| outlawauron said: EA will own the Mass Effect license Jan 1st 2008. They can then port it anywhere they choose then. Regardless of MS publishing it, EA can port it. |
That's not how these things work. MS had a deal with Bioware where they would help or entirely cover the development in exchange for exclusive rights to the game via publishing it themselves. Since they financed and and published the game themselves, they have the sole right to sell Mass Effect 1 the game. Now, any other thing relating to Mass Effect not covered by any other previous agreements Bioware had is fair game. Mass Effect 2 and 3 and the comics, all fair game. But while they own the licence of the Mass Effect IP, they do not have the right to distribute Mass Effect 1. Even after an acquisition like this, EA is still obligated to honor any contracts signed by Bioware. So unless MS entered into a new deal with EA following the buyout, it's MS's game to sell and profit from (minus any amount that was supposed to go to Bioware).
Which leads me to think of a couple of scenarios:
1) Bioware will make future Mass Effect titles, and will be at least PC/PS3/360 multiplat, if not more spinoffs for Wii/DS/whatever.
2) MS will secure the Mass Effect series as an exclusive for the PC/360. Moneyhats are the key here.
3) After a certain time, probably a few months to a year before Mass Effect 2, Mass Effect will be released on the PC/PS3 due to a new agreement between MS and EA where MS will relinquish their publishing rights to the first Mass Effect. It'll raise awareness for the first game on other platforms so the sequel will sell better. Will probably involve EA giving MS something, or maybe MS just thinks being in the good graces of the biggest third party supporter for their platform is better business than holding onto a game whose sequel is going multiplatform no matter what.
I think the time exclusive scenario is the most likely one to be honest. MS doesn't want to piss off EA, in fact they probably want to keep them very happy. On the flip side, EA doesn't want to piss off MS either, since the 360 now makes EA the most money if I'm not mistaken (or was PS2 still the top earner?). So, they'll come to an amicable and mutually beneficial arrangement. I think Mass Effect will find it's way to the PS3 before 2009 to be honest.
