Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of massive games publisher Activision Blizzard was officially announced in January 2022, and almost a year and a half later, the deal is still in the process of being completed. The major obstacle has been different international regulatory hurdles needing to be cleared, prompted by complaints from the likes of Sony, among others, that the deal would harm market competition.
But as of July 12, 2023, one of the biggest potential obstacles has been cleared after a federal judge ruled that the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s lawsuit did not prove that the deal would harm competition, paving the way for the deal to be finalized in the coming days. U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley even cited the 10-year commitment by Microsoft to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation as a major factor.
But while the at least short-term future of Call of Duty on PlayStation is assured, many eyes are now turning to what Call of Duty on Xbox will look like with the deal set to be finalized. Namely, people including myself are asking one question: When will Call of Duty be added to Game Pass?
When is Call of Duty coming to Game Pass?
While it’s not an official confirmed date, many are expecting new Call of Duty releases could potentially start coming to Game Pass beginning in 2025. This date is based on when the current deal between Activision and Sony is set to expire, which will happen in 2024. Coincidentally, 2024 is when it’s expected that the new 10-year deal for Call of Duty to remain on PlayStation is set to begin.
Whether or not new Call of Duty titles beginning in 2025 will release as “day one releases” for Game Pass remains to be seen. In fact, there’s a chance they don’t release on Game Pass at all, as CEO Bobby Kotick testified during the FTC case that Call of Duty was too valuable and that putting it on a subscription service like Game Pass would be “bad for business.”
The 2025 date is only referring to future releases of the series. Once the deal is completed and Activision Blizzard is owned by Microsoft, there’s nothing stopping the company from releasing older Call of Duty games onto Game Pass for subscribers to enjoy.
