The level of publicity that Microsoft’s ZeniMax Media acquisition has received almost makes it seem like a done deal, but it’ll be at least a month until we know whether the industry-changing agreement has truly been finalized. That’s according to a new report from Reuters, which confirmed that EU antitrust regulators will be deciding whether to clear the deal or not by March 5.
“Microsoft requested European Commission approval for the deal on Jan. 29, a filing on the EU executive’s website showed,” Reuters reported. “The EU competition enforcer can clear the deal with or without concessions during its preliminary review or it can open a full-scale investigation if it has serious concerns.”
“Bethesda’s games have always had a special place on Xbox and in the hearts of millions of gamers around the world,” head of Xbox Phil Spencer wrote in his original blog post welcoming the talented teams and beloved game franchises of Bethesda to Xbox. “Our teams have a close and storied history working together, from the amazing first DOOM, and its id Tech engine, innovating games on PCs to Bethesda bringing their first console game to the original Xbox, the groundbreaking The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind.”
Microsoft’s acquisition of ZeniMax Media will bring all of Bethesda Softworks’ legendary studios under its Xbox Game Studios banner. They comprise Bethesda Game Studios, id Software, ZeniMax Online Studios, Arkane, MachineGames, Tango Gameworks, Alpha Dog, and Roundhouse Studios. All of their future titles will presumably be added to Xbox Game Pass on day one.