Anyone following the video game news is getting a bit tired of the legal drama surrounding Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Although it feels like it’s coming to a close with a happy ending for Microsoft, the truth is we still have to wait to see how everything unfolds. Nevertheless, it seems like the merger is already considered a done deal, and at the very least, there are some changes that already reflect Microsoft’s influence. For example, all Blizzard games are now set to arrive on Steam.
Until now, all Blizzard games were exclusively available on their own platform, Battle.net. However, that is about to change as Blizzard is starting to publish its games on Steam as well. The first game to make its way to Valve’s platform will be Overwatch 2, which is set to release on August 10.
While the most plausible explanation for this change could be Microsoft’s influence over the company, given the apparent certainty of the merger, there has been no official confirmation regarding this matter. All that Blizzard has shared so far is through their president, Mike Ybarra, who stated their intention is to reach a wider audience with their games. Listening to player feedback and recognizing their desire to play games through Steam, Blizzard has decided to collaborate with Valve to make this possible in the near future.
Exactly, this move to publish games on Steam doesn’t imply that Blizzard is abandoning Battle.net. They haven’t announced which games will follow Overwatch 2 to Steam or when this will happen. Additionally, their games will continue to release on Battle.net unless otherwise specified. Most importantly, to play Blizzard games on Steam, players will still need to have a Battle.net account for access. Therefore, while players can form teams using their Steam friend list and earn achievements on the platform, they will still be bound by the constraints of Blizzard’s proprietary platform.
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