Sony expects Microsoft to keep Activision Blizzard-developed games multiplatform, it’s stated.
Earlier today on January 20, a Sony spokesperson said as much to the Wall Street Journal. “We expect that Microsoft will abide by contractual agreements and continue to ensure Activision games are multiplatform,” the spokesperson told the outlet.
This is obviously a massive question that was immediately on the mind of players worldwide, when Microsoft announced the forthcoming acquisition of Activision Blizzard earlier this week. It was entirely possible that the company would make games like Call of Duty or Crash Bandicoot exclusive to Xbox platforms, cutting out PlayStation players entirely.
Several pieces of information could contradict this, though, including the new statement from Sony on contractual agreements. Firstly, Xbox boss Phil Spencer stress that the acquisition isn’t meant to “pull communities away” from PlayStation platforms. Secondly, one analyst believes that Call of Duty exclusivity for Xbox would make the acquisition “hard to get past regulators.”
Microsoft has a history of abiding by existing contractual agreements. When the company announced the acquisition of Bethesda parent company Zenimax back in 2020, Microsoft made it clear that they would follow the deals in place for Arkane’s Deathloop and Tango’s Ghostwire: Tokyo on PS5, for example.
However, it’s also reserved other upcoming Bethesda-developed games for Xbox platforms, revealing the upcoming Starfield to be an exclusive for Xbox and PC platforms, stamping out the possibility of a PlayStation launch. It’s still incredibly early days for the new acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft, and it even remains to be seen whether the deal will actually receive the approval of regulators, but for now we’ll have to wait and see what Microsoft ultimately does with Activision Blizzard’s extensive catalog of games.
Here’s what the new acquisition by Microsoft could mean for Activision Blizzard games and studios.