Blizzard News Articles
Friday23rd Dec 2022
"The FTC ignores the significant benefits of the Transaction..."
Strap yourselves in, folks — here we go again! Earlier this month, the US Federal Trading Commission announced it was filing a suit against Microsoft's attempted takeover of Activision Blizzard, and now Microsoft and ActiBlizz have revealed their responses in court documents. The...
Wednesday21st Dec 2022
News CMA Reveals Public Feedback Has Been Mostly In Favour Of Xbox's ActiBlizz Acquisition
Based on around 2100 responses
The UK Competition and Markets Authority is currently conducting a "Phase 2" investigation into Microsoft's attempted acquisition of Activision Blizzard, and you may remember that a couple of months ago, the authority also began asking the general public for their views on the takeover. Well, those results are now in,...
Wednesday7th Dec 2022
News Microsoft Enters '10-Year Commitment' To Bring Call Of Duty To Nintendo Platforms
CoD will also continue to be offered on Steam
Following on from yesterday's news about Microsoft offering Sony a 10-year deal to keep the Call of Duty franchise on PlayStation, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has now delivered another huge update. In a brief post on social media, the Xbox boss announced Microsoft had entered into a "10-year...
Thursday24th Nov 2022
News Activision Blizzard 'Won't Hesitate To Fight' To Defend Xbox Deal
And in this corner...
Wednesday, November 23rd was another landmark day in the ongoing back-and-forth over Xbox's deal with Activision Blizzard. Recent statements from both Microsoft and Sony in response to the UK CMA's investigation of the deal were finally made public, while a r
Report US FTC 'Likely' To File Lawsuit Against Xbox's Activision Blizzard Deal
Uh-oh
Update: Activision has now responded to this report with a statement, revealing that the company "won't hesitate to fight to defend the transaction if that's needed". <related ids="141650"> Original story: More revelations regarding the Xbox Activision Blizzard deal have come to light in recent hours, with outlet
Monday7th Nov 2022
News Phil Spencer 'Excited' About Future Of StarCraft & Warcraft Under Xbox
"What could happen with those franchises is pretty exciting to me"
A lot has been said about the treasure trove of IP that Xbox would own after the Activision Blizzard merger, especially things like Call of Duty, Crash and Spyro, amongst other franchises. However, Blizzard has a lot to bring to the table as well, especially more PC-centric
News Diablo 4 Reportedly Launching On Xbox In April 2023
Possibly with a TGA 2022 reveal!
Well, some Diablo 4 release date reports are beginning to gain pace ahead of next month's The Game Awards event. Reported on by both Xbox Era and Windows Central, Blizzard is set to launch Diablo 4
Wednesday12th Oct 2022
News Take-Two CEO Backs Microsoft's Acquisition Of Activision Blizzard
"It's a good thing for Microsoft and for the industry"
We're hearing a lot of discourse online about Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard and whether it's a good or bad thing for the industry. In a recent video interview with The Grill, Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick was asked about his own thoughts, and mentioned how he's "in favour" and...
Tuesday11th Oct 2022
News Overwatch 2 Undergoes 'Emergency Maintenance' After More DDoS Attacks
Bastion & Torbjörn also temporarily removed
Blizzard's Overwatch 2 launch hasn't exactly gone smoothly and it seems like the company is still having trouble with all sorts of problems. Not long after it temporarily removed Bastion and Torbjörn from the game earlier today to iron out some bugs, its servers had another meltdown due to more DDoS...
Thursday6th Oct 2022
News Xbox Activision Blizzard Deal Officially Approved In Brazil
Another one off the list
Xbox's Activision Blizzard deal might be receiving its fair share of scrutiny from various government authorities, but it's beginning to pass the test in certain markets. Back in August, Saudi officials accepted the deal's terms with no changes needed, and now Brazil has officially approved the merger too. Hurrah! Brazil's...
News Overwatch 2's Servers Meltdown In 'Mass DDoS Attack' At Launch
Update: Existing players won't require a phone number
Update [Thu 6th Oct, 2022 06:30 BST]: Blizzard has published a new post on its announcement page, addressing the current state of the Overwatch 2 launch. Perhaps the most notable change, going live on October 7th, is the decision to remove phone number requirements for a majority of existing...
Wednesday5th Oct 2022
News UK Authority Sets March 2023 Deadline For Verdict On Xbox ActiBlizz Deal
Activate Phase 2
The UK government authority on market competition has laid out its timeline for delivering a verdict on Xbox's Activision Blizzard deal. Phase 2 of its analysis in now underway, and the final report is said to be delivered by March 1st, 2023. In theory, this means the deal won't go through until at least that date and even then,...
Tuesday4th Oct 2022
News Here's When Overwatch 2's Free-To-Play Launch Hits Xbox
All the timings for today's big switch
Well, it's finally happening! More than six years after Overwatch hit Xbox One, its follow-up is about to launch on Xbox platforms, this time as a free-to-play title (well, the multiplayer at least). With the move to F2P, you may be asking yourself, when can I try out the sequel? Overwatch 2 Xbox Release...
News Microsoft Lays Out 'Benefits' Of Xbox + Activision Blizzard On New Website
"More choice and more games for people everywhere"
Xbox is continuing to try and sell its case for merging with Activision Blizzard, via a new website that details the benefits that'll come from the merger. Microsoft's new online portal is dubbed "our vision for gaming", and it basically brings all the info on the deal under one roof, including the...
Friday23rd Sep 2022
News Microsoft CEO 'Very Confident' About Activision Blizzard Approval
The Xbox & ActiBlizz merge is ongoing
We've heard from Phil Spencer recently about how the Xbox Activision Blizzard deal is progressing, especially in regards to Call of Duty and its exclusivity terms moving forward. While some aspects of the merger seem uncertain at this stage, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella still seems pretty confident it'll all go...
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...
Wednesday10th Aug 2022
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...
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...
Thursday30th Jun 2022
News Diablo 2 Resurrected Update 2.4.3 Overhauls Multiplayer On Xbox
The patch is out now
Late last year, Diablo 2 Resurrected launched with a myriad of issues on Xbox, even prompting fans to call for refunds. Thankfully, things have been smoothened out since with a few patches, the latest of which pretty much overhauls the game's lobby system, among other major changes. The game's 'Party Finder' feature on console...
Wednesday29th Jun 2022
News Overwatch 2 Beta Now Live On Xbox Ahead Of Free-To-Play Launch
For sign-ups and 'Watchpoint Pack' purchasers at present
Blizzard is finally opening the gates on its Overwatch 2 beta this week, with the initial rollout on Xbox starting today! If you'd previously signed up and been accepted you should be able to enter now, or you can jump in by buying the
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...
Thursday16th Jun 2022
News Overwatch 2 Beta Heads To Xbox Later This Month
Update: Sign-ups now live!
Update: If you're interested in getting involved, you can now sign up for the Overwatch 2 beta on the game's official website, ahead of its arrival on Xbox on June 28th. "Those participating in the beta will be among the first to bring new hero Junker Queen to the battlefield. You’ll also get to check out new hero...
Monday13th Jun 2022
News Blizzard: Diablo 4 Is A 'Full-Priced Game Built Strictly For PC & Console Audiences'
Paid content will be "optional" cosmetics & expansions
One of the many highlights during the Xbox Bethesda Showcase was Diablo 4 spotlight - confirming the Necromancer class for the game and also new details about the gameplay and world. As promising as it looks, there have admittedly been some concerns raised about this fourth entry taking certain...
Friday10th Jun 2022
News Free Play Days: Try These Xbox Games For Free (June 9-12)
With Xbox Live Gold and Game Pass Ultimate
E3 season might be in full swing, but we've not forgotten about Free Play Days! This weekend's selection of free Xbox games is a solid one as well, headlined by the inclusion of Blizzard's Diablo III. Here are the three games you can download right now as part of Free Play Days: Dead by Daylight
