Xbox boss Phil Spencer just confirmed via Twitter that he has spoken to Sony executives and reaffirmed their intention to honor all existing agreements following the acquisition of Activision Blizzard. In essence, Spencer has confirmed that Call of Duty will remain on PlayStation after the acquisition, which likely means a big sigh of relief in the PlayStation camp.
Shortly after Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard, there were many concerns about whether popular franchises like Call of Duty would remain multi-platform. While it makes sense for Microsoft to block games like Call of Duty for Xbox, it looks like they’re playing ball with Sony at the moment.
For now, no one can guess how long Xbox will continue to deliver Activision Blizzard’s biggest franchises to other platforms.
Xbox CEO Phil Spencer confirms Call of Duty will stay on PlayStation
A similar situation arose recently when Microsoft acquired Bethesda’s parent ZeniMax Media for $7.5 billion. At the time, Xbox confirmed that previous exclusivity agreements with Sony for games like Deathloop would be honored.
However, Microsoft is moving in the direction of turning major acquisitions into exclusives, such as the long-awaited sci-fi game Starfield, which will only be available on Xbox and PC when it launches. Similarly, Microsoft has hinted that other major games, such as the legendary Elder Scrolls sequel, may have a similar fate.
For now, it looks like future Call of Duty games will stay on the PlayStation, but chances are Microsoft will pull out a “time-exclusive”card at any time. Bearing in mind that games will likely also be available on Xbox Game Pass, it will be much more difficult for Sony to move copies across its platform.