The gaming industry is still feeling the tremor caused by Microsoft‘s historic acquisition of Activision, and while this holds a great deal of promise for Xbox gamers, Sony’s PlayStation is stuck in a moral quagmire.
What does Microsoft’s acquisition mean?
As indicated in a report by Bloomberg, Microsoft’s acquisition is a lot more complex than many may think. Dina Bass and Nate Lanxon write that the deal, valued at a whopping $68.7 billion (est. R1.04 trillion), plays into Microsoft’s plans of steering its core focus towards mobile gaming and the metaverse.
“Gaming has been key to Microsoft since our earliest days as a company. Today, it’s the largest and fastest-growing form of entertainment, and as the digital and physical worlds come together, it will play a critical role in the development of metaverse platforms,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella noted in a statement to employees.
The deal, however, will not go through without regulatory red tape and a slew of legal issues faced by Activision. But, as Nadella indicated, this is something Microsoft knew before committing to the purchase.
“We also recognise that after the close, we will have significant work to do in order to continue to build a culture where everyone can do their best work,” he told investors
Will PlayStation users get access to Activision games?
For experts observing the movements of the deal, this is an early sign of a content war brewing between Xbox and PlayStation. Activision is a legendary developer with high-grossing titles Call of Duty and World of Warcraft and, once the deal closes, all matters relating to these games will in the hands of Microsoft.
Whether the acquisition means Activision games will be exclusive to Xbox in the future remains to be seen. However, as a Sony spokesperson told The Wall Street Journal, nothing more can be done but hope that Microsoft makes moral decisions in its dealings.
“We expect that Microsoft will abide by contractual agreements and continue to ensure Activision games are multiplatform,” the spokesperson said.
