Featured Image Credit: Activision
Topics: Call Of Duty, Xbox, Microsoft, PlayStation
Microsoft has confirmed that Activision Blizzard titles will remain on PlayStation "beyond existing agreements".
This is the first official confirmation we've had that series like Call Of Duty and Overwatch will remain on Sony's console, despite Microsoft's historic acquisition of Activision Blizzard for nearly $69 billion.
Microsoft president Brad Smith confirmed the news in a piece published explaining how the company aims to get regularity approval for its takeover. There was some concern that the notion of taking a franchise as big as Call Of Duty and making it platform exclusive would prevent the acquisition from going ahead.
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"To be clear, Microsoft will continue to make Call of Duty and other popular Activision Blizzard titles available on PlayStation through the term of any existing agreement with Activision," Smith writes (via IGN). "And we have committed to Sony that we will also make them available on PlayStation beyond the existing agreement and into the future so that Sony fans can continue to enjoy the games they love."
Smith added that Microsoft also wants to keep releasing Activision Blizzard games Nintendo consoles, although I'm not sure any Switch owners out there would be particularly cut up if they didn't.
"We are also interested in taking similar steps to support Nintendo’s successful platform," Smith said. "We believe this is the right thing for the industry, for gamers and for our business."
It's worth noting that Smith doesn't say all Activision Blizzard will remain multiplatform. While Call Of Duty might well continue to release on PlayStation, there's no way that Microsoft won't make sure at least one or two classic Activision franchises don't become Xbox exclusive. If I were a betting man, I'd say you could kiss goodbye to Crash and Spyro on Sony consoles.