Titles available exclusively on certain platforms are nothing new in the gaming industry. For years, certain franchises have only been available to play on a PlayStation or an Xbox but in recent years, the ability to play with anyone regardless of the platform has negated the exclusivity battles.
On January 18, 2022, Microsoft announced that it has purchased Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard in a multi-billion dollar deal, much to the surprise of the community. The acquisition has led to many questions from fans of the first-person shooter franchise, the main one being whether Call of Duty will become an Xbox exclusive title, similar to how the Halo franchise operated prior to the launch of the PC Game Pass.
With that said, is Call of Duty becoming an Xbox exclusive title? Here's everything we know so far.
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January 25 - No Exclusivity Until At Least 2024
A new report published by Jason Schreier has revealed that Call of Duty titles will release on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC until the end of 2023 at the very least. The report also revealed that a second Warzone title will be launching in 2023.
January 20, 4:30 EST - Phil Spencer Clarifies Exclusivity Position
It sounds like Call of Duty will remain on PlayStation after all, at least for the duration of certain agreements. Xbox CEO Phil Spencer posted on Twitter that he spoke with Sony and confirmed Xbox's willingness to keep CoD on PlayStation.
January 20 - Exclusivity and Regulator Hurdles
If Microsoft does attempt to make Call of Duty an Xbox exclusive, it could lead to plenty of regulatory hurdles according to an industry analyst. With the deal expected to be completed in June 2023, making such a huge franchise exclusive to specific platforms could cause issues that may delay the deal.
January 19 - Call of Duty on Game Pass
The question of whether old Call of Duty titles will make their way onto the Xbox Game Pass is a hot topic within the community. According to Phil Spencer, Microsoft will start adding various Activision Blizzard titles onto the subscription as soon as the deal is completed.
January 18 - Xbox Will Make Some ActiBlizz Games Console Exclusive
Bloomberg reported that Microsoft has plans to make some Activision Blizzard games console exclusive moving forward, though others will remain multiplatform. There's no word yet on which franchises are marked for exclusivity, though.
Will Call of Duty Be Xbox Exclusive?
Despite Microsoft purchasing Activision Blizzard, it's currently unclear as to whether the Call of Duty franchise will become an Xbox exclusive title considering its immense popularity across all platforms. Rather than the game being available on a single platform, a deal that allows Xbox players to receive exclusive in-game content could be on the cards.
Since 2016, Sony has had an exclusivity deal with Activision, giving Call of Duty players access to DLC early, additional XP tokens, other items that could be obtained if you owned a PlayStation.
Call of Duty Xbox Game Pass
As a result of the acquisition, Phil Spencer has revealed that many Activision Blizzard games will be added to the Xbox and PC Game Pass, opening up the possibility for players to enjoy classic titles such as Call of Duty 4 and Modern Warfare 2. Whether new annual releases will arrive on Game Pass at launch remains to be seen. Would it impact the huge profits Call of Duty generates every year?
Will COD 2022 Be Xbox Exclusive?
Considering the deal is expected to be completed in mid-2023, it's unlikely that the title heavily rumoured to be Modern Warfare II will be exclusive to Xbox and won't be appearing on Game Pass.
That's all we know about Call of Duty becoming an Xbox exclusive so far. Be sure to bookmark this page and check back regularly for all the latest news, rumours, and information you need to know.
For more articles like this, take a look at our Call of Duty Warzone and Guides page.