Xbox Hilariously Claims to Lack Basic Knowledge About Call of Duty

Microsoft has claimed it doesn’t know some basic facts about Call of Duty, such as when it was first released. Call of Duty is one of the biggest franchises out there and it’s pretty hard to deny that. It seems to be a big reason why Microsoft was so okay with offering to purchase Activision for nearly $70 billion, which would make it the biggest acquisition in the history of gaming. Although Xbox plans to keep Call of Duty on all platforms if it acquires the publisher, some still believe that such a giant company should not have control over Call of Duty. As such, the FTC has moved to block the deal in an antitrust lawsuit.

As part of Microsoft’s defense, the company claimed it doesn’t know when Call of Duty launched, how many studios that work on the franchise, or that it’s as popular as is widely believed. It seems that this is just lawyer strategy to get the FTC to defend its claims with proper sourcing and create a tougher case. You can read an excerpt from Microsoft’s defense below.

“Microsoft avers that it lacks knowledge or information sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations concerning industry perceptions of Call of Duty and Call of Duty’s original release date; or as to the truth of the allegations concerning Call of Duty’s launch and typical release schedule and the resources and budget Activision allocates to Call of Duty, including the number of studios that work on Call of Duty.”  

It’s a pretty strange strategy, but who are we to question the lawyers of one of the biggest companies in the world. It remains to be seen how this will play out, but Microsoft seems to be playing hard ball already. Prior to the FTC lawsuit, the deal was expected to close by June 2023. It’s unclear if and how this lawsuit will impact when the deal closes, provided it’s not blocked.

What do you think of Microsoft acquisition of Activision? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @Cade_Onder.

[H/T Insider Gaming]