Microsoft’s purchase ofActivision Blizzardis one of the biggest video game news story of the last decade.Activision Blizzard is one of the largest third-party publishersin the industry, so fans were naturally concerned about the future of these games on competing platforms.
There was a lot of speculation around whether franchises likeCall of DutyandOverwatchwill only be available on Xbox and PC after some time. After all,Starfieldis scheduled to be an Xbox console exclusive. Activision had earlier confirmed thatat least 3Call of Dutygames will be released on PlayStation consoles, but there was no guarantee that future games will not be exclusive. Now, Microsoft has released a new statement that will perhaps ease these fears.
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In a blog post, Brad Smith, President & Vice Chairman of Microsoft, confirms thatCall of Dutyand other popular Activision Blizzard titles will be available on PlayStation devicesbeyond the current agreements. Smith acknowledges the concerns of the PlayStation user base and promises that Sony fans will be able to play the games they love. Similarly, Smith mentions that Microsoft intends to support Nintendo’s successful platforms. Finally, the post states that Microsoft believes that this is the right thing to do for gamers and the industry.
It is great to see Microsoft being this clear on the future ofCall of Duty, and other Activision Blizzard games, on PlayStation and Nintendo platforms. This post was perhaps aimed at quelling all fears for the foreseeable future, and fans now have a clear-cut answer that addresses their concerns.
Microsoft was perhaps influenced bySony’s clear explanation of the future of Bungie. Sony acquired Bungie and theDestinyIP for $3.6 billion USD, but Bungie will maintain creative control and the ability to release games on any platform. Sony had clearly stated that all current and future games in development at Bungie will remain multi-platform.
Aside fromCall ofDuty,Activision Blizzard owns a lot of popular multi-platform franchises. PlayStation fans were rightfully afraid that this acquisition would result in them missing out onCrash Bandicoot,Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater,Diablo, andOverwatch. Thankfully, it looks like PlayStation and Nintendo users will continue to get new games in these franchises even after the end of contractual agreements. Although, players can expect these games to launch on day 1 on Xbox Game Pass, as opposed to being fully priced releases on PS5 and Switch.
