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Sony signs agreement with MS to keep COD on PS

Microsoft:
Fairy Reaction GIF
 

JohnnyFootball

GerAlt-Right. Ciriously.
MS can bet that not having Starfield on PS will be offset by more Gamepass subscriptions and will make up for the lost revenue, (a foolish bet IMO, but MS can afford it) but they can’t make that bet with Call of Duty. Wayyy too much revenue being left one the table.

Either way this is good for everyone involved.
 
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Forsythia

Member
In do wonder what the conditions are beyond just releasing on PlayStation. Feature parity, PS+, but no marketing. I do wonder if they'll release day 1 on PS+ though.
 

mortal

Member
The white flag from Sony. Next generation will be interesting.
Is it really though? I think It's more of a fair compromise between them if anything. Everyone knows this whole thing was really about COD.
Seems like Sony got what they wanted in the end, which is to keep COD releasing on PlayStation platforms. Plus Microsoft gets to profit from this either way.

Hope this means we can finally move on from this acquisition stuff, at least until the next controversial acquisition.
 
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DeaDPo0L84

Member
Sony has some great shooters they've abandoned that now would be a good time to potentially revive them:

-SOCOM
-MAG
-Resistance
-Killzone

Edit: I'm genuinely confused at the people laughing, this isn't even a "console war" comment. It's okay though, puberty will reach you at some point.
 
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tryDEATH

Member
I am actually surprised MS extended an olive branch to Sony after dragging this on as there was no need for them to do this as no one considered exclusivity a deal breaker not the EC, CMA, or the Judge in the USA in the PI.

MS must have squeezed Sony quite hard into agreeing a deal which isn't favorable towards Sony what so ever. I wouldn't be surprised if MS leverage their imminent acquisition of Activision and got Sony to drop their marketing deal and also allowing MS to put CoD on GamePass this year when it releases.
 

RyRy93

Member
Maybe Sony can use this opportunity to make Killzone a thing again? Or Resistance? How about a first-party FPS?
CoD is to the games industry what McDonalds is to fast food at this point, plenty of places make a better product but it doesn’t matter.

If Sony smashed it out of the park with a new Killzone it still would be nowhere near as successful as any given annual CoD release.
 
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Clear

CliffyB's Cock Holster
That's just US, by the way! I believe COD generated around 1.2 - 1.5 billion USD in 2021 alone just on PlayStation.

And that's from a 70/30 split in Activision's favour; so double that and then some in terms of how much it contributes to their bottom line. Bear in mind replacing all the lost sales from removing Playstation users is not something that can be accomplished in a single year, if indeed ever.
 

Gambit2483

Member
Is it really though? I think It's more of a fair compromise between them if anything. Everyone knows this whole thing was really about COD.
Seems like Sony got what they wanted in the end, which is to keep COD releasing on PlayStation platforms. Plus Microsoft gets to profit from this either way.

Hope this means we can finally move on from this acquisition stuff, at least until the next controversial acquisition.
I can see this eventually turning into COD being a "Gamepass Exclusive" and if Sony/Nintendo want COD on their system they will have to allow the Gamepass service on their platform.

That's a shitty future no one except MS wants but my money is on that being their ultimate strategy.
 

lordrand11

Member
Maybe Sony can use this opportunity to make Killzone a thing again? Or Resistance? How about a first-party FPS?
Dude, I'd be hype to see another Killzone or Resistance period, those were great games, and if they made Resistance with an open world aspect it'd be phenomenal. Mag would be another great game to remaster or make a new entry for the PS5 too.
 
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I can see this eventually turning into COD being a "Gamepass Exclusive" and if Sony/Nintendo want COD on their system they will have to allow the Gamepass service on their platform.

That's a shitty future no one except MS wants but my money is on that being their ultimate strategy.
Why having alternatives is bad? I’d rather have all catalogs of games at the same place.
 

Robbinhood

Banned
COD needs Playstation, with its annual releases and massive budgets, they can't afford to give up the majority of their revenue and be sustainable. PS also needs COD to continue its global domination.

It's kinda like comparing Mario Kart on Wii U vs Switch (and other stuff like Smash/Botw). Basically the same games but those franchises needed the switch to be as big as they became.

Also obligatory Fuck MS.
 

Mobilemofo

Member
Still amazes me that Sony couldn't find a studio to create a game to seriously compete with CoD.
Just make a functionally competent arcade military themed shooter and not include bullshit fortnite-esque skins and mictrotransactions.
Please :(
Take M.A.G. and reboot it. Modern assets, all the usual fluff. Happy days.
 

feynoob

Gold Member
They'll work with anyone who will give them enough money.

Sony just need to come up with something good in house. They got the talent.
EA has a contract with MS through gamepass EA play.
Any EA games will come to gamepass after 6 month of release.
 

FingerBang

Member
Well, in a sense I'm happy this is over, but I'm also afraid this is the beginning of the end.

I don't give a shit about Call of Duty and have both a PlayStation and years of game pass because I play games and not consoles. After what came out of the trial, it's pretty obvious MS is trying to take market share away from PlayStation by buying their way there.

Xbox by itself would have never been able to do so but here we are.

This is still bad news for Playstation. The COD money will go down. If the game is free on Game Pass, gamers who mainly play Cod will either switch to Xbox or PC. On top of the loss of revenue coming from the fewer copies sold, they will also make less money from in-game content.

How about any other ABK game? Who knows. We know no more Bethesda games on PS. No more Doom, no more Quake, no more Dishonored, no more Prey, no more Elder Scrolls, no more Fallout. Why assume things are going to be different? And why assume they'll stop? They can keep buying publishers, not independent studios. They can take games away from Sony while their fanbase will praise them for giving them the same games they were always going to get. Having a green boner? Hold on.

Sony will react with their own purchase, and this time it won't be a small organic studio. It will have to actuate the same strategy: Take games away from Xbox. Hell, it could mean taking games away from PC as well unless they make their own store (yuck). Imagine losing all new Capcom games or Square Enix and having to hear crap like "this is going to make everything better".

I don't see any way this is good for gamers in the long run and I hope I'm wrong.
 

Gambit2483

Member
Why having alternatives is bad? I’d rather have all catalogs of games at the same place.
That would be the antithesis of "alternatives". You already have the alternative of playing (and OWNING) COD on PS or Xbox.

Why would you want to take that away and replace it with a rental service that could easily have its price nearly doubled 3 years from now.

I'm sure gamers can't wait to pay $30 a month to Rent COD from MS on their system of choice!
 

DeaDPo0L84

Member
Uhh…why is it bad for Call of Duty to stay one PlayStation? Please do explain….
If you view this in a myopic way then sure it may seem like a win for those who play on Playstation. But this going through is really just a prelude of Microsoft potentially attempting to lock up more 3rd party publishers and so far they don't have a good track record managing the ones they own currently.

This deal doesn't impact me at all cause I own a PS5 and PC so I'm good. What does potentially impact me is when they buy up a great studio and then not elevate them or make them better but somehow manage to make them worse and lose talent due to poor management which means future games will suffer, but hey it'll be on gamepass!
 
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