Phil Spencer, Xbox boss says that what could happen with old Activision Blizzard Franchises like StarCraft can be “pretty exciting”.
When Spencer was asked what might be in the future should Microsoft’s acquisition go through, Spencer said that he was “excited to get to sit down and talk with Activision, Blizzard, and King about back catalogue opportunities and other opportunities that may exist”.
Spencer said that the first thing he would say was, “I’m not allowed any decisions about what will happen at Blizzard/Activision or King.” Spencer shared this with Wired (via NME). “This is all just talk and thought about what the chance is.
“Not only StarCraft but WarCraft when you think of the heritage RTS games that are being discussed here, particularly from Blizzard.”
Spencer admitted that StarCraft was a pivotal moment in gaming, even though he was careful not give too much away or commit to anything. He said that while he didn’t have any concrete plans and couldn’t get in to work with the teams yet, “esports perspectives, RTS on console perspectives, and an RTS storytelling perspective” were all aspects of StarCraft.
“I’m excited about the opportunity to meet with Activision and Blizzard as well as King to discuss our back catalogue and any potential opportunities,” he said. “I will not answer the question except to say that it isn’t something I can work on at the moment. I find it exciting to be able to imagine what those franchises could look like, having spent many hours playing them.
StarCraft 2 has stopped receiving new content since late 2020, just 10 years after its original launch.
Phil Spencer, Xbox boss has made Microsoft the most explicit promise regarding Call of Duty’s future on PlayStation platforms. Spencer stated earlier this week that he would continue to release Call of Duty games on Sony consoles “as long there is a PlayStation available to ship to”.
Regulators such as the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority have become increasingly concerned about Call of Duty’s future on PlayStation. They are currently examining Microsoft’s $68n acquisition of COD publisher Activision Blizzard.
