Microsoft Reportedly Buying Minecraft Maker Mojang

To be honest, it's not like Notch is a stalwart hero of Linux gaming. As far as I know Scrolls still doesn't have a Linux port, and Minecraft mostly was Linux compatible because it was trivial to make it so (JVM) and because he went balls out with making it run on everything possible.

The little I know about the guy, it seems possible to me he just got bored of the entire "being productive" deal and decided to pocket the 2B to live in luxury for rest of his life without having to as much as lift a finger.

On the other, less cynical side, he might as well accept the dough, leave the studio, and start a new one, carrying a budget to do something even bigger and more spectacular than ever before. Clean slate, etc. I don't think he ever hugely valued the Minecraft franchise and it's clear that that's what Microsoft might primarily want to buy Mojang for.

Huh, I don't blame him for taking 2bil even if he hates the new Windows.

I am not afraid of Minecraft losing linux support - Microsoft bought Skype too and it still has a linux version - but Notch promised that Minecraft will eventually become open-source and I don't see that happening with Microsoft in charge.

I hope this news isn't true.

2 billion dollars = Psychonauts 2 AND 3! :D

Their next game will be using C# instead of java haha

Well, first, this is a rumour, nothing has been confirmed so far (not saying it's false but maybe the first thing to do would be to ask Mojang/Notch).
Second, they can become a Microsoft company but keeping the creative decisions on games and platforms supported. It might not change anything for the development of Minecraft, Scrolls and other current games. What would probably change is that future games yet unannounced could be XBox exclusive or something like that.
Third, the fact that Notch dislikes Windows 8 doesn't mean that he dislikes Microsoft as a company (the same goes for Gabe Newell, mind you).

On the other side, I find it odd that Mojang woul be sold to another company (no specifically Microsoft), as Minecraft sales have secured the financing of Mojang for some time. So maybe they're thinking that they need to expand the company for some reason or are thinking about a distant future when they'll stop earning money with Minecraft and don't think their other games can assure their existence.

Could be that Microsoft is having another go at making a gaming platform like GfWL. A solid initial user base would certainly be a good start.

Microsoft bought Skype too and it still has a linux version

And funny enough they linux version was better, last I used Linux, because it had not seen the counter-productive interface updates for some time (worst of them being the use of Modern-UI autocorrection in the Desktop version).

Windows 8: Minecraft works perfectly fine on Windows 8.

Selling Mojang: I don't really care, really. They can't destroy minecraft (or minecraft for linux) entirely, as it would only make pirated version more wide-spread. I doubt they'd reprogram it in C# or something. Scroll's didn't seem very interesting either. So far all practical purposes, he may as well take the money and do something with it (i.e. I agree with Teal on that), even if it is buying a villa on some tropical island.

As for the claimed price: Seems way overestimated.

I think Minecraft pretty much sold what it will sell, except maybe one last big burst from the new consoles. Microsoft might believe that securing the rights to a game that sold over 50,000,000 copies is a good move. Sales from merchandise, nickel-and-dime bs DLC and a sequel would be huge. Maybe not 2 billion huge, but still. Plus having a sequel be exclusive to the Xbox One, as far as consoles go, might help sales of that thing as well.

i cannot believe they paid 2 billion for a little studio and a game that has passed its zenith long ago.

i cannot believe they paid 2 billion for a little studio and a game that has passed its zenith long ago.

Well, Minecraft still sells a lot. It just got ported to XBox One and PS4, there's no reason the sales will drop anytime soon.

There are already loads of voxel building games anyway, many of them surpass Minecraft in terms of gameplay and graphics, so i'm not that worried about this tbh.

I hate this world. It evolves in the wrong direction 80% of the time.

Windows buys Mojang because minecraft is a big hit on very young gamer. They want children playing their first good game to see Microsoft printed.

Just as some of us grew up with Mario on Nintendo, they would like for the next generations to grow up with them.

We could all accuse him of selling out, but in reality, Microsoft buying Mojang for $2 billion will do them more harm than good. Their only franchises/brand/whatever is Minecraft, and although huge, Microsoft would never be able to produce a decent sequel to it - it would be more akin to the new SimCity and will go along with awful decisions like making it an Xbox exclusive.

Selling them Minecraft is like selling them a Picasso painting - it's very nice, but they will get absolutely humiliated if they try and make their own. Mojang is worthless without Notch and some of the original Minecraft creators, it's just a brand which owns the IP to a successful game (which is also getting past its expiration date now).

As for Notch, with that kind of money (even after tax, giving some to shareholders, etc) he could make his own new studio which will make more money than a Microsoft-owned Mojang ever would.

In his situation, I would do the same - distance myself from Minecraft so I wouldn't have to carry the burden of being "that Minecraft guy" for the rest of my life and give it to a company I hate because they won't be able to make their money back off it, then go and do something else.

For a big corporation like Microsoft, this is pretty standard practice anyway. These big companies need to keep buying smaller ones to keep their share prices up and once the cycle starts, it doesn't stop - Google probably buys 20-30 per year. And Microsoft is fighting a losing battle anyway with both consoles and phones, hopefully OSs soon enough if they manage to annoy enough people (Gaben being quite a prominent and annoyed figure already).

Dang, the source got updated!
Business-wise, it might be an enticing move to take the money and , but I guess Persson isn't so onboard with continuing at Mojang if it's acquired by MS so he'll probably run/do other ventures.
I try not to hate MS that much but they have yet to prove themselves and gain my trust/support. It's what you tend to view evil companies like Apple. Good thing one of Google's unofficial values/rules is "Don't be evil" so they won't become SKYNET that quickly =P

History time! Way back in the olden days I was a Mac user, and an exciting new game was to champion Mac gaming, releasing its Mac version ahead of a Windows version giving us one clear-cut victory. Then Microsoft bought Bungie and said Halo would be a dual launch between Mac and Windows. A few months go by and suddenly it's to be the launch title of their new Xbox console, home computers have to wait. It took two years before it released for Mac, a few months less for Windows.

I have no idea what Microsoft is paying for. I have no idea if Mojang is working on a new game. I do know that in terms of platform support, you do not want Microsoft to own anything at all.

Then again, were I Notch I'd pocket a billion to live well all my days and spend the other to fund all future projects and keep innovating in a new company, I'd bet he himself is frankly more famous than Mojang the company.

As much as I hate this news... I can't really blame notch and mojang for accepting the offer.

Ouch, it does seem to be shaping up to be true. I don't blame him one bit though. I see two things coming from this. He will take his 2B and live the good life for the rest of his life, or take 1B, live the good life for the rest of his life and invest the rest in a new venture. My $$ would be on the later.

Would be awesome if he took the second road and started an EXTREMELY linux friendly publisher and started backing studios who make games for linux. Maybe LA (Linux Arts) as a good jab at EA :P

"I think Minecraft pretty much sold what it will sell, except maybe one last big burst from the new consoles. "

A WiiU edition would definitly sell well. Mine is collecting cob webs.