$2 billion almost feels like the going rate for indie startups since Facebook dropped that same amount on the up and coming virtual reality behemoth, Oculus VR. Now Microsoft is purportedly offering the same amount of cash for Mojang, the developer of Minecraft.
If that seems a bit lofty for a studio with just a couple of games, bear in mind that Mojang has sold over 50 million copies of Minecraft so far, not to mention all the merchandise and companion products. In 2013 alone it made over $100 million in profit.
While neither Microsoft nor Mojang have commented on the news as of yet, Notch is said to have initiated the deal talks after becoming close with Microsoft's Phil Spencer. This is a little confusing considering Notch has previously been quite anti-large corporations, initially announcing that Minecraft wouldn't be ported to the Oculus Rift after Oculus VR was bought up by Facebook.
It's also unclear what would happen to ports on other platforms, like the PS4, PS3 and Vita, if Microsoft was to buy up Mojang.
However according to Bloomberg, if it does go ahead, Notch will be leaving the company afterwards. Perhaps he just wants out of game development? It wouldn't be totally surprising considering his only real follow up project too Minecraft, 0x10c, was shelved some time ago.
Thanks Bloomberg".
