We all know the score: Microsoft is in the long process of acquiring Activision Blizzard, which will give it control of, among other things, the Call of Duty franchise. New entries in the series will continue to release on Xbox and PC (and now Game Pass), but whether and for how long they will launch on other platforms, like PlayStation, remains to be seen. However, Xbox head Phil Spencer offered some encouraging words today during WSJ Live (via The Verge’s Tom Warren), stating not only that Call of Duty will continue on PlayStation, but that he would “love” to see Call of Duty on Nintendo Switch and other platforms as well.
“Call of Duty specifically will be available on PlayStation,” said Spencer. “I’d love to see it on the Switch. I’d love to see the game playable on many different screens. Our intent is to treat CoD like Minecraft.” He added, “This opportunity is really about mobile for us. When you think about 3 billion people playing video games, there’s only about 200 million households on console.”
Indeed, you can play Minecraft on practically any piece of hardware that can theoretically play video games, and if Xbox and Activision could give Call of Duty that same visibility, it could only result in even greater sales than the franchise already enjoys. Call of Duty even just on Switch would put smiles on faces, apparently including that of Phil Spencer.
That being said, PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan has made apparent on several occasions that he is not happy with Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Last month, he explained to GamesIndustry.biz that “Microsoft has only offered for Call of Duty to remain on PlayStation for three years after the current agreement between Activision and Sony ends,” and Ryan deemed that “inadequate on many levels and failed to take account of the impact on our gamers.”
