Some of Xbox’s biggest franchises could soon be making the jump from consoles to Hollywood. Microsoft is reportedly shopping a massive package of more than a dozen gaming properties to studios and streaming services, with Halo, The Elder Scrolls, Diablo, and World of Warcraft among the major names potentially being lined up for future movies and TV shows.
According to Puck’s Matt Belloni, Xbox is looking to strike a long-term deal with a single studio or streaming service rather than negotiating separate agreements for each franchise. Microsoft is reportedly seeking more than $300 million for the package, with Netflix, Paramount, and Universal among those currently taking a look. At least one potential partner is said to have balked at the hefty asking price.
A big reason the reported deal is so eye-catching is just how much Microsoft’s gaming portfolio has grown in recent years. Its acquisitions of Bethesda parent ZeniMax Media and Activision Blizzard brought franchises such as The Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Doom, Warcraft, and Diablo under the same umbrella as longtime Xbox properties like Halo and Gears of War. However, beyond the four franchises named in the report, it remains unclear exactly which games are included in the proposed Hollywood package.
Gamers Debate Which Xbox Franchise Should Come Next
The reported plans quickly got gamers talking, although not everyone was convinced that handing so many franchises over as one package would be a good idea. One Reddit user argued, “Horrible idea to guarantee quality of those projects but it brings in fast cash with the potential for more if something’s a hit.” They suggested Xbox should instead listen to individual pitches and choose the strongest, adding that the company needs “more shows like Fallout and way less shows like Halo.”
That comparison came up repeatedly, with Halo clearly still leaving a sour taste for some fans. One commenter sarcastically wrote, “Halo… yes lets give the job to someone whos never played the games & has zero respect to why the ip is popular.” Another discussion focused on adaptations changing too much of their source material, although one user pushed back on the idea that Hollywood simply can’t get video games right: “Because Sonic exists, Fallout, TLOU exists. If you actually care about the IP and WANT it to be good you pick talented writers/directors to work on it. It’s not rocket science.”
Others were worried about the opposite problem: adaptations relying too heavily on fan service rather than trying to tell a genuinely good story. One particularly cynical commenter predicted a string of “‘meh’ films that look exactly like the game,” packed with distracting Easter eggs and feeling more like commercials than movies. They couldn’t resist taking a shot at The Elder Scrolls fans either, joking that viewers would declare them masterpieces the moment someone mentioned an “arrow in the knee.”
For now, nothing is set in stone, but the reported plans show just how seriously Xbox could be taking Hollywood. With franchises as big as Halo, The Elder Scrolls, and Diablo potentially on the table, fans clearly aren’t short on ideas — they just hope whoever gets the keys remembers what made these games special in the first place.
