Xbox boss Phil Spencer is keen to revive old Activision franchises

By Sean Carey,
Activision Blizzard has a wealth of dormant franchises that the publisher has seemingly abandoned, but if Microsoft's acquisition is approved, we could see some make a comeback.

guitar hero

In an interview with The Washington Post, Xbox chief Phil Spencer spoke more on some of the older and somewhat overlooked franchises Activision Blizzard owns. "I was looking at the IP list, I mean, let's go!" Spencer said. 'King's Quest,' 'Guitar Hero,'… I should know this but I think they got 'HeXen.'"

Once the deal closes, Spencer said Microsoft will talk with Activision Blizzard developers about working on some of its older franchises. "We're hoping that we'll be able to work with them when the deal closes to make sure we have resources to work on franchises that I love from my childhood, and that the teams really want to get," Spencer said. "I'm looking forward to these conversations. I really think it's about adding resources and increasing capability."

Over the years, various Activision Blizzard teams have been pulled from smaller projects to work on the publisher's bigger franchises, such as Call of Duty and Diablo. Vicarious Visions, for example, developed Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2 and Crash Bandicoot N.Sane Trilogy and was folded into Blizzard last year. Hopefully, the deal will see some of these teams taken off Activision Blizzard's top franchises and given a bit more freedom.

As for Call of Duty, Phil Spencer recently revealed that Microsoft has the "desire to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation."

What dormant Activision Blizzard franchises would you like to see get new entries? Let us know down in the comments!
Sean Carey
Written by Sean Carey
A big fan of Xbox achievements, Sean has committed to playing as many of the best RPGs, racing games, and first-person shooters on and off Xbox Game Pass as possible. Before joining TrueAchievements, Sean earned a degree in journalism from Solent University.
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