Microsoft assures fans Call of Duty won’t be exclusive to Xbox
Following Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which includes ownership of the Call of Duty franchise, concerns arose about the possibility of the popular first-person shooter becoming an exclusive for Xbox and PC. However, Phil Spencer, the head of Xbox, recently addressed these concerns in an interview on Xbox’s YouTube channel, reassuring fans that Call of Duty will not have any more platform-exclusive betas.
In the past, PlayStation users were given early access to Call of Duty beta versions. With Activision Blizzard now under Microsoft’s umbrella, there was speculation that Xbox and PC would receive the same preferential treatment. However, Spencer made it clear that this is not Microsoft’s intention. “We have no goal of somehow trying to use Call of Duty to get you to buy an Xbox console,” he stated.
According to Spencer, Xbox is committed to ensuring that players on all platforms have access to the same content, timing, and opportunities. This includes Microsoft’s plan to eventually bring Call of Duty games to the Nintendo Switch. “The goal is 100% parity across all platforms as much as we can for launching content,” he explained.
While it remains unclear whether these new policies will apply to the upcoming release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, which is scheduled for next month, Spencer acknowledged that Xbox players already missed out on the first multiplayer open beta. Additionally, there may be preexisting agreements between Sony and Activision regarding exclusive content. However, if Microsoft keeps its promise, this will be the last time a Call of Duty game has content that is exclusive to a specific console.