Call of Duty Blocked for Xbox Game Pass By Sony

Call of Duty may take years to appear on Xbox Game Pass, even after an acquisition, thanks to agreements with Sony.

Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard is currently undergoing investigation by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority.

Despite some back and forth, it’s looking like an outcome won’t arrive until the second phase of the CMA’s investigation.

Some of Microsoft’s responses include the fact that they’ll honor existing agreements between Activision and Sony, meaning Game Pass subscribers may need to wait for CoD.

COD Games May Not Appear on Game Pass for Years

Phil Spencer’s tweet, stating that Microsoft will honor Sony’s agreements with Activision, was used as evidence for the CMA’s investigation.

This means that we’d be unlikely to see Call of Duty appear on the Xbox Game Pass subscription for “a number of years” according to Microsoft’s response.

The tweet, which was first shared on Twitter in January 2022, confirms Xbox’s “intent to honor all existing agreements upon acquisition of Activision Blizzard.”

Using this tweet as evidence to help Microsoft’s case would mean that they’d have to honor it for the CMA’s approval.

It’s currently unclear as to how long the agreement between Sony and Activision Blizzard is set to last. However, if this is what allows the acquisition to pass, Microsoft will have to accept it.

The agreement is also what has kept Call of Duty from appearing on Game Pass for the last few years. It’s likely why Call of Duty has been on PlayStation Plus numerous times, but not for Xbox subscriptions.

This isn’t the only major blow to come from the CMA’s investigation. Reports suggest that Sony has delayed a showcase as it could help strengthen Microsoft’s arguments.

It remains to be seen how the investigation will close out. But we expect there to be more news from the investigation soon.