Bungie Cutting Ties Page: 1
Bungie Studios
Yesterday, rumors started of Bungie possibly cutting its ties with Microsoft when the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported that the deed was done, with Microsoft wanting to wait until at least the end of the week for the official announcement.  They apparantly received an e-mail that said the following:

"Apparently MS just wants Bungie to make Halo for the rest of their natural days, and Bungie doesn't like how MS is constantly trying to "handle" everything they do; the way they market their games, the way they interact with their fans (basically the fact that they do appreciate their fans), and how stingie [sic] they are with the profits (comparable to the rest of the industry). So as of today they are their own independent entity."

Gaming magazine Game Informer checked with their own sources and found that the deal was made this past Monday, with Bungie shareholders buying back the company for "an unstated, but significant amount of money."  In addition to this amount, Microsoft will keep the rights to Halo 3 as well as "the right of first refusal on future games."

Obviously, Microsoft was unwilling to comment on the validity of this news.

"To your question, there's been no such announcement. We can't comment further," said one representative to 1UP, while another said, "There's been no such announcement. We continue to celebrate the tremendous success of the global phenomenon that is Halo 3."

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