What you need to know
- Microsoft recently acquired Activision-Blizzard-King in a massive $72 billion deal that gave the software giant control of franchises like Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Candy Crush Saga.
- The acquisition included legendary studio Toys for Bob, which has worked on franchises like Skylanders, Spyro the Dragon and Crash Bandicoot, across a 30-year history.
- Last month, Microsoft and Toys for Bob agreed to spin off the company and turn it into an independent company.
- Microsoft retains ownership of Skylanders, Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, and other Activision-related properties.
- Our sources have confirmed that Toys for Bob has now finalized an agreement with Xbox to finance its first title.
Microsoft finally completed its massive acquisition of the Activision-Blizzard-King a few months ago, giving the company solid control over massive franchises like Call of Duty, Candy Crush Saga, and World of Warcraft.
As part of the acquisition, Microsoft also acquired a lot of other studios and franchises, including classic Activision game series like Guitar Hero, Skylanders, and many more.
Last year, the legendary team at Toys for Bob was instrumental in building Activision's massive Skylanders franchise, which featured lifelike gameplay elements, similar to Nintendo's amiibo line. Players can purchase figurines that contain NFC chips, then place those characters inside the Skylanders video game via a USB “portal” peripheral. Toys for Bob has also remastered several Crash Bandicoot titles, as well as producing the fourth installment, “Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time.” However, in recent years and during the COVID-19 pandemic in particular, Activision has increasingly relied on Toys for Bob to support its Call of Duty monologue efforts, serving as a support studio on several entries in the series.
Sources previously indicated to me that Toys for Bob's culture did not mesh well with Activision's often restrictive corporate mandates, and they were excited about the opportunity to spin off into an independent company with Microsoft. When they initially parted ways, they released a statement noting that they were “confident” that they would be working with Activision and Xbox in the future and that they were exploring a “potential” partnership. It now appears that those talks have borne fruit.
Toys for Bob has reached an agreement with Xbox
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During a recent town hall meeting described to us by sources familiar with the event, an employee asked the panelists about Toys for Bob, since they were now independent of Microsoft and Activision. Toys for Bob's leadership was adamant about keeping the team together, as well as returning to the style of gameplay the studio is known for.
Microsoft has pointed to how Twisted Pixel has been launched in the past, as an alternative option to shuttering studios. Matt Booty, who now leads the Xbox games content division, has reportedly said that an agreement has now been reached between Xbox and Toys for Bob for their first game as an independent studio. However, he stopped short of describing exactly what that would be, although he did say something along the lines of, and I'm paraphrasing, “It will be similar to toys that Toys for Bob has made in the past.”
They may be indie pop games, but the truth is they told the fans that “Keep their horns” This could be a reference to Spyro the Dragon, who has a passionate fanbase to this day. The hilarious 3D platformers that Toys for Bob is often associated with are still owned by Microsoft, but at the moment, they don't have a dedicated developer. It seems quite likely that the first Toys for Bob game out of the gate will be either within the Crash or Spyro pantheon, but it could also be something else entirely, perhaps a Toys for Bob IP. Maybe long-suffering Banjo Kazooie fans can get a glimmer of hope from this deal as well. Either way, it's very encouraging to see Toys for Bob will continue to do its own thing, while also maintaining its team and culture. Maybe the game will appear day one on Xbox Game Pass as well?
The Toys for Bob story has been a refreshing bright spot in an industry that has been fraught with layoffs, tightening budgets and rising costs in recent years.
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