Microsoft Xbox wants to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo Switch

Microsoft (Xbox) President Brad Smith recently mentioned that the company not only wants to keep titles like Call of Duty available on the PlayStation console but also bring them to Nintendo’s system, namely the Switch.

In January, the tech giant Microsoft, who is also the parent company of Xbox, announced that they have started the process to acquire Activision Blizzard, the developer and publisher behind legendary titles such as Diablo, Overwatch, Candy Crush, and of course, the annualized first-person military shooter, Call of Duty. At $68.7 billion, this is not only the biggest acquisition of the industry, but after compilation in June 2023, this will put Microsoft at the 3rd position worldwide in terms of revenue, after Tencent and Sony.

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Xbox will not only keep Call of Duty on PlayStation but also wants to bring it to Nintendo Switch

Activision Blizzard’s annualized first-person military shooter Call of Duty not only has a massive player base, but is also one of the biggest gaming franchises in the world. Following the announcement of the acquisition, the gaming community was worried that Microsoft would be making the franchise exclusive to Xbox platforms, similar to Starfield and Elder Scrolls VI after the Bethesda acquisition. Fortunately, that has proven to be wrong as Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has officially confirmed that future Call of Duty titles will be available on PlayStation consoles.

Recently, in an exclusive interview with CNBC, Microsoft (Xbox) President Brad Smith mentioned that Call of Duty titles will not only be available on PlayStation alongside Xbox, but could possibly make their way onto the Nintendo console family, namely the Switch. When asked about the matter, he said:

"One of the things we are being very clear about, as we move forward with the regulatory review of this acquisition is that great titles like Call of Duty from Activision Blizzard today will continue to be available on the Sony PlayStation; we'd like to bring it to Nintendo devices, we'd like to bring other popular titles that Activision Blizzard has and ensure that they continue to be available on Playstation and that they become available on Nintendo."

He also mentioned the example of Minecraft and how successful it is as a multiplatform title.

Considering the Nintendo Switch's hardware is quite weak in comparison to the Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5, some fans were concerned as to how the titles would perform on Nintendo’s iconic handheld console. Obviously, one of the plausible solutions is that of utilizing the cloud.

Nintendo has already brought demanding titles like Control, the Hitman Trilogy, and Kingdom Hearts on the Switch using the cloud, and Microsoft not only has the Azure cloud network but also Cloud Gaming through xCloud in Game Pass.

Microsoft’s planned acquisition of Activision Blizard is set to close in June 2023, after which Call of Duty could likely be making its way to the Nintendo Switch as well.