Microsoft claims that, going forward, Activision’s Call of Duty series will have parity across all platforms, including PlayStation and Nintendo.
Speaking during the official Xbox podcast on the recent closing of the Activision Blizzard King acquisition, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer assured Call of Duty fans that the series will have parity across all platforms, whether it be Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo’s console, or PC.
Spencer stated that he wants Call of Duty players on PlayStation, and in the future on Nintendo consoles, to feel 100% part of the community. He said that he doesn’t want players of any platform to feel like there’s content they’ll miss out on, including content like character skins. He reaffirmed that this is not Microsoft’s goal post-acquisition. Rather, the goal is 100% parity across all platforms.
Though, Spencer did clarify that when he says parity, he’s referring to content and launch timing. He said that some platforms have resolution and frame rate differences just based on available performance. Outside of such technical differences, there will be nothing else to distinguish between the different versions of Call of Duty. He mentioned that Microsoft does not aim to use Call of Duty to get people to buy an Xbox console. Therefore, he said that he wants the Call of Duty community to feel supported across all platforms.
The Microsoft Gaming CEO mentioned that Xbox has been on the other side, where, even in the case of the Modern Warfare III, the beta wasn’t on Xbox during the first week. He said that such tactics don’t helps the community, nor do they help the game.
While Spencer will indeed stay true to his word, the addition of Activision Blizzard King titles, including Call of Duty, day one on Xbox Game Pass could potentially make Xbox the place to play the series. Digital media and entertainment software analyst, Michael Pachter, certainly seems to think so. He brought up the Call of Duty franchise as a major catalyst in the potential growth of Xbox Game Pass, further stating that PlayStation owners would want to play the first-person shooter series on Microsoft’s premium subscription service in addition to the other games available there.
