UPDATE: Microsoft’s new Gaming CEO says the company will respect all existing contractual agreements between Activision and Sony after this week’s acquisition announcement.
Spencer also stated a ‘desire’ to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation.
In a tweet, Spencer wrote: “Had good calls this week with leaders at Sony. I confirmed our intent to honor all existing agreements upon acquisition of Activision Blizzard and our desire to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation. Sony is an important part of our industry, and we value our relationship.”
The statement is far from definitive for worried PS5 owners and the future of Call of Duty on the platform – and others after those current agreements expire – remains very unclear.
Original story continues below…
Sony has reminded Microsoft of Activision’s ‘contractual agreements’ as PS4 and PS5 gamers fear for the future multi-platform availability of franchises like Call of Duty.
Amid Microsoft’s imminent acquisition of Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion, it’s possible that Microsoft may make the vast array of games Xbox/PC exclusives.
That would exclude PlayStation gamers from iconic franchises they have previously taken for granted. However, Sony isn’t about to let that happen. In a brief statement to the Wall Street Journal, the PS5-maker left Microsoft in no doubt about its expectations.
The statement reads: “We expect that Microsoft will abide by contractual agreements and continue to ensure Activision games are multi-platform.”
However, the details of those contractual agreements remain to be seen. Which games do they cover? How long are they in effect? Does Microsoft’s acquisition invalidate any agreements? Does Sony have legal options if they lose the games?
It seems that we might be heading towards a dispute over this, if Microsoft decides it wants franchises like Call of Duty, Crash Bandicoot, and Diablo exclusively for itself.
Earlier this week, Microsoft’s new Gaming CEO, Phil Spencer, told Bloomberg: “I’ll just say to players out there who are playing Activision Blizzard games on Sony’s platform: It’s not our intent to pull communities away from that platform and we remained committed to that.”
However, if recent trends continue, Microsoft will not hesitate in making its first-party property exclusive. After acquiring Bethesda, it quickly revealed that the upcoming Starfield game will not be available on PlayStation consoles. This could be a sign of things to come.
As I highlighted in my article today, Microsoft may be approaching a scenario where Xbox Game Pass is available on PS5, while my colleague Ryan Jones believes the future of PlayStation is looking bleak if it doesn’t change its strategy. Exciting times lie ahead. Is there one massive battle left in the console wars?
