Breaking: Bethesda’s Parent Company Acquires id Software
Now here’s a morning surprise: ZeniMax Media, Inc., parent company of Fallout 3 publishers Bethesda Softworks, just announced through a press release the acquisition of iD Software, makers of Doom, Quake, Wolfenstein, and everything in between. While id will still continue development of games under previous commitments, anything after that will be handled by Bethesda. In addition, the press release notes, “id Software will continue to operate as a studio under the direction of its founder, John Carmack. No changes will be made in the operations of id Software in the development of its games. All the principals at id Software have signed long-term employment contracts, assuring they will continue in their roles developing games at the studio.” Glad to see that there won’t be any changes to the core team, and more importantly, nobody will be losing their jobs during the changeover.
“This puts id Software in a wonderful position going forward,” said John Carmack, who will continue to serve in his current role as Technical Director. “We will now be able to grow and extend all of our franchises under one roof, leveraging our capabilities across multiple teams while enabling forward looking research to be done in the service of all of them. We will be bigger and stronger, as we recruit the best talent to help us build the landmark games of the future. As trite as it may be for me to say that I am extremely pleased and excited about this deal, I am.”
Todd Hollenshead, CEO of id Software, commented on the transaction: “This was a unique opportunity to team with a smart, sophisticated publisher like Bethesda Softworks where the interests of the studio and the publisher will be fully aligned in the development and marketing of our titles. In addition, we will now have financial and business resources to support the future growth of id Software, a huge advantage which will result in more and even better games for our fans.”
So, will Fallout 4 run on (an assumedly less buggy) id Tech 5 engine?
