I'm saying sales are terrible based on AA or AAA levels, based on what it takes to make a game. You are saying I dont know what its sales projections are and its not a COD game so thus sales dont matter because even though it sold bad (and we all know its sold bad), it may be enough... trust me bad sales are never good. It's not even in the top 10 in the UK this week, so that means its down to low thousands.

Wow you really are invested in IO arnt you... why are you so angry about this?

Ahhhhhhh. I gotta quit posting on Saturday. I'm usually way too gone by the end of the day to recognize basic shapes......It's not so much a matter of Xbox having "absolutely nothing of interest" as it is not needing to buy into another platform. I have well over 1000 games on PS3, PS Vita and PS4. So many games that I will absolutely never be able to play them all between now, and the time I die. To say nothing for the "ecosystem bump' that 10 years and so many games is apt to produce. PS is where all my gaming friends are. It's my only online gaming identity.  I HAD 2 XBL accounts, and if they were still accessible, I may have already re-upped into XBL on a lark. But that's not how MS operates. There are XBO exclusives that interest me, but I'm already in retard territory in terms of overbuying. Also, it's the wettest games collection ever in terms of water. In addition to this, in spite of the solid hardware and software offerings from XB, even if my library were a fraction of what it was, and I could more easily justify another platform purchase....I don't like MS. It's not something I've hidden on this site over the past decade. I don't want to, and won't, buy into what they're selling. So, buying another console, for the privilege of playing a handful of games I wouldn't otherwise have access to, from a company I also don't want to support, is tantamount to madness. Which like my game collection, I also have in spades on any given Saturday.

Angry? Invested in IO?

I don't know if you're just being thick headed at this point, but if you couldn't tell, we were having a perfectly fine, normal conversation up until you took my argument and then just twisted it by putting words in my mouth that I didn't even say or imply (which you have just done for a second time). Which ... would make most people angry, no matter the topic. It's disingenuous, annoying, and a mis-characterization. No where did I say sales don't matter. Instead of just acting like i'm an upset IO fanboy realize you made a mistake and admit it. Because you aren't doing yourself any favors by not recognizing that what you did was crappy. 

That's not even what i'm saying either. Which is the entire reason why I'm not "just doing the opposite" of you (as you put it). I'm saying that there's a possibility the game did horrendously, there's a possibility it didn't, there's a possibility it did somewhere in between. I'm looking at all possibilities and mentioning factors that people seem to forget quite often. My point isn't that it didn't do badly. It very likely did. But we don't know for sure, and part of that reason is that we don't even know the sales (right now it's sold 200-500k on steam, which isn't amazing but it's something) let alone all the other factors that there are to consider. 

I can respect that. Investing in a specific ecosystem, especially in gaming, is something most of us gamer's do. I'm the same way when it comes to Xbox. If buying any system/game wasn't an issue, I would have done it already. The last part you said, I think is a bad excuse, but to each their own. If you ever do invest into PC, at least Xbox games will be on it. 

Just asking the case why you were so invested so much (and you are coming across as angry)... I know people can read more/less on an Internet forum, but relax and don't take it so personal. If its just a convo and you are not, no problemo. I'm pretty relaxed about it all, whatever happens - happens, if MS/Someone buys them, then I was probably right, if they don't, then I was probably wrong... but ultimately who cares as you say we dont know the exact details behind closed doors.

Perhaps it has sold enough and everything will be good, and that would be good. But if they had to buy out the studio (where did they get the cash from the 12 + months dev time ) and then pay for development for staff etc, then to have a game that is already out of the top 10 charts, its not good. Of course I will say again, still talking about UK sales figures - perhaps it will do better elsewhere.

In terms of Steam, knock off 30% of any sales and then need to take into account taxes etc, soon burns up the money for any company :( - it's amazing how quick money disappears.

I am perfectly calm now but ... Madword ... level with me for a minute. It's frustrating because it seems like you are not even reading my comments. I just told you twice that I took issue with you lying about what I say and putting words in my mouth. This is the second time you responded with something akin to "bro it's just a discussion calm down". I just said, the discussion isn't the issue, it has nothing to do with IO. If IO gets acquired by Microsoft, well good for Microsoft I guess. The problem is that you put words in my mouth. That is the issue. I don't know what world you live in where you think you can just be disingenuous about someone's points twice in a row, and then just expect them not to care, but that's not a world I want to converse in. I'm willing to let it go, but stop continuing the "it's just a discussion" attitude when I've made it clear the problem wasn't the discussion or IO's future.

As far as the argument that steam knocks off a lot of the money - that's a terrible one. Because this is an industry wide thing, it doesn't just apply to IO interactive. Also, the digital margins across all digital marketplaces are BETTER than physical. So Hitman 2 selling best on Steam (most likely) is actually a good thing. It's one of the best possible sources of revenue. Now could that 30% dictate the future or closure of IO? Yes. But the point is that mentioning the 30% knock of on Steam is almost equivalent to just asking that the publishers never try to sell the game in the first place, since physical revenue is worse and other digital stores have the exact same cuts. 

IO is north of middling, but its also easier to buy a company when its not producing massive hits obviously.

Frankly, I wondered why hasn't MS made this move as soon as they left Square Enix. It looks like a competent studio. Also, I read they still own the Freedom Fighters IP! Unfortunately, they didn't get to keep Kane & Lynch.

If Hitman was a great success, I can't help but wonder why SE let it go. Also, we don't really know how IO is doing.

Any who, I wouldn't be surprised if this become nothing, but I think it would be a good purchase for MS.

IO will be a waste of money. I dont see where either company benefits from this rumoured buyout.

That's because you are not into the correct place to be able to see it, and in my opinion that might be a reason for it to be too early to assume it is a waste of money.