SEGA and Microsoft have forged a new business connection, or a ‘strategic alliance’ according to a press release issued today. The alliance involves SEGA exclusively developing upcoming next-gen titles that utilize Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform.
SEGA is viewing this alliance with Microsoft as a key part of their future development plans. SEGA also has plans to implement a “Super Game” initiative, through which SEGA intends to focus new gaming projects with “Global”, “Online”, “Community” and “IP utilization” design priorities. How exactly these priorities coincide with Microsoft’s Azure cloud technology remains to be seen.
Per the press release:
“Microsoft and SEGA have agreed upon the foundation for this alliance and through mutual cooperation, will look to build further technological evolutions with areas such as the network infrastructure and communication tools required for global online services being a key priority. Additionally, by shifting to a next-generation development platform, SEGA can effectively adapt to diversifying work styles and potential infrastructural changes.”
Sarah Bond, CVP at Microsoft Corporation, had the following to say about the alliance: “SEGA has played such an iconic role in the gaming industry and has been a tremendous partner over the years. We look forward to working together as they explore new ways to create unique gaming experiences for the future using Microsoft cloud technologies. Together we will reimagine how games get built, hosted, and operated, with a goal of adding more value to players and SEGA alike.”
Yukio Sugino, President and COO at SEGA Corporation, added: “We are very pleased to announce today that we are considering a strategic alliance with Microsoft to help develop SEGA’s new “Super Game” initiative as well as build a next-generation game development environment. By considering a strategic partnership with Microsoft, we seek to further advance our game development so that our titles can be enjoyed by fans all over the world; in this regard, we aim to build an alliance that utilizes both SEGA’s powerful game development capabilities and Microsoft’s cutting-edge technology and development environment.”
Microsoft has been very keen to claim exclusive development with third party studios, having recently acquired Bethesda. It’s unclear just how extensive SEGA’s partnership with Microsoft will be, and to what degree this partnership will impact future SEGA releases on non-Microsoft platforms.
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