Defining Duke, Episode 60: Xbox-Activision Deal Gets Spicy & Dragon Age 4 In Trouble

After weeks of reports, an SEC filing to the FTC has unveiled the ins-and-outs of the dealing between Xbox and Activision. It is fascinating to learn that a mere day after Phil Spencer sent out an e-mail stating he was deeply disturbed by Activision and revising their relationships that he had made the call one day later to initiate a potential acquisition. With much tea spilt, the Dukes certainly have thoughts on this one. What is more shocking is that Call Of Duty is receiving its first delay in two whole decades. The FPS franchise has been annualized for many years and in 2023 that will be coming to a halt. Does Xbox's involvement have anything to do with this? We dissect. The ups and downs of BioWare are well documented here as EA is reportedly doing well with the development of Dragon Age 4 yet doesn't plan to remaster the fantasy RPG trilogy. That report was then flipped on its head when BioWare stepped out and noted yet another major departure. It's a spicy week all in all and the Dukes are ready to fan the flames!

Timestamps:
0:00:00 - Intro

0:05:31 - Some smaller news items and follow-ups.

0:12:36 - What do we hope to see out of a Fallout TV show?

0:17:24 - Do we gamify our workouts?

0:20:56 - Yankees = Sony. Mets = Xbox?

0:26:33 - What we’ve been playing.

0:39:47 - Will publishers saying they are open to being acquired be the new normal?

0:44:50 - Would we give up our clothes to play a game again for the first time?

0:51:42 - How does Xbox keep expectations in check when it comes to presentations?

1:01:01 - Are we ever drained by monotonous gaming?

1:05:18 - What Zenimax IPs would work well for an RTS game?

1:10:17 - Call of Duty will not put out a game next year for the first time in two decades.

1:19:13 - The SEC filing for the Activision deal has been revealed.

1:31:26 - Soul Hackers 2 will come to Xbox day-and-date.

1:46:36 - A new Dragon Age 4 development update has come to light.

2:06:23 - Bethesda is sunsetting their PC launcher.

2:09:17 - Tencent is acquiring Inflexion.

2:15:28 - Street Fighter 6 is on the way.

2:21:44 - Game Pass pick of the week.

2:27:57 - Games are in development for the Avatar: The Last Airbender franchise.

2:35:46 - Will Game Pass match or beat Spartacus’ pricing model?

2:41:19 - What does our ideal release calendar look like?

2:47:32 - Will Game Pass have a positive or negative effect on completion rates?

2:52:26 - Could we see a multi-city Xbox celebration combined with other events?