In a startling move, Microsoft announced its purchase of Activision Blizzard.
Yes, the publisher responsible for Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Diablo, and Overwatch will soon be part of Xbox. Microsoft reportedly paid $68.7 billion for Activision Blizzard, pocket change, really! Only last week, Take-Two’s buyout of Zynga was the biggest acquisition in video game history, which came in at $12.7 billion — obviously, that figure is partly by comparison.
The announcement comes after several months of turmoil at Activision Blizzard regarding its alleged unethical treatment of employees. Many are curious if CEO Bobby Kotick will stick around once the deal with Microsoft is done, though reports claim he won’t.
As we extend the joy and community of gaming to everyone, we are incredibly excited to welcome the fantastic teams and iconic franchises of Activision Blizzard to Team Xbox https://t.co/DVrgYS8ssB
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) January 18, 2022
It’s no surprise that industry professionals (and I do mean everyone) are either in total shock over Microsoft picking up Activision Blizzard. Some are hopeful this mean’s the company employees will be treated better, while others still simply can’t process it.
Below, you’ll find a collection of some of those reactions. We’ll be hearing about this one for a long, long time to come.
