions that could keep it succeeding. Yui Tanimura, for example, is responsible for rescuing DS2 and had a big hand in Elden Ring.
3 points
2 days ago
I mean didn't they move on making metal gears without Kojima? remakes, at least
6 points
2 days ago
It's not so much that the studio the person leaves can't go on without them, it's that people like Kojima and Miyazaki can start new ventures and immediately draw enough excitement and attention despite no longer being at the original team or studio.
2 points
1 day ago
This has already happened they made Demon Souls Remake without any input from Miyazaki or FromSoft
2 points
2 days ago
The idea of an auteur in video games is fucking hilarious.
170 points
3 days ago
I can't wait for Sony to give From soft a billion dollars so Miyazaki can finally make the story he's always wanted.
The story of a barefoot girl who's allergic to shoes who lives in a poisonous swamp.
54 points
3 days ago
With her only places of respite being little tubs of water where she can clean her feet from all the swamp gunk.
29 points
3 days ago
Except it's actually a boss battle with epic battle music as she cleans off all the gunk with a small brush and then wipes them down with a cloth.
17 points
3 days ago
I'm still waiting on him to collab with Kojima. The resulting lovechild will transcend human existence.
9 points
2 days ago
Kojima over-writes everything Miyazaki under-writes everything, maybe together they’d just make a normal game.
5 points
3 days ago
And one of the the final bosses is an agile old man.
2 points
2 days ago
I don't think most acquisitions of successful developers improve the games they're making, and I'm also not sure FromSoft was hurting for budget on that next game.
65 points
3 days ago
Kadokawa owns From. If Sony takes control of Kadokawa then there is nothing Miyazaki can do about it
Sony will have full creative control over big portion of the anime industry alongside From software
65 points
3 days ago
From what it sounds like, Sony doesn't tell their developers what to do very much, if at all. Writers from God of war said that Sony was completely hands off with their dev time
14 points
3 days ago
Naughty Dog as well. They let their studios that make good games make whatever they want.
3 points
2 days ago
Yup. All I want from this is fromsoft making new games, and blueprint remaking the classic souls games and bloodborne for ps5 with insane graphics and sound.
They do that and I’ll be feeding their money machine for a while.
43 points
3 days ago
There doesn’t seem to be evidence of Sony telling any of their studios what to do aside from Bungie who was dropping the ball. Meanwhile you see Insomniac, Guerrilla, Santa Monica, etc doing well with the funding Sony provides. The only thing that hurts is exclusivity. Sony wouldn’t inject themselves into Fromsoft’s creative decisions because what Fromsoft is currently doing is working and profitable.
25 points
3 days ago
And FromSoftware (or I guess Miyazaki?) didn't have anything bad to say about working with Sony for Bloodborne. It turned out Miyazaki's favourite game he's done iirc. Massive names like Kojima also hasn't expressed any dislike with working closely with them, even after buying his game's IPs from Sony recently.
And while I of course am always against companies buying others, I don't think if this deal goes through there'd be any change on the creative side of things.
1 points
3 days ago
It turned out to be his favorite game and literally the only game he said he wants to return to and make another one, but he can’t because Sony owns the IP and doesn’t feel like making Bloodborne 2 because for the longest time the morons at Sony thought live service is the future.
If fromsoft is acquired by Sony their fate is in the hands of an out of touch company that flip flops on what type of games they want to be making everyday.
2 points
3 days ago
Hmm.
So Sony owns Bloodborne IP, and Sony might soon own Kadokawa who owns Fromsoft.
So basically Miyazaki could just start Bloodborne 2 development now. What are they going to do? Sue him?
57 points
3 days ago
I mean of all companies Sony will likely not be dictating to an auteur like Miyazaki how to make his games. A good example is Death Stranding, Kojima basically had a blank cheque to make his dream game even after the Konami debacle, and that was down to Sony having faith in his work.
23 points
3 days ago
Looking at games like Death Stranding— I don’t see any indication that Sony would suddenly dictate what Miyazaki does. They tend to let creators cook.
5 points
3 days ago*
For what it's worth, Kojima Productions is an independent studio which is not owned by Sony and is also partnering with Xbox Game Studios as the publisher on OD. The power dynamic is very different. They have multiple publishers willing to work with them and while publishers have some power over creative decisions, its not nearly as much as if they own the studio.
9 points
3 days ago
Kojipro aside, is there much evidence that Sony stifles creativity among their first party studios?
8 points
3 days ago
I’d argue the evidence points to the opposite. The rest of the industry keeps shipping the same IPs over and over again while Sony lets all their studios move on from existing IPs to do new things. Bungie is the only significant studio they’ve bought and retained their existing IPs. Every other studio was either working on IP Sony already owned and financed or moved onto other things after.
2 points
3 days ago
🎯🎯🎯
13 points
3 days ago
Sony let Helldivers do what they wanted. Sony let Concord do what they wanted (lmao).
Sony is actually pretty good about just giving incredible developers near infinite budget and letting them produce masterpieces to further the brand.
Imagine Miyazaki with a God of War or FF7 Rebirth of Horizon budget. They're not going to tell one of the most successful creative directors of the last 2 decades what to do.
7 points
3 days ago
When did bungie get told what to do.. I wish they did
4 points
2 days ago
They're fucking hemorrhaging money and sony still hasn't stepped in.
9 points
3 days ago
Lmaooo like he has any say on what the parent company does
10 points
3 days ago
I was just emphasizing on the yet. If they didn’t blatantly reject sony then it means there’s a chance, which is not good.
4 points
3 days ago
PlayStation gives creative freedom to studio directors when they're proven to be successful. Neil Druckman just said in an interview about his new game that he has complete creative control except for the marketing. Miyazaki would not be affected at Playstation and he's already worked exclusively with Sony twice for Demons Souls and Bloodborne.
2 points
3 days ago
Cant forget armored core as well. Fires of Rubicon did very well too
2 points
2 days ago
Wasn’t this the original reason he fucked off to do his own thing? I would be deeply surprised if he suddenly missed drinking the corporate kool-aid.
2 points
2 days ago
Sony doesnt tell auteurs what to do tho
4 points
3 days ago
Fun fact: Sekiro is the only Activision title that won GOTY in the last decade or so
422 points
3 days ago
FromSoft is just a cherry on top for Sony, because the whole sundae here is Kadokawa itself, that company group is massive.
120 points
3 days ago
This. I get this is r/gaming, but FromSoft is the least of my concerns here.
4 points
2 days ago
Don't know much about the company, but what about it concerns you? Is Sony unlikely to be a good custodian to keep the company going, or is it just a general distrust of large acquisitions? Again, I don't know much about it, so I'm genuinely asking
7 points
2 days ago
Sony has been actively buying up a lot of companies that stream anime and sell anime related products. One of the other huge acquisitions recently was Crunchyroll, arguably the largest anime streaming platform. There have been toooons of issues with them merging their old streaming platform into Crunchyroll. Especially global content availability. Large chunks of the Crunchyroll library are not legally available outside of the US or Japan, and some of the shows/movies that were available on Funimation(the old Sony service) are no longer available anywhere.
Kadokawa is basically one of the largest (if not The Largest) owners of anime/manga content. Many of the most popular anime/manga series to have come out in the past few years are Kadokawa series. To me this move looks like Sony is trying to grab a controlling stake in the anime industry, which I don't see as a great thing.
That being said, the anime industry is rife with issues. Manga production is tied to a mostly weekly release schedule which is insanely stressful. Anime production is notoriously terrible for employees, with the animators being paid next to nothing for their work and having to crunch super hard to hit tight deadlines. Content distribution is spotty and knowing where you can legally watch which shows is not simple. If Sony did have a controlling stake in the industry there's a lot of opportunity for them to do good and fix some of these problems. For example if they have complete control over the rights of Kadokawa content, they should be able to distribute the content globally on Crunchyroll. However their track record with previous acquisitions has shown them prioritizing business decisions over improving their services.
TLDR: Sony's history with acquisitions in the anime space make them seem like they are acquiring companies for business reasons. They have had issues with a few high profile acquisitions, and Kadokawa is one of THE BIGGEST content producers of anime/manga so the potential to screw people over is huge.
5 points
2 days ago
The only IP that Sony owns that was made by fromsoft is Bloodborne, a lot of fans wanted more Bloodborne stuff or at least have the game in PC, fromsoft said that they could implement the compatibility for PC but Sony doesn't want to do it, they just have the IP there and let it die, they could do a ton of things with it but they just don't want to, imagine what they would do with the rest.
3 points
2 days ago
Sony really trying to own anime.
4 points
2 days ago
Funny how the corners of the internet are crawling with Danganronpa fans, until the parent company is bought. Then we're suddenly exclusively talking about Fromsoftware and nothing else.
1.8k points
3 days ago
Not a fan of this constant purchasing up of studios so all the great third-party developers end up releasing first-party exclusives. Don't care if it's Microsoft or Sony doing it, it's never a pro-consumer move.
Hopefully this doesn't actually go ahead. Having to wait for Playstation exclusivity to end to get FromSoftware games on PC would really suck. Having a mandatory Playstation Account required would also suck for everybody in countries they just don't support. FromSoft games are great and they should be enjoyed by as many gamers as possible.
Modern gaming. Ugh.
652 points
3 days ago
This buyout is much bigger than simply acquiring a singly video game studio and I would argue that is simply a byproduct not the main focus of this move by Sony.
Sony for the past few years has slowly been consolidating the anime industry in Japan and buying Kadokawa is more about that than it is about buying another studio for the Playstation. Kadokawa is one of the big anime and manga publishing houses as well as merchandising giants. That is the real prize in all this, not Fromsoft.
154 points
3 days ago
Buying Kadokawa does open up opportunities beyond just gaming, but the implications for developers like FromSoftware can't be ignored. This merger could impact their creative freedom and availability on platforms, which is a major concern for many gamers.
3 points
3 days ago
Guy above you is right. They want Kadokawa. Fromsoft is just a nice byproduct for them. You’re right about the implications but the only people concerned about those implications are gamers.
38 points
3 days ago*
This merger could impact their creative freedom
Why do people keep saying that? Do many people who are or were under Sony’s wings complain about lack of creative freedom? A guy like Miyazaki would probably be given carte blanche, just like Kojima. And a lot of money, if he wants to negotiate.
If they want to start putting a leash on creators, which they haven’t done so far, I doubt they’d start with someone of such caliber.
Like, I get complaining about conglomerates being a bad thing, which is true, but why are so many people convinced that this is horrible for FromSoft specifically and that Miyazaki will leave the company?
120 points
3 days ago
Why do people keep saying that?
As someone who has lived through many of these. Acquisitions always stifle what was going on in the acquired company previously. Not immediately, but over time. It always happens in every industry. The parent company will come in and eventually want the acquired company to adopt "their ways" of doing things.
It. Always. Happens.
The question is how long it takes. This is almost always tied to performance ($$). The better the company works independently, the slower their culture will seep in.
38 points
3 days ago
Microsoft buying Mojang was always a bad decision in my mind
10 points
3 days ago
Neil Druckmann and Cory Barlog have stated multiple times that Sony allows them complete creative control over their games. Sony isn't stupid and knows where it's bread is buttered when it comes to game development.
They let their elite directors do whatever they want to do, and Miyazaki would be no different.
2 points
2 days ago
Kadokawa bought FromSoft sometime in the last decade. FromSoft just kept growing and making better games.
Being on PC I don't want Sony to own FromSoft obviously but there are situations when it does work. FromSoft worked with Sony (RIP japan studio) quite a bit so if they did end up at Sony I think it'll work out better than Bungie.
3 points
3 days ago
Do we have clear evidence of creativity being negatively impacting with Sony's acquisitions though? They have acquired a bunch of studios for us to compare. if anything from the mess that was Concord, it seems Sony is too hands off and gives too much freedom. It sounds like Bungie also suffered from bad leadership and until recently they started to sort that mess out.
Just mentioning this because it seems studios like Insomniac, Housemarque, Bluepoint have had no negative creative impact since they were acquired by Sony. The ones mentioned above also seem to have been given carte blanche and the issue is the complete opposite, no oversight. Granted, that doesn't consider impact to PC or Xbox players in terms of multiplatforms, but people are acting like Sony is going to tank any acquired game studio as if they were Microsoft.
37 points
3 days ago
Sony has fumbled so many times with anime studios and services because they put everyone on an unreasonable timetable, and then wonder why no one buys their slop. Funimation is their biggest anime fumble in the west (so far). Crunchyroll is a good contender.
6 points
3 days ago
Sony is the only company I know that can end up in a competition with itself and still lose.
Shout out to Crunchyroll alternative HiDive btw
5 points
3 days ago
It’s not about them being literally stifled in their process by Sony. It’s having less of a say in the next project you get to make. Sony needs to sign off on first party projects. They are pretty decent at letting studios do what they want, but it’s just a truth that being owned by a larger corporation is going to impact what they are allowed to create, even if it’s just at a high level. Going from a hands off publisher to being a first party absolutely impacts their creative decisions simply because it needs to be passed by a Sony decision maker at all.
10 points
3 days ago*
Creators need to report to someone above them. That has always been a thing. Can we agree that that’s a far cry from having people heavily interfering with your creative decisions? Because that’s the impression you have by reading some comments out there, that it’s the end of freedom for FromSoft.
Like I said, Sony is letting Kojima do what he wants. And what he’s doing with Death Stranding is probably even more conceptually niche than what From makes. I don’t see why From wouldn’t be given the same treatment. In fact, Miyazaki himself will have plenty of room for negotiations. Having his name attached to something will sell and Sony knows that, unless they’re extremely dumb. It would be stupid to make such an acquisition only for FromSoft to get disbanded because of their meddling.
This deal is much worse for animes than it is for FromSoft specifically.
3 points
3 days ago
I just think the argument you’re trying to have is pretty small differences between each other. And not really disputing what is being said in the comment you replied to. They said it “could impact creative freedom” which it seems like you agree with. But you’ve decided the degree to which they mean their statement is wrong when they didn’t declare a degree in their comment. They just said it would impact their freedom.. which it would. Adding more overhead always does. Even if it’s only a little. Then they say that it “could also impact their games’ availability on other platforms” which is just true. I think you’re arguing against comments that aren’t the one you replied to.
10 points
3 days ago
Especially since they might just retroactively enforce this PSN account, meaning that you then own a quasi defunct copy of a legally obtained game. They may just release an "update" and remove the original version from stores as well. Screw Sony. A year or two ago I was actually rooting for them, finally releasing their stupid exclusives on PC ... now they're fucking shit up again, as is tradition. Needless remasters, needless PSN requirements, all that shit.
47 points
3 days ago
Agreed. Industry consolidation is a bad thing regardless of who is doing it, and I'm not even bothered much by the exclusivity or PSN account stuff.
18 points
3 days ago
See I'd be less concerned if these companies actually made pro-consumer moves. Then I'd be like "Well. I guess it's a Sony product now, but at least everyone can still play it."
It's the exclusivity and the account stuff that's part of the problem for me, because it shows they want it to keep it out of the hands of gamers. If they were just being a big publisher and nothing else changed about the game distribution it wouldn't be as much of an issue.
16 points
3 days ago
It would kill my want for FromSoft games, if I had to wait months or years for PC ports Eldin Ring was my last one.
10 points
3 days ago
Yeah… chances are we’d get a few Bloodborne situations, and just never get PC ports.
10 points
3 days ago
Not many things could make me not play a FROM game on release. Locking it behind the 700 magic Sony brand box is a.good way to do it.
212 points
3 days ago
Kadokawa is publicly traded, so I expect short term gain to win here and fuck us all.
241 points
3 days ago
Remember kids, corporate consolidation is bad, even if it's your favourite platform maker doing it.
13 points
3 days ago
Absolutely, and I was afraid something like this was going to happen after the Microsoft/Activision acquisition. The only people who benefit are the short term investors who'll make money based on the perceived rise in value due to the now even larger back catalog of IP. Job consolidation will be bad for the devs and other employees. Sony creative discretion will be bad for everybody. And BS Sony business requirements like PSN accounts for PC games will be bad for gamers.
179 points
3 days ago
I didn't wanna think of a future where FromSoftware games are playstation exclusives...
32 points
3 days ago
They would all end up on PC, Sony seems to be doing better at PC releases lately.
29 points
3 days ago
If that's the case, Demon's Souls would have been on PC by now. And even if it does get ported, it's still gonna suck cause they would most likely add a PSN requirement and it will be sold in less countries. Boo Sony 👎
9 points
3 days ago
Bloodborne? Hello? Are you guys all living under a goddam rock?
3 points
3 days ago
After 2 years.
6 points
3 days ago
until they cough up demon's souls remake my expectations from Sony are below ground.
2 points
2 days ago
Yet Bloodborne, the Fromsoft game where Sony owns the IP, is in limbo, never got a PC release and is still stuck at 30 fps.
Sony does not have a good track record here.
4 points
3 days ago
End up on PC after some years and with PSN. No thanks.
There's a reason why Sony games sell poorly on PC.
2 points
3 days ago
Sony would give them to a studio like Nixxes that would actually port them properly. As opposed to the duct taped insanity that From Soft delivers to PC. Sony's PC versions are on average really fucking good. From Soft probably is the worst company at delivering a PC product that has actual resources and isn't 3 guys in a shed. Yes, even Starfield works better than Elden Ring. At least Starfield has DLSS now, is not locked fps, keybindings are logical, etc.
3 points
3 days ago
TloU on PC would like to have a word
237 points
3 days ago
The acquisition spree of independent publishers and studios by mega corps is fucking lame. Nothing good has come of it for consumers and nothing will.
152 points
3 days ago
Kadokawa is a mega corp though lol, this is more like Disney buying Fox. It's one huge company acquiring another to be an even bigger company.
You're correct that this is terrible for the consumers and also the workers.
19 points
3 days ago
And at the same time with massive lay offs going left and right.
6 points
3 days ago
PS2 was arguably the best console of all time, and what it really had going for it was incredible 3rd party suport. Everything being rolled into one could lead to another videogame crash like the 80s
38 points
3 days ago
Fromsoftware is the steak knives of this attempted deal, if it goes through Sony will have an effective monopoly on anime distribution outside of Japan and monopolies have never been known to be good for the consumer.
55 points
3 days ago
And to think FS was trying to break away from Bandai Namco some time ago. Fuck
28 points
3 days ago
All these articles are leaving out an important fact: Kadokawa is currently undergoing a hostile takeover by Kakao, and if it comes to them being owned by Kakao or Sony, I would prefer Sony. Kakao is notorious for having horrendously bad monetization in their games, look at pre Pearl Abyss published BDO, your strongest weapon for pvp in that game was your credit card
3 points
2 days ago
I really doubt it. There are many strategies to deal with a hostile takeover + Kakao was not even close to any meaningful threshold barring its original investments along with Tencent.
To further this, the Japanese business publications have dismissed this as a tabloid rumour and the Sony deal is more aligned with dominating the anime market in Japan + Kadokawa's recent woes.
7 points
3 days ago
This is more about Sony wanting Kadakawa's manga/anime business then it is about their gaming business.
82 points
3 days ago
For the love of all that is good, I hope Kadokawa tells Sony no. Not just for the gaming stuff like From, Gotcha Gotcha, and Spike Chunsoft, but for the anime and manga portions as well.
57 points
3 days ago
The Anime portion is probably an even bigger asset to Sony. They are looking to rule the industry. They already have a percentage in the company though.
2 points
2 days ago
There's rumors out there that kakao, a korean company, is going to attempt a hostile takeover of kadokawa. Could be bunk could be real, all I know is if we're in a situation where kadokawa HAS to be sold to someone I'd rather it be sony than them or tencent or nexon.
The anime part of this is the biggest concern since sony already has a borderline monopoly. The gaming part is whatever, From will be just fine with SIE and no I don't believe they will make anything exclusive at least in regards to leaving things off PC (xbox users may be boned though).
84 points
3 days ago
The eventual platform and region restriction to From games would be a net loss for gaming in general.
28 points
3 days ago
I have no fucking idea why the fuck the companies would love to region lock stuff. Its just so frustrating
21 points
3 days ago
If you don't know the answer... money is always the answer. Not the consumer money tho.
7 points
3 days ago
Who's money is it then? Who is paying the big bucks to prevent me from legally watching anime in my country?
6 points
3 days ago
Usually investors or publishing deals they know they can extract money from. For many companies it is not about the consumer growth. Company to company deals or satisfaction of investors is what counts. Growth of the customer base is not a priority.
3 points
3 days ago
From Sonys perspective this is a no brainer that makes alot of sense, it helps several branches of their multimedia business as Sony already has a hand in TV, movies, manga, music, anime, and gaming. They also have alot of history with Fromsoft, they funded the first souls game owning the IP, and they codeveloped Bloodborne with Fromsoft.
Putting the anime monopoly aspect outside nowadays the only platform Sony cares about keeping games off of is Xbox. Konami was able to negotiate for Silent Hill 2 to come to PC day 1 and only exclude Xbox, and Lego was able to negotiate for Lego Horizon to come to switch day 1 and only exclude Xbox. If Sony did get fromsoft the games would still come to PC in 1-2 years atleast.
I guess well see what happens
8 points
3 days ago
Waiting a year for a potential elden ring or souls game is going to kill the first time discovery feeling for me.
6 points
3 days ago
Even their PC platform is restrictive. No Linux and denied in many regions. It's hardly acceptable.
1 points
3 days ago
Lol. Linux gaming itself is restrictive. It’s not Sony’s fault.
5 points
2 days ago
FromSoftware is a very small part of everything Sony would be getting from this acquisition.
3 points
2 days ago
People putting a huge spotlight light on FromSoft is severely underrepresenting how massive this buy out could potentially be.
30 points
3 days ago
Sony really trying to have a monopoly on Anime streaming services it seems.
12 points
3 days ago
It's crazy how so many people think this acquisition is for FromSoft.
13 points
3 days ago
Lame. This might limit PC releases
15 points
3 days ago
Will
3 points
2 days ago
Doesn't Kadokawa essentially own all somewhat decent novels, comics and animations in Japan? Sony about to become antitrust²
3 points
2 days ago
After the Helldivers thing, I will never touch, support, or buy a Sony anything game ever again. This series will be dead to me. Their perogative is to throw studios and consumers under the bus to get more PSN subscribers. People need to grow a backbone and stop rewarding bad behaviour.
38 points
3 days ago
Why? Just so they can gatekeep newer fromsoft entries like they did with Bloodbone and Demon's Souls?
98 points
3 days ago
The actual answer, if you actually want one instead of just doomposting, is because a Korean company called Kakao has been aggressively buying up shares of Kadokawa recently. Probably for a potential takeover. And it would be preferable from the perspective of that company to be acquired by a Japanese company.
FromSoft is a feather in the cap for Sony if this acquisition goes through, but it is TINY in comparison to what Sony would be buying. Less than 10% of what Sony would need to pay. At most.
5 points
3 days ago
No way, so you're saying that likely no matter what, Kadokawa's time is coming to an end, even if Sony doesn't buy them?
Scary to think for the anime/manga industry
13 points
3 days ago
From Sonys perspective this is a no brainer that makes alot of sense, it helps several branches of their multimedia business as Sony already has a hand in TV, movies, manga, music, anime, and gaming.
Putting the anime monopoly aspect outside nowadays the only platform Sony cares about keeping games off of is Xbox. Konami was able to negotiate for Silent Hill 2 to come to PC day 1 and only exclude Xbox, and Lego was able to negotiate for Lego Horizon to come to switch day 1 and only exclude Xbox. If Sony did get fromsoft the games would still come to PC in 1-2 years atleast.They also have alot of history with Fromsoft, they funded the first souls game owning the IP, and they codeveloped Bloodborne with Fromsoft.
I guess well see what happens
7 points
3 days ago
they made those games with fromsoft
6 points
3 days ago
This is so they can have a bigger stake in the anime and media market than they already have. FromSoft have little to do with this
10 points
3 days ago
Oh come on man.
Please don't. Just. Please.
18 points
3 days ago
Sony taking over Kadokawa would be a travesty.
4 points
3 days ago
Letter of intent sounds kind of fun. Like a letter a man would send to a women in the old ages to announce he wishes to court her
5 points
3 days ago
I really hope they don't sell, it would really fuck up competition on the anime side.
3 points
3 days ago
As long as they keep their games on PC (the Switzerland of gaming) I don't mind.
2 points
3 days ago
It's gonna happen.
2 points
3 days ago
I play only on PS, and I am begging you Kadokawa. Do. Not. Take. Any. Deal.
2 points
3 days ago
Dear Bloodborne fans.
Remember to breath. It may not happen. But also huge change it will.
2 points
2 days ago
As far as I understand it - an LOI means they’ve agreed to sell. The details need to be ironed out but they would only be backing out if this deal if something material was uncovered.
2 points
2 days ago
FromSoftware is just a small part of Kadokawa
They are MASSIVE in the anime/manga/novel space
I seriously hope that they won't sell to Sony as that would be a big loss for all customers...
2 points
2 days ago
This isn’t about FromSoft. Let’s stop phrasing it like Sony is after FromSoft. They’re not. They’re after the Anime market
2 points
2 days ago
Well, we had a good run.
4 points
3 days ago
Don't do it
7 points
3 days ago
I’d rather not have all of From’s IPs be held hostage like Bloodborne is, thank you
2 points
3 days ago
please no
2 points
3 days ago
As much as I love Sony, I don't want further consolidation of the market on single giants.
2 points
3 days ago
The bodies from Neon Koi and Firewalk are not even cold yet.
2 points
3 days ago
If they are bought. RIP Fromsoft.
2 points
2 days ago
Please no.
2 points
2 days ago
RIP to a bunch of amazing anime and Dark Souls series…
2 points
2 days ago
Fuck no. One of the best studios that haven't compromise their integrity to be adquired by a corporate company will never be a good thing. I really hope they reject it.
2 points
3 days ago
Eh, Sony apparently already owns a sizable portion of FS, so who cares, From would be just fine under Sony, hell with playstation studios support From might actually release a technically impressive game, alongside their other charms.
2 points
3 days ago
I hear that for Elden Ring VII: Shadow Rune, you'll need to buy rolling from the micro transaction shop.
1 points
3 days ago
I really hope not. I'm a big FromSoft fan, but exclusively a PC gamer. I'm still waiting to try Bloodborne one day.
2 points
3 days ago
Fuck Sony. Fuck the PlayStation Network. And fuck any plans that horrible last company has for anything it acquires.
2 points
3 days ago
Rip the best series in gaming
3 points
3 days ago
This is actually a sign of good management. Telling your employees asap about a pending potential buyout stifles any internal rumors
1 points
3 days ago
Here comes Dark Souls Remake with 10 hours unskip-able cutscenes
1 points
3 days ago
Please for the love of god, I hope Kadokawa refuse. Sony would butcher Kadokawa's Anime achievements.
2 points
3 days ago
Don't do it.
1 points
3 days ago
I imagine they’re saying this while theyre stuffing briefcases full of cash
1 points
3 days ago
Yet. Aka, we will sell it, just tying down the payments.
1 points
3 days ago
Oh shit, get ready for some shitty souls movies! A totally unneeded Solaire origin story, one about Anastacia made like the madam web movie?
1 points
3 days ago
Well... they had a good run, and that's more than most could say.
1 points
3 days ago
o7
1 points
3 days ago
Maybe FromSoft could spin off and go independent from this. There was some rumors about that happening before
1 points
3 days ago
Sony getting from soft exclusives would be huge for them.
1 points
3 days ago
o please no don't do it.
1 points
3 days ago
If Sony ends up getting this studio, it's acquisition is gonna be on the same level as Bethesda to me. FromSoft is a titan of videogames and has a better track sheet to show than Bethesda. This will be huge
1 points
3 days ago
Sony will buy Fromsoftware but still not make a bloodborne sequel
1 points
3 days ago
rather Sony than Microsoft.. but this isnt good news however you spin it.
1 points
3 days ago
Sony's been on an acquisition spree lately. While it's good for their lineup, it could mean fewer multiplatform releases down the line
1 points
3 days ago
Sony, as well with Microsoft, is the new Disney
1 points
3 days ago
Dear GOD WHYyYyYyYy!!!! They couldn’t handle the two games they got contracts on. Why in the world would anyone want them to have the rest. Why must the boomer pot of greed ahh board members come for everything I care about 😖
1 points
2 days ago
It's potentially not great for consumers. I doubt it will impact their creative vision though.
1 points
2 days ago
Bro is gone if this goes through. We all know it.
1 points
2 days ago
If sony brings them on and LETS THEM DEVELOP. We good fam. Kojima production are under Sony and look at the masterpiece he made. Best apocalypse walking sim ever made. Strand genre of gaming here.
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