Activision Blizzard expects to add games to Game Pass next year
Modern Warfare 3 or Diablo 4 won't hit subscription service this year, despite expected closure of Microsoft acquisition
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Activision Blizzard has said it expects to add more of its titles to Xbox Game Pass in 2024, following the publisher's expected acquisition by Microsoft.
With both completion of the deal and the launch of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 rapidly approaching, the publisher addressed fan queries about when the latter might be added to Microsoft's subscription service.
"While we do not have plans to put Modern Warfare III or Diablo IV into Game Pass this year, once the deal closes, we expect to start working with Xbox to bring our titles to more players around the world," the company wrote on X.
"And we anticipate that we would begin adding games into Game Pass sometime in the course of next year."
Microsoft's proposed $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard is very close to completion. All that remains if final approval from the Competition and Markets Authority, the UK regulator that blocked the deal earlier this year.
The CMA has since provisionally approved a modified deal, in which Microsoft addressed its concerns about Xbox dominating the cloud gaming market by selling the streaming rights for Activision Blizzard's titles to Ubisoft, an independent third party.
The regulator was exploring some "residual concerns," and a final decision was expected around Friday, October 6.
It was recently reported that Microsoft expects to complete the deal this coming Friday (October 13).
If it misses the October 18 deadline, Microsoft must pay $4.5 billion to Activision Blizzard and renegotiate the terms of the deal.
The US Federal Trade Commission is still trying to oppose the merger via an internal administrative hearing, but this is unlikely to take place before the deal closes.