Microsoft is increasing its efforts to find Xbox development partners in China, sources told Reuters, and the driving force behind those efforts is reportedly the missed opportunity of making Genshin Impact an Xbox exclusive. Reuters’ sources said Microsoft and HoYoverse, developer of the smash-hit anime RPG, entered negotiations for a deal during Genshin Impact’s original development cycle, but neither side reached an agreement.
Sony, however, did reach an agreement with HoYoverse and secured Genshin Impact as a console exclusive on PlayStation. Whether that has any bearing on the missing-in-action Genshin Impact Switch port or not, Reuters’ sources said Genshin Impact’s subsequent success – and billions of dollars in profit – made Xbox realize it needed to prioritize development partnerships in China.
Niko Partners senior analyst Daniel Ahmad told Reuters Genshin Impact is just the start and represents substantial growth in the Chinese development sector, as studios strove to gain a competitive edge with titles that had broad, global appeal.
The result, other sources said, was that Microsoft dedicated an entire team to scouting Chinese partners. While the partnership with NetEase that brought Naraka: Bladepoint to Game Pass is one result of this renewed effort, Reuters said Microsoft is also offering large sums even to smaller, independent studios to help bring them to the Xbox ecosystem.
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF
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