Microsoft Paid For Bioshock Exclusivity
6/1/2008 Ben Dutka
There are a half-dozen different stories out there as to why Bioshock was exclusive to Microsoft's Xbox 360, and about a dozen more as to why it is now coming to the PlayStation 3. But one developer decided to shed some light on the constant rumors and so-called explanations over at Inside the Game Developer Studio.
The article in question is "The Lies We Tell: Bioshock's Exclusivity," and talks about how most games from third-party publishers start out as being multi-platform. It also says that due to the installed user base of both the PS3 and 360, it would make sense for developers to issue multiple releases. We figured this was the case, but another point of interest involved Sony's recent announcement that most third-party devs are starting to create the PS3 version of multiplat titles first. Well, Lida says it's because the PS3 is simply more difficult to develop for, and not because it's more popular. And then, the capper: yep, Microsoft paid out a significant chunk of cash to keep Bioshock exclusive to the 360.
Furthermore, he says development on the PS3 was behind, anyway, to "it worked out well." Now, the PS3 version is coming, and if it weren't for Microsoft's money, Bioshock would've been a multiplat release right from the start. Interesting, yes? It's all about money, folks. This is a business, after all.
Source: PSXExtremeLabels: BioShock, Microsoft, xbox 360 |
