ID Purchased By Bethesda Owner ZeniMax Media
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It was announced today that id Software has been purchased by ZeniMax Media, parent company of Bethesda Game Studios. The deal means that the house of Doom and Quake joins with the developers of Fallout 3 and Elder Scrolls under one publisher, the Bethesda Softworks brand.
“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…We will be bigger and stronger, as we recruit the best talent to help us build the landmark games of the future,” he continued.
In an interview with Kotaku, Carmack helped to further explain the decision. “We’re really getting kind of tired competing with our own publishers in terms of how our titles will be featured, and we’ve really gotten more IPs than we’ve been able to take advantage of, and working with other companies hasn’t been working out as spectacularly as it could,” he said.
“So the idea of actually becoming a publisher and merging Bethesda and ZeniMax on there [is ideal]. It would be hard to imagine a more complementary relationship. They are triple A, top-of-the-line in what they do in the RPGs. And they have no overlap with all the things we do in the FPSes.”
As a result of today’s deal, all forthcoming titles developed by id will be released under the Bethesda Softworks name, with the exception of those previously committed to other publishers, such as the post-apocalyptic racer/shooter Rage.
Founder, Chairman & CEO of ZeniMax Media, Robert Altman reassured fans that no changes will be made, saying, “Our intention is to make sure id Software will continue to do what they do best – make AAA games. Our role will be to provide publisher support through Bethesda Softworks and give id Software the resources it needs to grow and expand.”
iD’s first title under Zenimax’s ownership is likely to be the highly anticipated shooter, Doom 4, though no release date has yet been confirmed.