This rumour comes from the Wall Street Journal, so I'm going to assume that this is fairly reliable. Assuming this to be true, my only question is why? Minecraft has already been released on the PS3, PS4, and (soon) Vita, so what's worth $2 billion to Microsoft in this deal? I doubt they're terrified about a possible Wii U port in the future.
Maybe Notch wants an island so he needs money. Also based on my kids playing Minecraft and other games like it, the thing is ripe for micro transactions, which already exist with things like Buycraft, etc.
Knowing MS you can bet if this goes through it will be Minecraft 2 for the Xbox one and Window 9 only, help push those sales of both their products by hanging a exclusive such a MC onto them.
When I read this last night, I had assumed that Notch would dismiss the rumours as soon as he woke up. It's 17:30 in Sweden right now. I'm hoping he's hibernating.
Is this the same Notch who cancelled his plans for Oculus Rift support in the game because the company was bought by Facebook? And the same Notch who told Microsoft to "stop trying to ruin the PC as an open platform" with respect to Windows 8?
I'll believe it when I see it. I mean this is the same Notch that basically stopped drawing a wage from his company a few years back because he'd decided he already had enough money. Not the kind of bloke to sell out, least of all to the likes of Microsoft. On the other hand I wouldn't be remotely surprised if such an offer was floated. From what I gather the new X-Box is struggling, so the gaming end of Microsoft must be getting somewhat desperate at this point.
Let's hope not. Minecraft is a highly successful indie story, though at this point I feel it peaked long ago, and this would likely only stifle any fire left. It has survived due to its open-ended nature. Any deal with MS would be counter to what Minecraft has aspired to be, especially if they were to cancel any version on any other platform other than theirs, such as the upcoming PS4 version.
Polygon has an article on it, too. Seems MS has worked really hard to win him over. Oddly enough, Notch himself said back in 2012 he'd not sell out to MS for less than $2 billion... I guess they're calling his bluff.
He's also said that if this deal goes through, that he'll be stepping aside to let someone else manage the company.
This is also the same Notch who has a direct line from his brain to his Twitter account. If there was no truth to this rumour, he would have shot it down instantly. Nobody from Mojang has said anything today, so it's likely that they're at least in talks.
This is what leads me to believe that this deal is quite possible. He's an interesting guy and a decent programmer, but he's got crap business and law skills. Let someone else manage who knows what they're doing. Whether or not Microsoft is the right fit remains to be seen, but they've got the business and lawyer muscle to back it up.
Yeah, personally I don't think they're a great fit, what with their recent attitudes towards indie devs. On the other hand, it might just be this that they intend to use as a point of leverage. "See, we ARE friendly towards indies! We've got one of the biggest indie sensation on our side! Come and join us, guys!"
If that's their plan, I think it would have been better served by offering 200 Indie Developers $10 million to develop games on their platform.