Microsoft, the $456 billion dollar tech company is acquiring a large gaming company, Activision Blizzard, for $68.7 billion. Along with this buyout, Microsoft will be acquiring franchises such as Overwatch, Call of Duty, Candy Crush, Guitar Hero, Crash Bandicoot, and many many more beloved titles.

The deal will be officially sealed sometime around the end of Microsoft’s fiscal year, ending on June 30, 2023. As of now, Activision Blizzard is still operating on its own, independent until the deal closes. As soon as that deal is closed however, Activision Blizzard will be answering to the CEO of Microsoft Gaming, Phil Spencer.

Microsoft acquiring Activision is great news for investors, however, as these same investors had watched in horror as the value of Activision’s shares plummeted as much as 45% during the peak of the pandemic. Activision Blizzard struggled hard with a declining demand after pandemic restrictions were lifted and delivery issues began with getting their games out to players. Phil Spencer has recently stated to investors that the company will be extending it’s Game Pass. The Game Pass is a video game subscription service that offers a rotating catalog of games from a variety of publishers. to Activision’s over 390 million active player base.

However, with all this exciting news, it can leave one to wonder; What else has been affected by this massive deal?

A lot of things, actually.

For one, Bobby Kotick, the CEO of Activision Blizzard, may step down from his position once the deal has been completely closed. Additionally, as of now, Microsoft will honor the existing contracts of Sony and won’t make franchises like Call of Duty exclusive right away, but it is, however, likely that some of Activision Blizzard’s future games won’t appear on the Playstation. In terms of the media, most people seem to be in approval of Microsoft’s decision. All in all, some big things will soon become possible once the deal is officially done.

Interestingly, people are surprised that Bobby Kotick might step down from his position, and it may have to do with the controversy he was in around November 2021 involving Activision employee walkouts and petitions that demanded his removal over reports that Kotick failed to make the company’s board aware of allegations of rape and other serious misconduct. The fact that he may be stepping down after this deal closes might be Microsoft’s way of trying to rebuild the trust of Activision’s employees.

However, up until the day the deal is sealed, it’s “business as usual” for both companies. Hopefully, there are more good things to come from this buyout, and good things only.