Report hints Microsoft to hold Bethesda conference this week

According to a report by Venture Beat, Microsoft will host a Bethesda conference this week to explain how the partnership between the two businesses will work.

The report comes only a few days after regulators in the USA and Europe officially confirmed the acquisition of Zenimax Media by Microsoft. This of course means that Bethesda, the developer behind the likes of The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim and Fallout 4, is now a Microsoft-owned studio. 

We’re unsure how this acquisition will affect games currently in development, but it’s unlikely we’ll hear any updates on new games at the reported event. Instead, the conference will reportedly focus on Microsoft’s subscription service, Xbox Game Pass. 

Microsoft also confirmed its acquisition of Zenimax today by welcoming Bethesda to the family. In the announcement, Microsoft detailed its plans to release new Bethesda titles, which will be exclusive to Xbox and PC players.

Xbox Game Pass

The acquisition of Zenimax provides Microsoft with a vast body of games to pull from, bolstering its existing Game Pass library. The reported conference will probably detail when the likes of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Fallout 4, Dishonoured 2 and Prey will make their way to the service. 

Microsoft will also likely discuss its plan for releasing future Bethesda titles through the Game Pass service. Expect titles like Starfield and The Elder Scrolls VI to release through the Game Pass service. 

This could also be a big win for PC subscribers, as Bethesda has a long history with releasing PC games. As it stands, PC users of Game Pass have a smaller library of titles to those from than console users, but the Zenimax acquisition could increase the number of available games. 

Xbox Exclusivity 

Today’s announcement around exclusivity might have some PS5 players concerned about the future of Elder Scrolls on Sony’s platform. Fortunately, the wording around the exclusivity aspect of the acquisition seems to imply the studio is focused on new titles. 

This means the likes of Elder Scrolls VI and Starfield will probably still release on Sony consoles, although the focus in marketing and promotional content may be geared towards Xbox, PC and the Game Pass service. 

Even with this in mind, Microsoft has continued to support Minecraft across a number of consoles after its acquisition of Mojang in 2014. While its focus remains on Xbox and PC, the PS4 and Nintendo Switch have still seen a number of updates released over the past seven years.

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