Microsoft Explains Why Call Of Duty Won't Leave PlayStation
Since the news of Microsoft's plans to acquire Activision Blizzard broke back in January, the proposed purchase has received a lot of attention due to the massive notoriety of both companies. The deal would be so massive that the U.S. government has even gotten involved to investigate concerns of a potential monopoly. Naturally, this hasn't been an overnight process. In fact, the company is currently in hearings with the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (CADE) in Brazil, and some interesting intel has emerged from this process including Sony and Microsoft duking it out over game distribution and exclusivity worries.
For any PlayStation gamers and "Call of Duty" fans worried about the possibility of the game going Xbox exclusive, recent comments from Microsoft should come as quite the relief. Through these CADE hearings, Microsoft has given "Call of Duty" players some peace about the potential acquisition and what it means for the game's presence on PlayStation.
Though Xbox head Phil Spencer is a big proponent of making games widely available, fans still wanted more assurance after January 2022 when he explained his desire for "Call of Duty" to stay on PlayStation. PlayStation's concerns came up again through the CADE hearings, and Microsoft's response has offered even more clarity.
Microsoft thinks it makes sense for Call of Duty to stay on PlayStation
Thanks to a document shared with CADE (via VGC), Microsoft has cleared the air about the future of "Call of Duty." As the company wrote out in response to concerns from Sony, "Regardless of how unsurprising Sony's criticism of content exclusivity is – given that PlayStation's entire strategy has been centered on exclusivity over the years – the reality is that the strategy of retaining Activision Blizzard's games by not distributing them in rival console shops would simply not be profitable for Microsoft."
Clearly, Microsoft did not mince words. The company elaborated further, listing many reasons why it wouldn't make sense to make "Call of Duty" a console exclusive. Some reasons cited for opting out of console exclusivity included missed revenue from PlayStation sales, specific costs tied to exclusivity, and a lack of competitive impact. In other words, fans of "Call of Duty" can rest assured that the game will stay available on PlayStation consoles, as changing this would not be a good business or financial move for multiple reasons.
All in all, Microsoft's explanation was so thorough it left no room for doubt or concern regarding the widely feared "Call of Duty" exclusivity.