Bloomberg interview reveals Microsoft tried to buy Nintendo once, and got laughed out of the meeting
These days, Microsoft is buying up smaller gaming studios at a rapid pace, adding names like Obsidian, Bethesda, Mojang, Double Fine, and many more to the Xbox brand. As the original Xbox system turns 20 years old this year, Bloomberg published an article featuring interviews and information about the early days of the system. revealing that Microsoft attempted to buy four major game studios back in the early 2000s, all of which ended in failure. The first company they went after was Electronic Arts, who quickly dismissed them. They also attempted to acquire Midway Games and Square Enix, but according to Bob Mcbreen, who worked at Xbox in business development at the time, they didn't offer enough money.
The biggest acquisition they tried to make, though, was Nintendo. Kevin Bachus, the former director of third-party relations, mentions he went to Nintendo in order to talk about a buyout. Microsoft's position was that they could create more powerful hardware than Nintendo could which would make them more competitive with Sony's PlayStation 2, while Nintendo knew how to make games incredibly well. However, Nintendo did not agree, so much to the point that Bachus says he was laughed at by the entirety of the company, ending any further discussions.
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