Rumor: Xbox Sports Network to Make A Comeback
Take-Two and Microsoft may be looking to team up to bring back the XSN brand of sports games.
It looks like some more news may be brewing within the confines of Take-Two Interactive. To go along with the company's new EVP, there are rumblings that Take-Two is looking to team up with Microsoft to revive the Xbox Sports Network (XSN) brand of sports games.
Running between 2003 and 2004, XSN was the exclusive Xbox sports line up of games, with Peyton Manning being the poster boy for NFL Fever series. After the brand was dissolved, several key members of the XSN team were absorbed into Take-Two's very own 2K Sports subsidiary, who were responsible for titles like the Top Spin series and Amped 3.
This rumor has stemmed from several facts involving Take-Two and the public knowledge that they are hurting financially, which led them to the recent selling of its peripheral subsidiaries and the rumor that they have looking to sell off their distribution centers. There is even word that Take-Two's largest development studio Rockstar Games is looking to sell itself to potential buyers. It is more likely that Take-Two would sell off a smaller subsidiary before selling the big guns first however.
EA's stranglehold on the NFL license will also be coming to an end sometime around December 2009, which will cause many companies to prepare development on potential football titles as a logistical business precaution. This little fact wouldn't effect the development of other XSN sports titles like tennis, snowboarding and other sports titles however.
In the end this is all rumor and speculation, which means we'll have to wait and see if an official confirmation is made by Microsoft. Word is though that based on the ramblings being made out of both Microsoft and Take-Two, we should find out soon enough. I'm sure all of that money Microsoft made from selling Bungie back to itself would be put to pretty good use riving the XSN brand.
12/12/2007 5:17:03 AM
Category
XBox
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