Absolutely no one in the video game industry expected that today, January 18, one of the most important movements in the history of entertainment would take place. Microsoft announced the purchase of Activision Blizzard, one of the largest video game publishers in the world, for $68.7 billion. Obviously, the public has many doubts about what the future of franchises like Call of Duty once the acquisition is completed.
Among the questions that resonate most at the moment are the following: Do video games Call of Duty Will they be exclusive to Xbox and PC consoles? Will PlayStation run out of it? First Person Shooter most popular in the industry? It is normal for these questions to arise, especially since we are talking about a game that distributes millions of copies annually. However, PlayStation gamers can rest easy — for now.
Phil Spencer, head of Xbox, commented the following to Bloomberg to dispel doubts and convey peace of mind: “I will only say to gamers who enjoy Activision Blizzard games on the Sony platform: it is not our intention to drive communities away from that platform And we remain committed to that.”
A Microsoft spokesperson issued this statement: “Activision Blizzard games exist on a variety of platforms today, and we plan to continue to support those communities in the future. The acquisition is about increasing the availability of Activision content.” Blizzard on more platforms, including mobile.”
Call-duty on Xbox Game Pass is the real blow on the table
While Microsoft has made no specific mention of Call of Duty, it is intuited that the games of this franchise they could continue to see the light on Sony consoles. Why? Because Activision’s FPS has a massive community on PlayStation consoles. If the titles of Call of Duty become exclusive, Microsoft would be contradicting their words.
To be honest, those in Redmond do not need to convert to Call of Duty in an exclusive series to make your purchase profitable. They can continue to make considerable profits from the sale of games on PlayStation and, at the same time, attract new players to their platform because the new Call of Duty, perhaps from 2023, they will surely arrive on Xbox Game Pass from day one. The latter is what should really concern Sony, even more so when the launch of its own service is rumored to compete with Xbox Game Pass.
In case of Overwatch, Devil, world of warcraft, star craft Y crash bandicoot, to mention a few franchises, will be different. Here we could get used to the idea of an exclusive strategy as soon as the regulatory bodies give the green light to the acquisition.