Why is MS buying Mojang?

Fair point Duke but I think you are ignoring the fact that Minecraft is five years old, it is a game that is at the peak of its popularity now.

It's as popular as it is going to be. If people aren't interested in the game now then it is very unlikely they they ever will be.

Also bear in mind that Lego has huge market presence, the brand is 65 years old, Minecraft has no where near the penetration into public consciousness. Given that can you really see a Minecraft movie making anything near the money of 'The Lego Movie'?

Digital I think you are overestimating the selling power of Minecraft over the 'cool' factor of the iDevices. After all did you see anywhere near the same queues for the Xbox 360/One versions of Minecraft as for the iPhone 6 for example.

I am genuinely interested in seeing what Microsoft are going to do to make this purchase pay off, I really hope it wasn't done for a short term boost to share prices.

 

Well I think you are over estimating the cool factor of the I devices so there! =p

Also there are no queues for MC because people aren't worried they aren't going to get a copy an electronic device. That's the main reason to wait in line, 1 because I want to before everyone else and 2 because if they sell out I might not get one for months.

With MC there is unlimited copies my friend...

 

*** edit time, but I mean to say; people aren't worried they aren't going to get a copy LIKE an electronic device and just to add, would you wait in a queue for something that you can download digitally?

Just for the record, my post was just like a best case scenario, I don't actually think MC has magical selling power, but I do think it has some draw which MS will use to their benefit, that's all I was trying to say.

 

Personally I would queue because I like physical copies. Not sold on the brilliance of digital quite yet.

Fair points though Digital, I just don't see that Minecraft has that draw that people want to think it has. Would Minecraft really pull people to buy a Surface for example when it has been on competing devices before the Surface even came out.

People become 'loyal' because they've bought into the system. Are those folk really going to give up their purchases from the Apple App Store of Play Marketplace, which could include Minecraft, and the ability to bring those purchases across to their next
device just because a Surface has Minecraft included on it.

I really don't see Minecraft having any sort of 'system seller' pull. Certainly not enough to make people abandon their current digital ecosystem.

 

Vaynel - I see a little contradiction in your response.

Minecraft is maxed out and at its peak because it's 5 years old.

Legos is 'better' because it is 65 years old.

Maybe Microcraft believes it has the new 'Lego' that will be around for another 60 years.

 

To be fair I never said Lego was better, hell the Lego company even make licensed Minecraft products.

Why I think Minecraft has reached its peak is that the game has pretty much reach maximum market penetration and you don't actually need to buy anything else for it. Complete one world, then move on and build another for absolutely no cost, and the old one
will still be there

Lego on the other hand if you want to build something new you either need to tear down the old to reuse the bricks or go out and buy new ones.

This does make me wonder if Microsoft plan to follow the Lego idea for Minecraft in the future by selling themed sets, not just skins. So if you want to create a Lord of the Rings themed world for example you could try and make it in the vanilla game with
pieces that don't quite match or you could buy the themed DLC pieces. That I think is very likely to happen.

 

I really hate the lego - MC comparison. MC is nothing like lego besides building stuff and looking blocky. Once you get past that MC blows lego out of the water. Lego should be worried about losing relevance now that MC is on the scene and dominating the
kid market. If it wasn't for specifically licensed themes like Star Wars and Pirates of the Caribbean lego would be hurting. Times change, MC is the future.

 

Vaynel, I respect that you can have a civil discussion, it's actually quite refreshing and you raise good points too. I will leave with, although you don't see it a system seller (I don't really either), there are some kids out there crazy for it. I mean
50 year olds at work know all about MC because of their kids, which blew my mind because no one ever talks about gaming here.

MS can do something with MC and it will be interesting to watch it all unfold.

 

"Some kids" is under selling it. From what I hear it's more like "most" kids are into it. One of my nephews says it's the game everyone talks about in middle school. He also said almost no one talks about COD. There is hope yet.

 

^I could only base it from my work mates with kids, so that's crazy to hear that it's actually that big in the schools. I had no idea it's spread like that, but when I think about it I shouldn't be surprised because I've seen my niece playing it, which was
kind of weird.... Even weirder, they were trying to show it to me like I'd never seen it, haha.

 

Mojang will be making games in the future, why else would MS buy them up for so much? Yes they have Minecraft, but let me remind you that game will stay multi-platform. Only sequels will be on the PC and Xbox One.

I think it's a good idea. They needed a new studio to make some pretty nifty games, so I have hope they'll make something really good.

 

If Minecraft is as popular among kids as some here suggest I think some box office records could be shattered.But I still dont like the idea of MS taking over Mojang.Generally what happens is the guys with all the talent end up leaving to start up new companies
because they want to make their own games rather than being bossed around.

 

I hope people don't think I dislike Minecraft, I really do like it. Yet I think people are ascribing it power it doesn't have.

UnyoBro, it is Lego. The advantage it has is animation. You can look at the marvellous creations that people build with Lego and what is the true difference to the same built in Minecraft? The water flows.

Digital, I hope I always come across as civil, even when I do argue my point.

 

The only part of MC that resembles Lego is the creative mode(but even then it has tons of stuff Lego doesn't). The survival mode blows Lego out of the water because building blocks is only a tiny part of it. Deny it all you want but it's true. You could
call MC the evolution of Lego if you want but to make a direct comparison is inaccurate.

 

Unyobro you have never step on a lego brick in the dark, or watch two kids fight over what to build talk about survival mode. I love that MS is buying MC. 2,500,000,000 $ is a lot for an idea that did not exist 5 years ago. Wish I would thought of it.