Currently Online 
Microsoft and Activision Have Formed a New Team Within Blizzard to Work on Smaller 'AA' Games Based on Existing IP
Our sources indicate that Microsoft and Activision have approved the creation of a new team within its Blizzard subsidiary, comprised mostly with employees from King. Blizzard is known for beloved franchises like Warcraft, StarCraft, Diablo, and Overwatch, and Microsoft is keen to curate and serve these franchises more prolifically than Activision itself did previously. Military sci-fi strategy series StarCraft for example has essentially been on mothballs since StarCraft Remastered in 2017, and Xbox CEO Phil Spencer himself has name checked StarCraft during interviews about the acquisition in recent years. Still, you need teams to work on these classic franchises, and that's exactly what Microsoft is gearing up to do.
To that end, we're told Microsoft and Activision's new team within Blizzard is tasked to work on "AA" smaller games based on existing franchises within the Blizzard universes. Given King's mobile expertise, it's possible that these will be mobile games aimed to support Xbox's planned mobile gaming store for iOS and Android — although we're not entirely sure that they'll be restricted specifically to mobile. Given Microsoft's platform agnostic strategy across mobile, PC, and console, it's entirely possible that any fresh projects could run across platforms. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently described how it wants Xbox to focus on a three-pronged gaming approach across those endpoints, with Xbox console at its core.
Sources tell me that Microsoft is keen to explore and experiment finding success out of smaller teams, given the monstrously ballooning costs facing AAA game development. A lot of the biggest success stories in the industry in recent times have been unique ideas from smaller teams. Think of games like Balatro, Palworld, Vampire Survivors, Among Us, and even some of Microsoft's internal games like Sea of Thieves and Grounded. Many of these titles were built by comparatively small teams, and in some cases solo developers. Yet, many of these titles became wildly popular based on their innovative gameplay alone and in some cases, their agility to pivot to new trends. As player habits have evolved in recent years, the industry is undergoing something of a painful transition.
Last edited by Ryuu96 - on 02 August 2024
