Microsoft can close the Activision deal
Hello, I really haven’t been updating my website as much simply because I’ve been in my books. I am lately finishing up what I have left for my degree and certifications in cyber security. I’ve also been working on projects with my fellow student body, building a raspberry pi network. Interestingly enough I’ve also had a few side projects in video editing and blogging. I thought I’d stop by ‘ohsnaptech’ and give it a little piece of my mind for once. I’ve been doing some essays left and right so I believe journalists may be a new venture for me as I’m very interested in writing these days.
The Microsoft / Activision deal is about to be finalized. I heard the news this afternoon while I was out enjoying myself with my family. I saw Twitter, and all of the tech web pages. I decided to check the source that would be the most credible and there it was. CNN has reported that Microsft has won the Activision deal and can close. Now I could give a fanboy perspective and I can give a consumer perspective. I rather give the consumer perspective as that would be the most intellectual argument of the two. Most people who wanted to block the merger were thinking about the small picture, the games. Call of Duty, Diablo, Overwatch, World of Warcraft… to name a few
Above is my Battlenet and what Activision/Blizzard games look like on PC. Now as a customer of Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo, I love playing my games on the computer even tho I do not buy many Sony titles or even own a PlayStation 5. I own an Xbox series X but It’s used mostly for TV purposes. The PlayStation 4 Pro is one of my favorite consoles of all time. The Dreamcast, Nintendo Switch, PS2, and Xbox 360 are all my favorites of all time. I spoiled myself over the years until I decided to go with my 1st love. The personal computer… I’ve been using a Computer since I was a child but never thought to game on them. Consoles always had a better appeal until I was introduced to PUBG and Steam back in 2018. I never looked back to consoles since.
As you can see above Sony Titles are also available for the personal computer. The only difference is you must wait a year to purchase them as Sony’s market loves to offer their games to the PC consumer a year later to entice them to buy a PlayStation. Microsoft on the other hand does the complete opposite… Which to me is better for the consumer. Gamepass is a service that offers games on the PC for a premium price point. You can access game passes on any device and not even own an Xbox. All that’s required is a great internet connection and a controller. Web browsers phones any type of device you would like to use works. I was in line standing and waiting for something at a store and I remembered I had xbox on my phone. I fired up Golden Eye and the controller inputs were displayed on the screen. I wanted in line trying to struggle to touch my phone to kill a few bad guys only to have fun struggling before I knew it, it was my turn to check out.
Microsoft is a company that is looking into the future as they are trying to reach customers that do not want to buy consoles because they do not play many games. This to me is a great market, especially for those who walk around with their faces in their phones all day. I know kids who actually walk up to adults and say “Hey do you have games on your phone?” Lol well yes I have Xbox! Watching a Kid light up asking me what do I mean Xbox? and Showing that kid he could fire up Minecraft on my phone and watching his eyes light up! The Xbox version and not the phone version.
(The PC version of xbox gamepass)
Currently was playing Teenage mutant ninja turtles once as well, games like Redfall and Mortal Kombat 11 all on any device I decide to use. With Xbox All access we were able to get a series X for a premium price once again and paid 2 years of service for a monthly fee.
Now that I have talked about the consumer perspective where does Microsoft gain when they buy Activision? Well, they get to open their business up to the cloud services and offer more games to consumers on platforms that aren’t Xbox’s, however using Xbox services. Opinions are opinions as you can ask yourself this question, would you rather buy a console and play a game like Spiderman on PlayStation for a few hundred bucks? Or would you rather pay a price to fire up the game on a device and try the game out then decide if you want to invest your top dollar for the definitive version of that game? This is how I Shop for good games instead of buying games and hating them. Microsoft has opened the optional door, traditionally you buy a console at an expensive price for that game and pray the game is going to hold you. I’ve been disappointed in gaming doing that so much. When Microsoft introduced a game pass I opened the ability to be this type of shopper and help consumers into the cloud market as well as the small businesses investing in cloud gaming. We are leaving the past and entering the present. Sony is a company that loves tradition and tradition is always going to be difficult based on generations. Every generation we enter when children grow up on types of games they end up being stuck with what they are introduced to for the rest of their gaming careers. An example of this would be the call of duty kids wouldn’t be able to sit well with games like GoldenEye which is a treasure for men 35 and older. These types of choices do not hurt any consumers as those games will still be on PlayStation and even Nintendo consoles. Microsoft is opening the door for the nontraditional gamer…I would like to pull out the merits now:
By Brian Fung, CNN
Updated 5:02 PM EDT, Mon June 12, 2023
https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/12/tech/ftc-microsoft-activision/index.html
Senior Contributor
Wrote a Piece for Forbes. The following is the link:
Below is the outcome of everything.