Xbox boss Phil Spencer said he would discuss with Activision studios to develop multiple series, not just the Call of Duty IP. Recently Activision CEO Bobby Kotick said he hoped Microsoft would revive some franchises like Guitar Hero and Sparrow the Dragon because they didn’t have that ability before.
In an interview with VentureBeat, Kotick mentioned that Guitar Hero and Spyro the Dragon were two of Activision’s most popular games in the past, but were ultimately shelved for various reasons. One reason was the need for a separate production team, which Kotick said he wasn’t ready to set up but felt Microsoft should be prepared for.
He also hopes Microsoft will use its social integration tools to make the Candy Crush franchise a more engaging multiplayer experience. In an interview with The Washington Post, Spencer said he would give Activision more creative freedom to develop more non-COD games once the deal closes. Examples cited by Spencer include The King’s Secret Service, Guitar Hero and Hexen.
“We want to be able to work with them once the deal is done to make sure we have the resources to make the games I’ve loved growing up and the games that these teams really want. I’m looking forward to these conversations. I really think it’s about Increasing resources and increasing capacity.
In an interview, Spencer confirmed that Activision Blizzard’s workplace culture issues will be addressed. Following Microsoft’s planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard, some Call of Duty developers are eager to move away from the IP’s annual release model. It seems that Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard will bring big changes to the latter.
A Bloomberg article reporting on Activision Blizzard’s internal reaction to the acquisition reported that some “high-level employees” discussed dropping Call of Duty’s current schedule of releasing one game a year. Activision currently has three studios that take turns developing major Call of Duty titles.
These developers believe that slowing the release of Call of Duty will please gamers who are tired of Call of Duty being a new year item. The Bloomberg article pointed out that “Call of Duty 18: Pioneer” sales in the UK fell by 36%, although it still managed to enter the top-selling game list in 2021.
Bloomberg pointed out that the transfer of “Call of Duty” is no longer a new year’s product, which may not happen until next year or later, and the new work released this year “is expected to save the fate of the series.”