Phil Spencer himself has confirmed Xbox’s intention to add Activision franchises such as Call of Duty, Overwatch, and Diablo to the Xbox Game Pass lineup
Let’s be honest as soon as we heard about the acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft we all had an inclination about what was coming and it has now been confirmed by Xbox Gaming boss Phil Spencer himself.
The information was confirmed in a blog post by Xbox CEO Phil Spencer, who talked about Microsoft’s plans for Activision Blizzard’s intellectual property after the company’s ongoing acquisition.
The blog post states:
“Game developers around the world are creating innovative and groundbreaking games. We think that we can do more to bring those experiences to the billions of players everywhere. Our announcement in January that we intend to acquire Activision Blizzard was an important milestone in our journey to do so. Since then, regulators, game developers, and players have been asking what the acquisition means for the industry and, most importantly, for players.
We intend to make Activision Blizzard’s much-loved library of games – including Overwatch, Diablo, and Call of Duty – available in Game Pass and to grow those gaming communities. By delivering even more value to players, we hope to continue growing Game Pass, extending its appeal to mobile phones and any connected device.”
Spencer also reaffirms Microsoft’s pledge to maintain the multiplatform nature of well-known Activision Blizzard games, using its treatment of Minecraft as an illustration. Additionally, the company wants to bring Activision’s portfolio to mobile platforms and stream it to other devices so that it may be played there.
To reiterate this Spencer states:
“While we love consoles, we recognize that they are not the only way that people play games. Today, the largest and fastest growing segment of gaming is mobile platforms.
To reach the billions of players where they are and no matter what device they play on, we need to embrace choice. Giving players choices in how they play their games makes gaming more accessible and leads to larger, more vibrant communities of players.
Choice is equally important to developers. Developers benefit from having a diversity of distribution and business models for their games. Choice unlocks opportunities for innovation and enables the industry to grow.
We are expanding choice in two ways: through the creation of Game Pass, which gives players a subscription option; and by bringing more games to mobile platforms, including through our cloud game streaming technology.”
Activision Blizzard’s acquisition by Microsoft is anticipated to close in the summer of 2023. How long it will take for these franchises to appear on Game Pass after that is anyone’s guess.
On the Blizzard side, Diablo IV appears to be years away, and Overwatch 2 comes on October 4 in free-to-play early access. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II debuts in October, but the series is said to skip 2023, delaying the launch of the first installment under the Microsoft label until at least 2024.