In een blog post heeft Xbox-baas Phil Spencer aangegeven dat grote games van Activision Blizzard, zoals Diablo, Call of Duty en Overwatch, uiteindelijk ook zullen verschijnen op de Xbox Game Pass. Dit zal gebeuren nadat de overname volledig rond is.
De overname van Activision Blizzard zal pas ergens in 2023 voltooid zijn en Phil Spencer geeft dan ook aan dat de Call of Duty-games vanaf de dag van release ook uitgebracht zullen worden op PlayStation-consoles. De games zullen tevens gratis speelbaar zijn voor diegene die een Xbox Game Pass abonnement hebben.
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. Subscription services like Game Pass make gaming more affordable and help players from all over the world find their next favorite game. Game Pass empowers developers to bring more games to more players, not fewer. 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.
In doing so, we will pursue a principled path. We’ve heard that this deal might take franchises like Call of Duty away from the places where people currently play them. That’s why, as we’ve said before, we are committed to making the same version of Call of Duty available on PlayStation on the same day the game launches elsewhere. We will continue to enable people to play with each other across platforms and across devices. We know players benefit from this approach because we’ve done it with Minecraft, which continues to be available on multiple platforms and has expanded to even more since Mojang joined Microsoft in 2014. As we extend our gaming storefront across new devices and platforms, we will make sure that we do so in a manner that protects the ability of developers to choose how to distribute their games.
Microsoft heeft eerder dit jaar Activision Blizzard overgenomen, maar de deal is nog niet helemaal voltooid. Dit heeft te maken met diverse overheidsinstanties die moeten overzien dat dit goed gebeurt. Mocht de overname volledig zijn voltooid, is Microsoft eigenaar van populaire franchises zoals World of Warcraft, Diablo, Overwatch, Hearthstone, StarCraft, Call of Duty, Crash Bandicoot, Tony Hawk, Spyro the Dragon en Candy Crush.
