But a quick press release from Xbox and another from Activision Blizzard only does so much to clear things up. This is monumental. Gargantuan. Perhaps one of the biggest pieces of gaming news I’ve ever seen (and I’ve been reporting for over 10 years, at this point). It makes Microsoft’s Bethesda takeover in 2020 seem practically insignificant (which is only natural: this merger is worth approximately 10 times Microsoft’s last big purchase). We’ve already put a lot of thought into the situation, and we’ve drafted in a gaming business specialist to answer all of your big questions about the more complicated aspects of the merger. We’ve covered stories comparing this acquisition to other notable acqusitions in the media industry (noting that Microsoft bought Activision Blizzard for about what Disney paid to acquire Fox) and we’ve drilled down deep into some of the comments from the people in charge. Bobby Kotick, CEO at Activision Blizzard, says he will be “available as needed” at the studio as the takeover pushes forwards. Phil Spencer has also given some PlayStation fans a glimmer of hope, noting that “it’s not [Xbox’s] intent to pull communities away from that platform and [it] remains committed to [PlayStation].” That’s all well and good, but that’s just some of the immidiate, top-line stuff we’ve covered here. The important thing is; what do you think? As the likes of Xbox and PlayStation continue to talk about gaming being a multi-billion dollar industry, it’s easy to overlook why that’s the case. Legions of gamers – whether on PC, console or mobile – are the fuel that feeds the ever-growing gaming engine. And when they vote with their wallets, en masse, it gets felt around the industry. With than in mind, we want you to sound off in the comments below to let us know what you think about this massive, unprecedented deal – and whether it’s going to impact your buying, spending and playing habits. It’s likely we’ll discuss some of the comments here in another video in the coming days or weeks, so keep it clean and civil! And, if you want, you could always throw in a suggestion about what dream game you’d love to see Xbox and Activision Blizzard work on together. You can use the list at the link for inspiration.
