Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) recently stated in a blog post that it has successfully acquired Havok from Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC). Havok is a famous game engine that was previously acquired by Intel back in 2007 from the original Irish owners.
The engine has been utilized in a number of famous titles in the gaming world and is now incorporated in MSFT’s product portfolio. The software maker giant said it will keep working on the engine to make more improvements with the help of its own Visual studio, DirectX 12 and Azure.
The company also stated that addition of Havok in its family will largely benefit the first-party developers of the company and will also assist them in designing cloud-powered experiences for their Windows and Xbox One platforms. MSFT added the engine will also help in developing its approaching exclusive title for the Xbox One named Crackdown 3.
The software maker giant also said that it will continue to offer licenses to developers and competitors such as Nintendo Co. Ltd. and Sony Corp. to make use of the engine in their games.
Almost all of the large multi-platform franchises have used Havok in the past years. The famous games that utilized the engine include Ubisoft Entertainment’s Assassins Creed, Activision Blizzard’s Destiny, Call Of Duty, and many others.
MSFT could stop third parties from making use of the engine in the coming time by ending the licensing channel and making it exclusive to only Xbox and Windows platforms. Now we have to wait and see whether the latest acquisition from MSFT will benefit the company and Havok itself, and whether the game engine will help the Xbox catch up with the PS4 this generation.
