Activision News Articles
Tuesday20th Sep 2022
News EA Sees 'Tremendous Opportunity' If Call Of Duty Goes Xbox Exclusive
Beyond the existing agreement
There's been a lot of back and forth recently between Xbox and PlayStation over the future of Call of Duty. Microsoft feels that it's laid out a generous plan for the next few years of CoD if the Activision deal goes through, while Sony doesn't feel the same way. Now, EA has had something to say on the matter; they...
Thursday1st Sep 2022
News Xbox's 'Approach' With Starfield Is Leading To More ActiBlizz Scrutiny
The UK CMA is once again concerned
Earlier today, we covered a little bit about the UK Competition and Markets Authority's concerns over the Activision Blizzard deal. Those concerns mostly related to how big some of Activision's games are, and whether Microsoft owning them could harm competition. Well, the whole first phase document has now been...
News Microsoft Says Sony Doesn't Need To Be 'Worried' About Call Of Duty Exclusivity
"We want people to have more access to games, not less"
Well, Microsoft seems to be on it today with its responses to concerns over the Activision Blizzard deal! Xbox boss Phil Spencer just put out a lengthy response to matters, discussing multiple elements of the merger, and now Microsoft president Brad Smith has made his own statement on things...
News Phil Spencer: We Intend To Put 'Call Of Duty, Diablo, Overwatch' On Xbox Game Pass
But when Phil, WHEN?!
As the Xbox ActiBlizz deal continues to push on through its regulatory rounds, Xbox boss Phil Spencer has come out with a fresh statement on what the deal means for the industry. Within that statement, Spencer talks about Xbox's Game Pass growth, and how the Activision deal will help expand the service. The Xbox boss says that...
News Xbox's Phil Spencer Responds To 'Concerns' Over Activision Blizzard Deal
"We will pursue a principled path"
Earlier today, the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) revealed that it had "concerns" over Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard, and now Xbox's Phil Spencer has penned a long public letter in response. Speaking on the Microsoft website, Spencer recognised that "regulators, game developers and...
News UK Authority Reveals 'Concerns' Over Xbox's Acquisition Of Activision Blizzard
It could end up being investigated further
Update: Xbox boss Phil Spencer has now responded to this in a long letter on the Microsoft website: Read More: Xbox's Phil Spencer Responds To 'Concerns' Over Activision Blizzard Deal Original story: We've got some not-so-good news to share on the progress of the Activision Blizza
Wednesday24th Aug 2022
News Xbox Continues To Look For Potential Acquisitions, Says Phil Spencer
Especially in different markets
Xbox boss Phil Spencer has sat down with Bloomberg to discuss all things Xbox, as the industry focuses on Gamescom 2022. Microsoft's head of gaming expressed how he feels about the ongoing Activision Blizzard deal, while also touching on what could potentially come next. In short, Spencer says the company continues...
Monday22nd Aug 2022
News Xbox Activision Blizzard Deal Officially Approved By Saudi Authority
The Asian nation is the first to publicly approve the deal
Since Xbox announced its plans to acquire Activision Blizzard, official approval of the deal by nations around the world has been a key topic of discussion. The FTC is scrutinising the deal over in the US, while the UK CMA is taking a good long look at proceedings over here. Well, we've now...
Friday19th Aug 2022
News Call Of Duty Is Going Full Nostalgia With Latest Series Update
Black Ops 2 leads the way
Activision has revealed all the juicy deets for Call of Duty: Warzone & Vanguard Season 5; the final effort before the series moves on to Modern Warfare 2 & Warzone 2. Things are getting pretty mental in the final season to be honest, as CoD goes into full nostalgia mode with crossovers. Leading the way is Season...
Wednesday17th Aug 2022
News Crash Bandicoot Developer Appears To Be Working On New Game
Crash, bash.
It's been a couple of years now since developer Toys For Bob launched the well-received Crash Bandicoot 4, following a sizeable gap since the series' prior original effort. Well, it seems the Activision-owned studio is now cooking something else up. The developer recently took to Twitter to show off its 'Wall of Games', a huge plaque...
News Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Gets New Release Date
And it's not a delay!
Activision has announced that the story campaign for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will now release a week earlier than initially scheduled, with a new date of October 21st. The company is introducing an early access period specifically for the game's campaign mode, however, there's a slight catch. First off, this is...
Friday12th Aug 2022
News Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Multiplayer Teaser Emerges From Unlikely Source
TikTok for you cool kids
Most Call of Duty fans have stuck with the series for so long due to the game's vast suite of multiplayer modes. It's only natural then, that each year, multiplayer gameplay is what we're all eager to see. Ahead of the series' 'Call of Duty Next' reveal event next month, developer Infinity Ward has shown an initial glimpse...
Thursday11th Aug 2022
Rumour Call Of Duty: Black Ops 4's Scrapped Campaign Sounded Pretty Unique
In the end, we got 'Blackout' instead
At the time of its reveal back in 2018, there was quite a lot of attention surrounding the omission of a campaign mode in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. In a first for the series, Treyarch ultimately opted to ship Black Ops 4 without a single player campaign; the 'Blackout' battle royale mode filled that gap. Well,...
Wednesday10th Aug 2022
News Nevermind, Call Of Duty: Black Ops 2 Isn't Still Charting In The UK
Update: Mistakes were made, it was Black Ops 3!
Update: Well, unfortunately this didn't turn out to be the case! GamesIndustry.biz has updated their GSD UK July Top 20 Video Games table to include Black Ops 3 rather than Black Ops 2, so it looks like they just confused the titles. It's still a surprise considering Black Ops 3 released back in 2015...
News Blizzard Is Removing Premium Loot Boxes From Overwatch This Month
See ya!
Blizzard has announced in a new blog post that premium loot boxes, i.e. loot boxes you can pay real money for, will be removed from Overwatch at the end of August. They currently remain in place for the game's 'Anniversary Remix' event, but after that, they're being withdrawn from sale. The ongoing event concludes August 30th, so by the end...
Monday8th Aug 2022
News Call Of Duty To Detail The 'Immediate Future' Of The Franchise At September Showcase
Next level
Activision and Infinity Ward have shared details about an upcoming showcase set to reveal the future of the Call of Duty franchise. The 'Call of Duty Next' event takes place September 15th, with a lot more than Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer on show. Hosted by developer Infinity Ward, the livestream will break down the "immediate future of...
News Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Beta Dates Confirm PlayStation Exclusivity Window
It's still coming to Xbox, just later
Ahead of Infinity Ward's big Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 launch later this year, the developer has revealed when we can all go hands on with the game's open beta. While there's plenty of Xbox time included across two weekends, sadly, we do have to wait longer than those playing on PlayStation. Here are they...
Friday5th Aug 2022
News Diablo 4 Playtests Reportedly Creating 'Positive Buzz' At Blizzard
Is this one immortal?
Diablo 4 development over at Blizzard seems to be going down pretty well, at least according to a tidbit from Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier. Schreier took to Twitter earlier this week to talk about an ongoing Diablo 4 playtest, even if those taking part are under NDA. Because of that NDA, we don't get too many details...
Monday1st Aug 2022
News PlayStation Seems Worried About Xbox Owning Call Of Duty
Sony says the series 'has no rival'
We all know how incredibly popular Call of Duty is, and just how big of a deal Xbox owning the brand could potentially be. However, most of us don't have quite as much stock in the series as Sony does, and what happens to CoD is clearly of huge interest to the PlayStation owner. In a Q&A between Sony and a...
Monday18th Jul 2022
News Xbox's Activision Blizzard Purchase Could Be FTC-Approved By Next Month
Microsoft has reportedly submitted all relevant info
Xbox's monumental acquisition of Activision Blizzard is the biggest of its kind in the gaming industry. It's had multiple hurdles to jump over to get closer to actually happening, but one of the most noteworthy might be about to pass. According to a report by the financial analysts over at...
Wednesday6th Jul 2022
News Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Xbox Beta Dates Appear To Have Leaked
PlayStation exclusivity remains
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (not the 2009 one) launches October 28th this year, with long-time developer Infinity Ward at the helm once again in 2022. Recently, publisher Activision confirmed that a beta would precede the game's launch, and thanks to a new leak, we may now know when it's coming to Xbox! Prominent...
News Xbox's Activision Blizzard Deal Is Being Scrutinised In The UK
Under the microscope
With the huge Xbox Activision Blizzard deal still going through various phases, it's beginning to face scrutiny in various markets. The latest of which is the UK, where the region's Competition and Markets Authority is now looking into the deal and whether it could harm competition in the market. CNBC reports that the UK...
Monday4th Jul 2022
News Call Of Duty 2023's Reported Free-To-Play Offering Thrown Into Doubt
'DMZ' won't be free
Back in February, we brought news of a report detailing Call of Duty's upcoming release slate. That report said that developer Treyarch's next CoD will now launch in 2024, and that a free-to-play title would fill the gap next year. However, a fresh report from leaker Tom Henderson has thrown that supposed plan into doubt. Given...
Thursday23rd Jun 2022
News 'Scarface 2' Footage Appears Online As Cancelled Xbox 360 Era Title
'Scarface: Empires'
In the wake of the GTA series exploding in popularity on PS2, everyone was out there making GTA clones. Well, not everyone but you catch our drift; there were plenty coming out around that time. One of those was 2006's Scarface: The World Is Yours, which came to the original Xbox, and now footage has surfaced of a 360-era sequel...
Tuesday21st Jun 2022
News Tony Hawk Had Plans For More Pro Skater Remasters, But They Got Scrapped
Vicarious Visions was absorbed by Blizzard
Even before the success of the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 remaster, Tony and the talented team at Vicarious Visions had plans for more remasters. Apparently, the next one was meant to be based on the third and fourth games, but in the end, they never got there due to all the "stuff" going on with...
Wednesday8th Jun 2022
News Modern Warfare 2 Has No Xbox One-Only Version, Base Game Now $70
Cross-gen only
Activision has dropped the official gameplay reveal trailer for Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, along with detailing the game's release and what editions will be available. Unlike the last two years — where standalone last-gen versions were $60 — the base game is now $70, featuring access across both console generations. The base...
Wednesday25th May 2022
News Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Contains PlayStation Exclusive Bonus
The game's beta is set to launch first on PS4/PS5
After Infinity Ward graced us all with the launch date for the next Call of Duty (surprise, it's out this fall), other details began to trickle out about the game and its release. Thanks to the PlayStation store, along with a bit of datamining, we now know that the Sony exclusivity deal continues, at...
Thursday19th May 2022
News Xbox Activision Blizzard Deal Is 'Moving Fast' Says Microsoft President
But it's not there yet
Microsoft shattered the gaming landscape earlier this year by announcing its intentions to acquire Activision Blizzard. We're a good few months on from the announcement now, and Microsoft thinks things are going well, at this stage. Microsoft president Brad Smith recently discussed the deal with Belgian outlet L'
Wednesday18th May 2022
News New 'Warzone 2' Rumours Point Towards A More Traditional Battle Royale
Suited and looted
Back in February, Activision Blizzard and co. began to open up about upcoming Call of Duty plans. Since then, we've learnt a tiny bit more about 2022's premium release, Modern Warfare II, but not too much about the free-to-play sequel to Warzone. Some new rumours are now doing the rounds about a supposed 'Warzone 2', a
Friday13th May 2022
News Elden Ring Has Outsold Call Of Duty: Vanguard In The US
A new duty calls
The Elden Ring success stories just keep on coming. Earlier this week, we learnt that by the end of March 2022 the game had shipped 13 million copies. As it turns out, by the end of April 2022 it had managed to outsell the biggest name in gaming. That's right, in just two months on the market, Elden Ring has outsold Call of Duty:...
