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We’re approaching one year since Microsoft announced its acquisition of Activision Blizzard. The company is still waiting on final verification so that it can go through with the deal, and we expect this to continue for several more months. However, what we know now is that Phil Spencer wants to keep Call of Duty on the PlayStation platform.
This was one of the main concerns surrounding this acquisition, as Call of Duty is one of the biggest game franchises in the world. We were all wondering if it would become an Xbox exclusive. While we had news that Microsoft and Sony agreed to three additional Call of Duty games on PlayStation, it appears that this might not be the case.
Phil Spencer wants to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation
The Verge recently did an interview with Xbox gaming CEO Phil Spencer, and a major focus of the interview was on what Microsoft plans to do with Call of Duty. During the interview, Spencer talked about how the company really plans on treating the franchise.
What we can tell, at least from Phil Spencer’s mouth, is that the company does not want to take Call of Duty away from PlayStation at all. This is even after three more Call of Duty games are released. He previously made a statement saying that Call of Duty will be on PlayStation for as long as there’s a PlayStation. That gives us high hopes.
This problem stems from a misconception
One issue that Spencer points to is the misconception that many people have. At the moment, Sony and Microsoft don’t have a multi-year deal to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation, and that’s what gets people worried. And, Spencer mentioned this in the interview. “There seems to be some notion that you have to have a long-term structure in order to continue to support… other platforms.”
And, that’s true! People expect there to be a textbook-thick contract outlining a specific multi-year deal. That’s absolutely justified, however. Having this stuff in writing is reassuring.
However, Spencer says that they don’t need a multi-year deal nor a contract that states that Call of Duty will be on PlayStation “forever”.
Spencer cites another acquired Microsoft property to put people at ease
During the interview, he used Minecraft as an example. The massive game has been under Microsoft’s thumb for nearly a decade. However, Minecraft has made its way to platforms such as the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo Switch, and a boatload more. Microsoft does not have multi-year deals with other companies to keep Minecraft on other devices.
Spencer stated that that’s the model that Microsoft wants to use for Call of Duty. It seems that Spencer wants to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation unconditionally, and the company would even be open to Call of Duty coming on to the Nintendo Switch. However, that’s not too likely.
One thing that Phil Spencer said really says it all. He is more worried about the customers than the competition. Bringing Call of Duty exclusively over to Xbox’s camp will negatively impact players. Tons of PlayStation customers play and love Call of Duty, so that’s why it will remain on that platform.