Without Activision, what does Xbox do now? | Opinion
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Was I the only one hoping that the UK would approve Microsoft's bid to acquire Activision Blizzard?
Not because I had any particular desire – one way or the other – for the deal to complete. But just so this entire ordeal would be over. There is more to come from the EU and FTC, of course, but the CMA was always the regulator most likely to block the acquisition. If they said it was ok, the biggest obstacle would have been overcome.
Instead, here we are. It's been the best part of the year watching the two giants of console gaming trade blows in press quotes and legal documents. Each statement and accusation has been latched upon by the most odious members of both fanbases, and used as fresh weapons in the continuing tedious 'war' over which console is best.
(The irony, in the end, is that the deal being blocked had nothing to do with PlayStation.)
Over the past 12 months, I've spent a bit of time talking (at length) with both Microsoft and Sony, and the pained expressions on their faces told me I'm not the only one wishing for all this to be over. This is going to be a big year for both consoles. But you can't talk about Hi-Fi Rush or Redfall or Starfield or Spider-Man 2 or PlayStation VR 2 or Final Fantasy without someone summoning the miserable spectre that is the Activision Blizzard deal.
Perhaps I'm over-selling it. But suffice to say, it's not been fun.
Microsoft will appeal. The story will drag on. But the odds have certainly changed. The CMA is not a group that changes its mind easily, as evidenced by Microsoft's failed efforts to do just that over the past three months.
The more interesting questions were always going to come
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