Nvidia was able to pull out of the game in the negotiations between Microsoft and the authorities concerning the takeover of Activision Blizzard. The GeForce Now service will see its catalog greatly strengthened.
At the start of 2020, Nvidia officially launched its GeForce Now cloud gaming service on the market after years of beta testing. At this time, publishers who had left their games on the service during testing withdraw their marbles. New subscribers to GeForce Now are thus seeing Activision Blizzard and Bethesda games disappear one after the other. A blow to the service.
Since then, Bethesda has been acquired by Microsoft and Activision Blizzard is the subject of a takeover project by the same group. Tuesday, February 21, 2023, Microsoft and Nvidia announced the signing of a historic agreement around GeFore Now.
Xbox games now, Call of if takeover goes through
Microsoft and Nvidia announce that they have signed a 10-year agreement guaranteeing access to ” Xbox PC games on Nvidia GeForce Now “, Then ” it will also allow Activision Blizzard’s PC titles, such as Call of Duty, to stream on GeForce NOW after Microsoft’s takeover of Activision ends “. Where Xbox Cloud Gaming relies on an Xbox console architecture, Nvidia’s GeForce Now cloud gaming takes a PC approach. Microsoft games must therefore be available on PC to be adapted to GeForce Now. This is the case with a large number of Microsoft games today.
Unlike the agreement signed with Nintendo which only provides for the arrival of the license call of duty on the platforms of the Japanese manufacturer if the takeover goes to the end, the agreement with Nvidia is much broader. Here, the deal takes effect immediately for Xbox games available on PC. In other words, even if the takeover fails, Nvidia will have won negotiations to recover games like Forza Horizon, Halo or the future Fable. Microsoft and Nvidia say work to integrate Xbox games into GeForce Now will begin now. Moreover, if the takeover is done, the agreement includes Activision Blizzard games and not just Call of Duty. This could signal the arrival of World of Warcraft on a cloud gaming service.
Note that the press release does not specify whether Bethesda games are affected by this agreement. Microsoft is often careful to distinguish Xbox Game Studios games from Bethesda games. So not sure that we can play Starfield Or Doom Eternal on GeForce Now.
Games you already own
Remember that the GeForce Now service is based on the principle of BYOG: Bring Your Own Game. Unlike Xbox Cloud Gaming, which is currently based on a catalog subscription offer with the Xbox Game Pass, Nvidia allows you to play the games you already own on different stores.
In the press release, Microsoft and Nvidia specify that the agreement includes the arrival of games purchased on the Microsoft Store in GeForce Now, but also Microsoft games purchased on the Epic Games Store or on Steam.
Winner winner for Microsoft
The signing of this agreement by Microsoft at a time when the proposed takeover is to be negotiated in the United Kingdom and in the European Union is good news for the giant. First, it now guarantees Nvidia’s support for the takeover project.
In the case of the United Kingdom, the competition authority had particularly singled out cloud gaming as a risky market for this project. Here, Microsoft guarantees access to its own licenses and those of Activision on the service of its competitor. The authority could therefore be receptive to it.
Moreover, since GeForce Now relies on purchased games, this agreement should also increase Microsoft’s revenue. This will push GeForce Now subscribers to pay for Microsoft games on Steam, the Microsoft Store, or Epic Games. This is the same reason that drives Microsoft today to offer most of its games on Steam, in addition to its own store and subscription. Xbox games are regularly top sellers on Steam, a sign of a profitable strategy for the giant.
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