Microsoft now owns Activision Blizzard and all of these franchises
It is now officially official: Microsoft owns Activision Blizzard. Microsoft successfully overcame a series of regulatory issues and hurdles-–and suffered its own gigantic internal document leak in the process–-but the deal is finally done and signed. With the deal officially settled, Microsoft takes ownership of all of Activision Blizzard's franchises and developers.
This means Microsoft will now own Call of Duty, Overwatch, Warcraft, Diablo, StarCraft, and Candy Crush, as well as the people and studios behind those gigantic franchises. In this gallery, we're running through all of the Activision Blizzard franchises that Microsoft now owns following the closure of the deal.
Activision was founded in 1979 and made a name for itself with Atari games like Boxing, Fishing Derby, Tennis, Ice Hockey, and many more. Bobby Kotick bought Activision in the early 1990s and has been its CEO ever since. The company saw massive growth and success in the 2000s with Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, and the Tony Hawk series. Activision grew bigger still when it merged with Warcraft developer Blizzard in 2008 and formed one big company called Activision Blizzard.
The company has been one of the biggest and most dominant and successful in all of video games since then. The company has faced criticism for a number of things, including a high-profile harassment and sexual misconduct scandal that emerged in media reports just before Microsoft made its bid to buy the company in January 2022.
Now, let's get to the games. This gallery covers the big ones like Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, Tony Hawk, Warcraft, and Diablo, as well as dormant franchises that we believe Activision Blizzard still owns. Some of these include games like Prototype, Gun, Blur, Pitfall, and Singularity.
Call of Duty
One of Activision's crown jewels, Call of Duty, now belongs to Microsoft. Don't expect November's Modern Warfare 3 on Game Pass, however, as Microsoft has said fans should not expect new releases to join the library until 2024 at the soonest.
Crash Bandicoot
This is a fun one: Crash was originally created by Naughty Dog as a PlayStation exclusive, and now it's an Xbox game. What a world.
Guitar Hero / DJ Hero / Band Hero
Another iconic Activision series, Guitar Hero, is now owned by Microsoft. CEO Bobby Kotick has teased the return of the series, but whether or not this happens with Guitar Hero--and the related DJ Hero and Band Hero franchises--remains to be seen.
Spyro the Dragon / Skylanders
The Spyro the Dragon and spinoff series Skylanders is now a Microsoft franchise. It remains to be seen what Microsoft might have in store for the series going forward.
Tony Hawk
Similar to Guitar Hero, the Tony Hawk skateboarding series was at one point one of Activision's biggest franchises. We don't know if it's going to come back under Microsoft, though.
Diablo
Blizzard's Diablo series is riding high now off the success of Diablo IV, and now that success is Microsoft's success.
Hearthstone
Blizzard's CCG is now Microsoft's CCG.
Lost Vikings
Blizzard's Lost Vikings side-scroller is now under the Microsoft umbrella, should the Xbox company decide to do anything with it.
Overwatch
Microsoft's shooter catalog gets an instant shot in the arm with the addition of Blizzard's popular Overwatch series.
Starcraft
Another Blizzard series that Microsoft now owns is StarCraft.
World of Warcraft / Warcraft
World of Warcraft is one of most popular MMOs of all time, and now it's Microsoft's most popular MMO ever.
Heroes of the Storm
The crossover MOBA Heroes of the Storm is no longer supported by Blizzard, but fans might be hoping for a revival under the banner of Microsoft.
Blizzard's new survival game
Blizzard is making a survival game, and while it hasn't been announced, it'll launch this November during BlizzCon. And now it's a Microsoft game.
Candy Crush + other King games
One of the most popular mobile games of all time, Candy Crush, is now owned by Microsoft. This is a big deal because Microsoft didn't previously do or have much in the mobile space.
Microsoft also gets King's other popular mobile games like Farm Heroes, Pet Rescue, Rebel Riders, and more.
Prototype
Activision's Prototype series is dormant these days, but it's now owned by Microsoft. Fans are no doubt hoping the game and its sequel come to Game Pass.
Gun
Another older Activision game, Gun, hasn't seen any new releases in some time. Any future decisions will now be made by Microsoft, it seems.
Blur
Microsoft already has Forza Motorsport and Forza Horizon, and now it has another racing game franchise, Blur, in its stable.
Dark Reign
Remember the Dark Reign games? Maybe you do. Maybe you do not. Either way, they're now owned by Microsoft.
Call to Power
The turn-based strategy series Civilization: Call to Power is now a Microsoft franchise.
Soldier of Fortune
Should Microsoft want to make more shooter games, it now has another franchise to tap into: Soldier of Fortune.
Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX
Activision's Mat Hoffman BMX series was popular in the early 2000s, and now it belongs to Microsoft.
True Crime
Microsoft now has another big action series under its banner: True Crime. Whether or not the company has any plans for it, however, is unknown.
Geometry Wars
Activision's Geometry Wars franchise of top-down shooters now belongs to Microsoft. Here's to hoping it appears on Game Pass.
Singularity
Raven Software now works on Call of Duty, but before that, it made the FPS Singularity. It's now a Microsoft franchise.
Pitfall
1982's Pitfall is one of the most iconic games ever, and now Microsoft can add it to its roster by way of its buyout of Activision Blizzard. CEO Bobby Kotick said in 2021 that Pitfall was ready for a comeback.
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