If Amazon buys EA, it’s much scarier than Microsoft buying Activision

techradar.com:

Amazon is rumored to be making an offer to purchase EA, but it could be the start of a slippery slope to the monopolization of the industry.  

While there are conflicting reports about Amazon buying EA, the very idea is a stark warning shot across the bow in the current spending frenzy for major publishers.

It feels like the industry is being broken up and re consolidated under the umbrella of major corporations. It started small when Microsoft began trying to compete with Sony’s first-party catalog by buying up several smaller developers. While in 2018, the company’s acquisition of industry darlings like Ninja Theory, Double Fine, and Obsidian Entertainment felt like a series of monumental moves, it’s positively quaint in the current climate. 

Microsoft buying Bethesda for $7.5 billion felt like a pulling out of the scope; a shift in the market where previously unthinkable purchases were in play. That was only further confirmed when Microsoft dipped deep into its pockets again to buy Activision Blizzard for an eye-watering $68.7 billion. Now, it seems like open season with mega-corporations setting their sights on bigger and bigger games. 

Since then, we’ve seen Sony fire back by picking up Destiny 2 creator Bungie for a comparatively cheap $3.7 billion. Meanwhile, Embracer Group has bought the western side of Square Enix development, taking in Eidos and Crystal Dynamics for $300 million. 

That’s the climate that this news of EA being potentially bought by Amazon finds itself in. The dinner bell has been rung, and it seems everyone is here to try and get a slice of the games industry. 

For me, this whole situation sucks. Be it Amazon, Microsoft, Sony, or Tencent, the consolidation of the industry is worrying. A future where a