Activision Blizzard: Difference between revisions

|CompanyAlias=ABK, Acti-Blizz}}

'''{{Wplink|Activision_Blizzard|Activision Blizzard, Inc.}}''', often referred to as '''ABK''' (Activision-Blizzard-King), or '''Acti-Blizz''', is an American video-game holding company. On 13 October 2023, [[Microsoft]] acquired '''ABK''' for $68.7 billion.

==Consumer-impact summary==

{{Ph-C-CIS}}

===Overwatch 2 and PvE (''2024'')===

''Overwatch'' was promised player-versus-environment (PvE) content in ''Overwatch 2'', but this feature was eventually cancelled in 2024, after people had already purchased ''Overwatch 2''. This was never really addressed or compensated for.{{Citation needed|date=21 April 2026}}

Activision released ''Call of Duty: Black Ops 7'' in late 2025 that contains generative AI in the product. A prominent example of this is the backgrounds for the in-game calling cards, which display art that clearly has been trained on {{Wplink|Studio Ghibli}}'s animation style and contains the usual errors such as extra digits.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Kume |date=13 Nov 2025 |title=Kume on X |url=https://nitter.us.catsarch.com/Kumesicles/status/1988981542488797339 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260321131455/https://nitter.us.catsarch.com/Kumesicles/status/1988981542488797339 |archive-date=21 Mar 2026 |access-date=21 Mar 2026 |website=[[X]]}}</ref> A user on [[X]] claimed that they were able to refund their copy on Steam despite having completed the campaign, citing a lack of disclosure as to the pervasive usage of AI in the game.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Bricky |date=14 Nov 2025 |title=Bricky on X |url=https://nitter.us.catsarch.com/Bricky/status/1989499501997076647 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260321130305/https://nitter.us.catsarch.com/Bricky/status/1989499501997076647 |archive-date=21 Mar 2026 |access-date=12 Dec 2025 |website=[[X]]}}</ref> For its part, Activision had the required Steam disclaimer on the store listing.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Call of Duty®: Black Ops 7 on Steam |url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/3606480/Call_of_Duty_Black_Ops_7/ |url-access=registration |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.org/details/screenshot-20260123-221740 |archive-date=24 Mar 2026 |access-date=12 Dec 2025 |website=Steam |quote=Our team uses generative AI tools to help develop some in game assets.}}</ref>

On 15 August 2024, the Twitter account for the creators of the H2 Multiplayer Mod (a fan-made mod for ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered'') announced they had received and were complying with a cease and desist order on behalf of Activision effective immediately.<ref>{{Cite web |author=H2 Multiplayer Mod |date=15 Aug 2024 |title=H2 Multiplayer Mod on X |url=https://nitter.us.catsarch.com/H2Multiplayer/status/1824167247436542167 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20260321130021/https://nitter.us.catsarch.com/H2Multiplayer/status/1824167247436542167 |archive-date=21 Mar 2026 |access-date=13 Dec 2025 |website=[[X]]}}</ref> This occurred on the day before the mod was supposed to be released. Weeks prior, Activision put ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered'' on sale on Steam in order to drive sales in anticipation of the mod's release, as possessing a licensed copy of the game was a prerequisite in order for the mod to function. Fans immediately derided the move as a deliberately timed act, subsequently mass refunding and review bombing ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered'' on Steam in protest of the C&D.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cripe |first=Michael |title=Modern Warfare 2 Multiplayer Mod Canceled the Day Before Launch After Activision Sends Devs Cease and Desist |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/modern-warfare-2-multiplayer-mod-canceled-the-day-before-launch-after-activision-sends-devs-cease-and-desist |website=IGN |date=15 Aug 2024 |access-date=13 Dec 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240817092256/https://www.ign.com/articles/modern-warfare-2-multiplayer-mod-canceled-the-day-before-launch-after-activision-sends-devs-cease-and-desist |archive-date=17 Aug 2024}}</ref>

Blizzard is additionally not innocent of pumping their content with MTX, with one of the most egregious examples being ''Overwatch 2''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Overwatch 2 |url=https://macrotransactions.org/overwatch-2 |website=macrotransactions.org |date=2022 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250522003401/https://macrotransactions.org/overwatch-2 |archive-date=22 May 2025}}</ref> The micro-transactions among this game has sparked controversy among the community as well.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Star99er  

|title=Overwatch’s Aggressive Microtransactions |url=https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/overwatch/t/overwatch%E2%80%99s-aggressive-microtransactions/948993 |website=Blizzard |date=26 Jan 2025 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250708180127/https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/overwatch/t/overwatch%E2%80%99s-aggressive-microtransactions/948993 |archive-date=8 Jul 2025}}</ref> Other Blizzard IPs are also not safe from this either, such as ''WarCraft'',<ref>{{Cite web |title=World of Warcraft |url=https://macrotransactions.org/world-of-warcraft |website=macrotransactions.org |date=2025 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250411171331/https://macrotransactions.org/world-of-warcraft |archive-date=11 Apr 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |first=Jason |last=Parker |title=World of Warcraft’s New Microtransactions Are Greedier Than Ever

|url=https://www.esportstalk.com/news/world-of-warcraft-new-microtransactions-greedier-than-ever/ |website=EsportsTalk |date=23 Nov 2021 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240906133710/https://www.esportstalk.com/news/world-of-warcraft-new-microtransactions-greedier-than-ever/ |archive-date=6 Sep 2024}}</ref> ''Diablo'',<ref>{{Cite web |first=Wesley |last=Yin-Poole |title=Now Diablo 4 Is Out in the Wild, the True Horror of Its Costly Microtransactions Has Revealed Itself |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/now-diablo-4-is-out-in-the-wild-the-true-horror-of-its-costly-microtransactions-has-revealed-itself |website=IGN |date=7 Jun 2023 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230608130657/https://www.ign.com/articles/now-diablo-4-is-out-in-the-wild-the-true-horror-of-its-costly-microtransactions-has-revealed-itself |archive-date=8 Jun 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Diablo Immortal |url=https://macrotransactions.org/diablo-immortal |website=macrotransactions.org |date=2022 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220809175513/https://macrotransactions.org/diablo-immortal |archive-date=9 Aug 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Diablo IV |url=https://macrotransactions.org/diablo-4 |website=macrotransactions.org |date=2023 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240811063956/https://macrotransactions.org/diablo-4 |archive-date=11 Aug 2024}}</ref> and ''StarCraft''.<ref>{{Cite web |author=ackmondual |title=MTX (microtransaction) is beyond suckage |url=https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/sc2/t/mtx-microtransaction-is-beyond-suckage/22690 |website=Blizzard |date=16 Jul 2021 |access-date=13 Jul 2025 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250708180115/https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/sc2/t/mtx-microtransaction-is-beyond-suckage/22690 |archive-date=8 Jul 2025}}</ref>