Xbox Boss Explains Why Activision Games On Game Pass Are Delayed Until 2024
The acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft has been an item of interest for gamers everywhere. Government regulators have taken a keen interest too, resulting in delays. Microsoft is a dominant force in both the PC world and the gaming sectors of the market. Coupled with the fact that Activision Blizzard has some legendary titles that spark passionate reactions from gamers, it's a recipe for a potent mix here.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer recently went on the Xbox Podcast on YouTube and explained why we should expect Activision Blizzard games only in 2024 rather than by the end of this year. Why is this important? Xbox Game Pass is an excellent service that gives you tremendous bang-for-buck for gaming. I know that when a new release comes out, that's the first place I check before making a purchase on other platforms such as Steam.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer recently went on the Xbox Podcast on YouTube and explained why we should expect Activision Blizzard games only in 2024 rather than by the end of this year. Why is this important? Xbox Game Pass is an excellent service that gives you tremendous bang-for-buck for gaming. I know that when a new release comes out, that's the first place I check before making a purchase on other platforms such as Steam.
According to Phil Spencer, due to the unpredictable nature of this acquisition process, work is starting later than intended (fast forward to the 11m15sec mark in the video above). There's an obvious amount of grunt work that is required on the backend to properly get titles synced up with Game Pass, so that's understandable. It's likely going to take months to get it done, assuming there are no more hiccups.
In the very long term, this should be a great move for Microsoft. There are many future releases that are highly sought after as Xbox exclusives or at least enjoy more advantages. While this may irk some Sony Playstation owners who may miss some titles, Game Pass does cover both Xbox and PC gamers.
In the very long term, this should be a great move for Microsoft. There are many future releases that are highly sought after as Xbox exclusives or at least enjoy more advantages. While this may irk some Sony Playstation owners who may miss some titles, Game Pass does cover both Xbox and PC gamers.
We have some historical context with the Bethesda merge into Game Pass, but Activision Blizzard has been an entirely novel area. As the uncertainty disappears after the successful acquisition, the true work can begin. If they had preemptively started a process of getting games over to Game Pass, some regulatory stipulations could have surprised them or been stricter than expected.
Time will tell if this is going to be positive for gamers. Game Pass is liked overall, so there's a good chance many will benefit from having a larger library of quality titles to choose from. While it does risk segmenting some Sony and Nintendo gamers, those companies are historically prone to liking exclusives titles for themselves to begin with.
Time will tell if this is going to be positive for gamers. Game Pass is liked overall, so there's a good chance many will benefit from having a larger library of quality titles to choose from. While it does risk segmenting some Sony and Nintendo gamers, those companies are historically prone to liking exclusives titles for themselves to begin with.
