Microsoft Wants To Bring COD To Nintendo Platforms

Microsoft would like to bring future entries in the Call of Duty franchise, as well as other games they will gain in the Activision Blizzard acquisition, to Nintendo platforms such as the Nintendo Switch. The company views putting Activision Blizzard games on as many consoles as possible as paramount once the colossal takeover goes through, as stated by company president Brad Smith to CNBC.

He stated to the news outlet:

One of the things we’re being very clear about as we move forward with the regulatory review of this acquisition is that great titles like Call of Duty from Activision Blizzard today will continue to be available on the Sony PlayStation.

We’d like to bring it to Nintendo devices. We’d like to bring the other popular titles that Activision Blizzard has and ensure that they continue to be available on PlayStation [and] that they become available on Nintendo.

Call of Duty games have appeared on Nintendo consoles, such as the Wii U in the past, but the franchise’s focus on cutting-edge graphics has often been at odds with Nintendo’s console design. The last time the game had actually appeared on a Nintendo console, was Call of Duty: Ghosts in 2013.

Microsoft’s announcement that both of the recently acquired Bethesda’s upcoming RPGs Starfield and Elder Scrolls VI as prime examples of their plan for acquired studio’s but here Smith cites a different example. He pointed to the companies acquisition of Mojang in 2014, and how afterward Microsoft worked to extend Minecraft‘s reach. He said:

What we’ve done with that acquisition,” Smith explained,” I think, is a clear indicator of what we hope to do if we acquire Activision Blizzard. Namely, invest even more in innovation, bring it to more people, bring it to more platforms, make it even more useful, and hopefully delightful for the people who use it.

While Phil Spencer had tweeted that Microsoft intended to honor all existing agreements between PlayStation and Activision Blizzard, similar to how they handled the Zenimax acquisition, the company recently went further, stating they intended to keep big titles like Call of Duty multiplatform beyond those agreements. The current Activision Blizzard acquisition will be investigated by the Federal Trade Commission, with most experts expecting it to pass.

Stay tuned at Gaming Instincts via Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook for more gaming news.