Activision As its sale to Microsoft appears to be closing soon, Blizzard has stated that it anticipates adding its games to Game Pass sometime in 2019.
Activision wanted to clarify the situation regarding whether Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III will be available on Game Pass as its release date approaches next month. “While we do not have plans to put Modern Warfare III or Diablo IV into Game Pass this year, once the deal closes, we expect to start working with Xbox to bring our titles to more players around the world,” said Activision Blizzard in a statement. “And we anticipate that we would begin adding games into Game Pass sometime in the course of next year.”
It’s awesome to see anticipation building for Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® III. As we continue to work toward regulatory approval of the Microsoft deal, we’ve been getting some questions whether our upcoming and recently launched games will be available via Game Pass.
— Activision Blizzard (@ATVI_AB) October 9, 2023
While we…
It’s significant to note that the statement makes no mention of the specific games that will be added to the service. Due to existing contracts between Sony and Activision, Call of Duty may not be included in the Game Pass for a number of years. Also, according to Xbox’s Phil Spencer, Call of Duty won’t be included in Game Pass right away because there is still work to be done behind the scenes to move titles onto it if the deal closes.
However, according to Windows Central, Game Pass will add a number of games to its service “the very minute” the deal is finalized.
According to reports, Microsoft wants to finalize the agreement on October 13. The deal has received preliminary approval from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and the deadline for the CMA to receive comments on it was October 6. The CMA will deliver its verdict no later than October 18.
The CMA was the only organization that initially opposed the acquisition; however, it was approved by the FTC in the US and the European Commission. The CMA, however, changed its mind about the agreement after Microsoft suggested selling Ubisoft the cloud streaming rights to Activision Blizzard.