Xbox is buying Activision Blizzard and that may be an industry game-changer

Xbox and Microsoft have thrown their hat fully into the acquisition ring and announced that they are buying Activision Blizzard for a casual $68.7 billion.

This is insanely huge. Gaming studio acquisitions have ramped up by both Microsoft and Sony over the last few years, but this one tops the cake. It will make Microsoft the third-largest gaming company by revenue.

Because if it goes through and closes in 2023, that means Microsoft now owns Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Diablo, Candy Crush, Overwatch, and StarCraft, just to name the big ones. That’s not touching on other franchises like Spyro, Crash Bandicoot, and Tony Hawk’s among so many others.

This will most likely change the landscape of gaming subscription services. Game Pass is the better offering for Xbox, and with how lackluster Xbox Live Gold is from month to month and the temporary price hike that lasted all of six days, the times are changing. And that’s not touching on all of the rumors around what Sony plans to do with PlayStation Plus/PlayStation Now.

Microsoft’s CEO of gaming, Phil Spencer, already said that once the deal closes, they’ll absolutely be offering as many Activision Blizzard games as they can within Game Pass. And that will include games already out and future games to come. Which is fantastic news for Game Pass subscribers.

Because that then leads to the big question: Will Activision Blizzard games be console exclusives?

If that’s true and you’re strictly a Sony PlayStation person but love the heck out of your Call of Duty or your Diablo, that means the future of your gaming will look completely different. Eagerly awaiting Diablo 4? There’s a solid possibility we should be looking into getting an Xbox Series X or Snow so that we aren’t on the hunt for it closer to whenever Diablo 4 comes out.

And if/when the deal closes in 2023, everything could and probably will look completely different than how it does now. The news is so new that truly anything is possible at this point and we’ll be interested to see how it all unfolds.

Activision Blizzard has still been in hot water with the sexual harassment allegations and lawsuits. While Microsoft has said that CEO Bobby Kotick will stay on, you have to wonder if that’s keeping the status quo for now but has the potential to change the closer things get to closing, as most people have been calling for Kotick to step down with his handling of the allegations and culture.

It’s still very much a garbage fire mess that highlights many of the unhealthy working conditions within the gaming industry… to put it all very mildly. And it’s one that we can’t imagine Microsoft will want to hang around when the ink dries on the papers.

Are you excited about this deal between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard? Do you feel like the gaming industry is becoming too monopolized? Let us know in the comments!