As Phil Spencer vaguely promised just a few days ago, the relationship between Activision Blizzard and Xbox has indeed changed. The past 24 hours saw Microsoft announce its acquisition of the Call of Duty publisher, effectively unloading legions of IPs into the house that Master Chief built. The seismic $70 billion deal is rivaled only by Disney’s own buyout of Fox, but hey, at least Xbox Game Pass will get a huge boost if or when the deal officially goes through.

As part of the official acquisition announcement, Phil Spencer, the newly-named CEO of Microsoft Gaming, expressed excitement regarding the influx of properties under the Xbox umbrella and teased the colossal possibilities of Xbox Game Pass moving forward – namely, the Activision Blizzard game library. “Upon close, we will offer as many Activision Blizzard games as we can within Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass,” Spencer explained, “both new titles and games from Activision Blizzard’s incredible catalog.”

As Activision Blizzard owns a popular collection of decade-spanning franchises like Overwatch, Crash Bandicoot, and even Candy Crush, the idea of each potentially coming to Game Pass is surely overwhelming for members of Microsoft’s subscription service. Shortly after Bethesda was acquired in 2021, Game Pass was quickly bustling with franchises such as Fallout and The Elder Scrolls, and one might assume the likes of Spyro and Starcraft might also be rolled out in a similar manner.

Even as the deal still has a ways to go before concluding, it seems Phil Spencer is already underway on some massive plans for Activision Blizzard, particularly when it comes to Xbox’s game streaming platform. “​​The fantastic franchises across Activision Blizzard will also accelerate our plans for Cloud Gaming,” Spencer added, “allowing more people in more places around the world to participate in the Xbox community using phones, tablets, laptops and other devices you already own.”

​What do you think? Are you excited about the possibilities of Activision Blizzard games on Xbox Game Pass, or are you more concerned about the monumental control Microsoft will soon have over the gaming industry? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter and Facebook to be informed of the latest gaming and entertainment news 24 hours a day!​

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