Bungie: We Showed Our New Project To Microsoft And Sony

You might have heard that Bungie has signed a ten-year publishing deal with Activision for its next big franchise. But you might not have known that Microsoft and Sony also bid for the rights to the as-yet unnamed game series.

Bungie president Harold Ryan revealed in an interview that the legacy of Halo meant Microsoft was offered first refusal on the new project. "We had agreed with Microsoft awhile ago to let them have first look at our game, so we did that. But we retained the right to negotiate for the best deal for the studio."

Community manager Brian Jarrard also spoke of the challenges that lie in developing a multi-platform game, but said the studio will be fine in adapting to the new development culture thanks to Activision's experience with Xbox, PC and PS3. "That was another big draw to Activision - they have a lot of experience with multiple platforms and technical expertise. I think we'll be able to work with them to leverage their experience and make that a little bit easier for us going forward."

Going forward!?.... Deep breath.

Sony's pleased as punch at the multiplatform deal though. SCEA's Patrick Seybold told G4, "This is great news for all gamers. When Bungie's amazing talent and creative minds are unleashed and married with the incredible power of PlayStation 3, amazing things will happen [...] I think I speak for everyone, when I say I can't wait to learn about this new IP and world that Bungie is creating."

Microsoft wasn't ready to comment on any potential offers it made to Bungie, choosing to be courteous enough to say; "We respect Bungie's decision as an independent studio to develop games for multiple platforms."