Microsoft Buys Activision Blizzard
It's a good day to be TEAM XBOX. Microsoft have just broken the news that they've bought the entire Activision Blizzard games studio. That includes massive franchises like Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Crash Bandicoots, Overwatch, Candy Crush and so many more. While the amount paid by Microsoft/Xbox for the studio is unconfirmed at this point, rumours point to a staggering $70 Billion sale (around R1 Trillion). This serves as the biggest Microsoft acquisition ever. Those plugged into the stock market have also caught wind of the deal with Activision Blizzard up almost 40% on pre-market.
"Over many decades, the studios and teams that make up Activision Blizzard have earned vast wellsprings of joy and respect from billions of people all over the world," Xbox boss Phil Spencer said. "We are incredibly excited to have the chance to work with the amazing, talented, dedicated people across Activision Publishing, Blizzard Entertainment, Beenox, Demonware, Digital Legends, High Moon Studios, Infinity Ward, King, Major League Gaming, Radical Entertainment, Raven Software, Sledgehammer Games, Toys for Bob, Treyarch, and every team across Activision Blizzard."
Until the deal closes, Microsoft and Activision Blizzard will operate independently, Microsoft said. If and when it does, the Activision Blizzard team will report to Spencer as the CEO of Microsoft Gaming. Spencer said Microsoft will add "as many Activision Blizzard games as we can" to Xbox Game Pass for PC and console, including new games and catalog titles.
This is massive news for Game Pass and its ever-growing user-base, a feature many consider to be a killer aspect that PlayStation currently lacks. For those who don't know, Microsoft Game Pass is a subscription based way of playing games. Think Netflix for games. You don't buy games, you pay a lower monthly subscription and have access to a massive and growing library of games. With Activation Blizzard now owned by Microsoft, that massive game collection is about to get A LOT bigger!
Spencer went on to say that buying Activision Blizzard will help "accelerate our plans" for cloud gaming. "Activision Blizzard games are enjoyed on a variety of platforms and we plan to continue to support those communities moving forward," he said.