Newman on Minecraft sale: ‘I’d have done the same thing’

Facepunch Studios boss Garry Newman has said he would have made the same decisions as Notch regarding the sale of Mojang to Microsoft.

The Garry’s Mod and Rust creator wrote a personal blog – complete with an amusing infographic that illustrates how the internet backlash has lost perspective on the real impact of the deal – in which he disputed that the acquisition ultimately spells bad news for Minecraft.

"I’m sure Microsoft didn’t just buy it because they’re struggling desperately to stay relevant and some of their kids play it a lot. But even if they did, it really isn’t in their favour to pay a shitload of money for it and then completely fuck it up. That wouldn’t make any sense. Time will be the judge on that, I guess.

"Long story short, I’d have done the same thing. The money is enough to very much take care of all the staff. The game is in relatively safe hands. Mojang’s legacy is as a huge success story instead of a one-hit wonder. Everyone wins. Can you seriously say you’d have done it differently?"

The fate of the staff was the most important factor to Newman – making up 50 per cent of his ‘Things that matter’ infographic – with the dev explaining that in any acquisition, you must take care of your team.

"Once your start hiring people, your whole attitude changes," he wrote. "You’re not just fucking about with your life anymore, you’re fucking about with other people’s lives – and the lives of their families. You can’t just sell out and fuck everyone over.

"Companies like Blitz that go bust, don’t pay people what they were owed, let 175 staff go, then start up under another name almost straight away – those are the guys you don’t want to be. I am sure more than the top guys at Mojang became very financially rich due to this deal and that’s something that should be admired – not seen as a bad thing."

Earlier this week, Minecraft creator Markus ‘Notch’ Persson explained his reasons for selling on his own blog, saying that he preferred smaller projects to the behemoth that his construction game became.