Blizzard will have a Campfire Chat about the Diablo 4 changes

Diablo 4 global community development director Adam Fletcher revealed the developer will be holding a Campfire Chat tomorrow, July 21, to “talk more” about the player feedback surrounding the class nerfs and other changes that were made in the Season 1 update. The chat will be held at 11 a.m. PT and will feature Fletcher, associate game director Joseph Piepiora, and designer Joe Shely.

The Diablo 4 Season 1 update, which was released on July 18, made a swath of changes in preparation for the start of Season of the Malignant. Of the class nerfs in the patch, the Barbarian Hammer of the Ancients, Druid Werewolf Shred, Necromancer Bone Spear, and Sorcerer Ice Shard were the skills that were hit the hardest. The reduction to the Barbarian skill in particular was felt to make a lot of the class’ endgame builds redundant.

Another of the controversial changes made was to introduce level requirements for World Tier III (level 40) and IV (level 60). A small update made today has now removed that requirement. The patch notes for update 1.1.0b also made it so Malignant Hearts always grant armor that directly maps with their item power.

In the meantime, the start of Season of the Malignant has come with its own issues. Blizzard has reported that players in the Americas have been facing “unusually long queue times” and has been working to get all players into the game as quickly as possible. Of course, long queues aren’t a new problem for the game and are something that should be expected at the launch of a new season.

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Activision was previously set to receive $3 billion if the Microsoft deal failed

The previous deadline for Microsoft and Activision Blizzard to complete their merger agreement was yesterday, July 18, 2023. In the previous agreement, if Microsoft had failed to close the merger by that date, Activision Blizzard was set to receive $3 billion in compensation.

Both Activision Blizzard and Microsoft remain confident the deal will be closed before the new deadline of October 18. However, in the unlikely event the deal is terminated before August 29, 2023, Activision Blizzard will still receive $3 billion compensation. If the deal is terminated between August 30 and September 15, the publisher will receive $3.5 billion. If the Microsoft deal is terminated after September 15, Activision Blizzard would be in line to receive $4.5 billion in compensation.

Microsoft is now technically free to close its deal in the United States following Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley’s ruling in favor of the company in its court case against the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). An FTC appeal was not successful and a gamers’ lawsuit against the proposed deal has also been thrown out of court. However, Microsoft still has to negotiate with the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which has blocked the deal in the United Kingdom.

The new agreement sees the deadline extended to October 18 so Microsoft can “continue to work with the CMA on the issues raised in the UK”, according to a statement from Microsoft president Brad Smith. The CMA has now extended its own deadline for its new investigation into the deal; this is August 29, although the aim is to reach an agreement before that date.

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Lawmakers urge FTC to drop Microsoft-Activision matter

The gamers’ lawsuit met its end on Tuesday when Justice Elena Kagan denied their request to block the deal. Meanwhile, a group of lawmakers have written to the Federal Trade Commission chair Lina Khan, urging her to drop the matter entirely. Despite having its request for a preliminary injunction denied, the FTC can continue to investigate the deal, seeking legal recourse later. The FTC has not responded or detailed its next steps.

In related news, Microsoft announced this morning that it has reached an agreement with Activision Blizzard to extend the deal’s deadline as it continues to negotiate remedies with U.K. regulator Competition and Markets Authority. The CMA is the only regulator who has blocked the deal outside of the U.S.

The merger is now set to close on October 18, 2023. “We’re optimistic about getting this done, and excited about bringing more games to more players everywhere,” wrote Xbox boss Phil Spencer.

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Microsoft isn’t skipping UK to close Activision deal after all

One of the reasons FTC sought a preliminary injunction at the last minute was a report that Microsoft was willing to close the deal despite the CMA blocking it. Following FTC’s defeat, both Microsoft and CMA announced that they had entered negotiations to get the merger over the finish line with remedies that would be acceptable to the U.K. As a result, the tribunal where Microsoft had appealed the CMA’s decision paused the proceedings and granted both parties extra time to negotiate.

In light of those negotiations, it’s highly unlikely that Microsoft will close the merger today. However, according to Reuters, this poses the risk of Activision being swayed by another buyer since it has no legal obligation to merge with Microsoft once the deadline elapses. A Reuters source claims that Microsoft is now seeking an extension of the existing contract to ensure that Activision doesn’t have “a change of heart.”

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Microsoft’s original offer to Sony went beyond Call of Duty

Thanks to the recent FTC vs. Microsoft and Activision Blizzard legal showdown, we know that Xbox’s original offer to PlayStation went beyond Call of Duty, but there was a catch. Xbox boss Phil Spencer told Sony’s Jim Ryan that he was prepared to sign an agreement that would grant PlayStation “future versions in the Call of Duty franchise or any other current Activision franchise on Sony through December 31, 2027.” Ryan felt this offer was “inadequate.”

The agreement has since been extended to 10 years, but only for Call of Duty, as reported by The Verge. It’s unclear if this was mutually decided by Sony and Microsoft since Ryan wasn’t happy with the 3-year offer or if this is the contract that Microsoft came up with when its executives went to Brussels and told the press that they were hoping to get Sony on board.

Microsoft’s deals with Nvidia and other platforms go beyond Call of Duty.

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What’s next for Microsoft, Activision, and the FTC?

Late last night, the FTC sought an emergency extension to the current restraining order against Microsoft and Activision — which expires tonight — as it appeals Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley’s verdict. Judge Corley understandably denied the motion, paving way for the FTC to seek an emergency order from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The FTC argues that Judge Corley did not correctly apply the law to this case.

Senator Warren, who is one of the few lawmakers who originally urged the FTC to investigate the merger, tweeted that she “applauds” Chair Lina Khan and the agency for staying in the fight to defend consumers.

If the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals fails to issue an order today, or rules in favor of Microsoft and Activision, then both companies can merge as early as this Saturday. Meanwhile, NASDAQ is preparing to pull Activision from the stock market on Monday.

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FTC appeals Microsoft Activision deal verdict as console war gets uglier

In a surprise move, the FTC decided to appeal Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley’s decision to deny a preliminary injunction against Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. With the deadline for the merger looming, the FTC is seeking an emergency extension to the existing restraining order from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The news sparked yet another intense debate on social media, with anti-monopoly activists, politicians, and legal experts jumping into the fray. Gamers blamed the FTC for doing Sony’s bidding, vandalizing its Wikipedia page and listing SIE CEO Jim Ryan as its chair (rest assured, it’s still Lina Khan).

Some legal experts have said that Judge Corley erred in stating that the FTC needs to prove the deal “will” — rather than “may” — harm competition. The law demands the latter.

All eyes are on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which could make a decision on the restraining order as soon as today.

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Does the Switch really compete with the PS5 and Xbox?

The definition of console market has been hotly debated, with some defining a “high-end” console market where only PlayStation and Xbox compete with one another. It has long been said that the Switch targets a completely different audience than PlayStation and Xbox, but Microsoft says that its Xbox Series S is priced to compete with the Switch.

“There are functionality differences between the Switch and the PlayStation and Xbox consoles – the Switch is portable, and it has its own screen and less powerful hardware,” Judge Corley acknowledged. “However, neither the FTC nor its expert consider the extent to which the Switch’s differentiated features including its price, portability, and battery are factors the customer balances when deciding which console to purchase.”

Judge Corley also acknowledged “content differences” between the Switch and PlayStation/Xbox, but noted that many of the games available on Sony and Microsoft platforms are also available on Switch.

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FTC’s appeal against Microsoft Activision verdict will be an outlier if it happens

The FTC doesn’t have a great track record of pursuing appeals after initial losses, but Bloomberg claims to have heard from a person familiar with the case that the agency is “leaning towards” filing an appeal. If true, the move will certainly be seen as an outlier.

According to Bloomberg, the FTC has yet to make a final decision on the matter but an appeal could come as soon as today, July 12. The agency is reportedly planning to seek an emergency stay from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals because next Tuesday, July 18, is the merger deadline for Microsoft and Activision.

Judge Corley’s decision has been criticized by some, who have pointed out that the law demands that the FTC should show that a deal “may” substantially lessen competition, not that it certainly will or likely will. However, others say that the FTC presented a weak case.

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Judge Corley cites Sony’s payments for Call of Duty’s exclusive marketing rights

As first reported on Twitter by The Verge senior editor Tom Warren, Judge Corley’s ruling against the FTC claims that Microsoft’s Call of Duty deal will be good for gamers. Citing Sony’s history of paying for exclusive marketing rights for Call of Duty titles, Judge Corley states that the deal will allow gamers to “utilize the cloud to play on the device of choice, including, it is intended, on the Nintendo Switch. Perhaps bad for Sony. But good for Call of Duty gamers and future gamers.” As part of its efforts to acquire Activision Blizzard, Microsoft announced in February that it signed a binding 10-year contract to bring the Call of Duty franchise and other Xbox titles to Nintendo’s consoles.

Warren notes that Judge Corley’s ruling echoes statements by the European Unions’ antitrust chief, Margrethe Vestrager. In a speech following the European Union’s May decision in favor of the Activision Blizzard acquisition, Vestager claimed the deal would have “significant procompetitive effects.” Both judges’ decisions stand in stark contrast to the somewhat outlandish claims from Sony during the case alleging that Microsoft might make future Call of Duty games buggy on PS5 and PS4. Sony had also objected to an offer from Microsoft to keep the Call of Duty franchise on PlayStation for the near future, claiming the deal would “irreparably harm competition.”

Now that Microsoft has won its case against the FTC it will have to abide by the terms of the agreements made about Call of Duty’s future. This means that not only will the Call of Duty franchise be available on PlayStation for at least the next decade, but also on the Nintendo Switch and cloud services for the first time. While this certainly isn’t the outcome Sony was hoping for, it may well be the best one possible for Call of Duty fans.

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