As the likelihood of Microsoft’s massive deal to acquire Activision-Blizzard comes closer to fruition, it’s time to consider what this could truly mean for the gaming industry. Xbox head Phil Spencer, in a recent interview with IGN, tempered expectations about Activision-Blizzard games coming to Game Pass and warned that it will take time for these games to arrive on the service.

Immediately Addressing a question about Call of Duty and other Activision games joining Microsoft’s Game Pass subscription service, Spencer said, “People think it’s all just going to happen immediately when the deal closes. That’s not true. We’ve got work to do, just getting the deal closed and getting the teams working together. There’s content that has existing commitments to other platforms, and we’re gonna go honor those commitments.” Spencer also added that this delay isn’t unique to the Activision-Blizzard acquisition, mentioning that Microsoft has always needed time to bring acquired studios’ local games to Game Pass. However, this assertion contradicts previous instances. When looking at Microsoft’s acquisition of Bethesda in 2021, Bethesda’s games began appearing on Game Pass just three days after the acquisition was finalized.

Interestingly, during the interview, Spencer cleverly sidestepped details about Call of Duty’s journey to Game Pass. He didn’t explicitly confirm or deny whether Call of Duty titles will come to the service.

Meanwhile, Microsoft’s $70 billion acquisition of Activision-Blizzard is expected to be completed this fall. Given that there is already an existing deal with PlayStation, it’s unlikely that Call of Duty will immediately debut on Game Pass. If all goes well and Activision can be convinced to bring the Call of Duty franchise to Game Pass from day one, this might occur in the following year or in a game release in 2026.

Final Thoughts

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