Pushing Buttons: What the biggest deal in games history means for Call of Duty, Overwatch and more

And so it’s finally over. Last week, Microsoft completed its $69bn purchase of Activision Blizzard, sealing a deal that many called the biggest in video game history (although they are overlooking the 1965 merger of Nihon Goraku Bussan and Rosen Enterprises to form the glorious Sega Enterprises, but let’s not get into that).

Microsoft was keen to slightly downplay the significance of the moment in its own press release, pointing out that it will become only, “the world’s third-largest [emphasis my own] gaming company by revenue, behind Tencent and Sony”. However, we all understand the awesome power it now wields, with Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Overwatch and Candy Crush Saga under its command.

How will this affect us, the gamers? Not much to begin with. There won’t be a sudden influx of Activision Blizzard titles on the Xbox Game Pass subscription service. In his , Xbox chief Phil Spencer