On January 18, Microsoft announced the purchase of Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion, the largest deal in the gaming industry. Phil Spencer has already confirmed in a statement that “as much as possible” ActiBlizz games will appear in the Game Pass catalog. Some of the franchises will remain on the PlayStation.
We collected some of the most notable franchises and studios that will move to Xbox Game Studios’ assets in one place.
StarCraft
This real-time strategy series is about the confrontation between Terran, Protoss, and Zerg. It’s one of the leading eSports disciplines, and regular tournaments on StarCraft II are held. Among others, this one is top ten by cumulative award pool, which means it’s attractive for betting, and all the information on the trusted bookmakers can be found at https://bookmaker-ratings.com/.
The franchise had not received a sequel since 2015 when StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void was released. In 2017, Blizzard released an HD re-release of the first part for modern PC.
Call of Duty
COD is the best-selling shooter series developed by dozens of studios of Activision Blizzard. The main games in the series are created by the efforts of Infinity Ward, Treyarch, Sledgehammer, and Raven. Activision is now focused on supporting Warzone, a conditional free-to-play shooter in the Call of Duty universe with battle royale-style gameplay.
The Vanguard, released in 2021, is the last one so far. The second instalment of Infinity Ward’s rebooted Modern Warfare series is due at the end of the year.
Warcraft
Warcraft is the leading franchise of Blizzard Entertainment with a colossal universe consisting of multiplayer World of Warcraft, three parts of the strategy series, and several spin-offs.
Add-ons for World of Warcraft have been released regularly since 2007. The Shadowlands add-on was released in 2020. The game also has a Burning Crusade Classic client for nostalgic fans.
Diablo
Diablo is a Blizzard’s action RPG with varied gameplay about slaying demons. A fourth part is in development, which Blizzard announced back in 2019.
On September 23, 2021, Diablo II: Resurrected was released, a remake of the original Diablo II, released in 2000.
Crash Bandicoot
A series of platformers about the adventures of Crash the bandicoot, which Naughty Dog initially created for the first PlayStation. Since 2008, the Crash franchise has been owned by Activision Blizzard.
In 2017, Vicarious Visions released a collection of remasters of the original Crash Bandicoot trilogy, and in 2020, a fourth instalment created by Toys for Bob Studios was released.
Spyro
A series of 3D platformers about the dragon Spyro, initially created by Insomniac Games for the first PlayStation. In 2008, the rights to Spyro and other Vivendi franchises were acquired by Activision, and the character appeared in the Skylanders series.
In 2018, Toys for Bob released a compilation remaster of the original Spyro Reignited Trilogy. The franchise has not received a sequel since then.
Overwatch
Blizzard’s multiplayer hero shooter. The first part was released in 2016, and the second part was postponed until 2023. The sequel will feature a fully cooperative campaign and new maps, but the games will have one client to launch.
Heroes of the Storm
MOBA with characters from different Blizzard universes: Warcraft, StarCraft, Diablo, etc. The gameplay is based on the formula of Dota and League of Legends: ten players are assigned to two teams that must destroy the enemy’s throne. The game was released in 2015 but has not gained much popularity.
Hearthstone
A collectable card game in the Warcraft universe with a free distribution model. Hearthstone was released in 2014 and has been regularly updated since then.
Tony Hawk
A series of skateboarding simulation games was named after the famous skateboarder Tony Hawk. The first part, which was released in 1999 on PlayStation, became one of the most popular games of its time. In 2020 we released Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 + 2 with an updated version of the first two games.
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