Activision Blizzard – Definition, And More
What is Activision Blizzard?
Activision Blizzard (often called ATVI) is a big American company that makes and sells video games. It is famous for popular games like:
- World of Warcraft
- Call of Duty
- StarCraft
- Overwatch
- Candy Crush (from King, which they own)
- Diablo
People play these games on consoles (PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch), computers, and phones. The company also runs esports tournaments (professional video-game competitions) and sells ads inside games.
When was it created?
Activision Blizzard was officially formed in 2008 when two companies joined together:
- Activision (started in 1979)
- Blizzard Entertainment (started in 1991) + Vivendi Games
Even after the merger, Activision and Blizzard kept making their own games separately.
Short History of Activision
- Founded in 1979 by former Atari employees who wanted game creators to get credit for their work.
- Made classic games like Pitfall!, River Raid, and Chopper Command.
- Was the first company to make games for Atari without being part of Atari (called a “third-party developer”).
Short History of Blizzard
- Started in 1991 by three college friends as “Silicon & Synapse,” later renamed Blizzard Entertainment in 1994.
- First big hit: Warcraft: Orcs & Humans (1994) – a real-time strategy game.
- Followed by huge successes: Warcraft II, Diablo, StarCraft, and World of Warcraft (the most popular online game ever for many years).
Microsoft Buys Activision Blizzard
- In January 2022, Microsoft announced it would buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion (all in cash).
- The deal took a long time because some governments worried it would give Microsoft too much power in gaming.
- Finally, the purchase was completed in October 2023.
- To get approval:
- Microsoft promised to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation and Nintendo for at least 10 years.
- Microsoft sold the cloud-gaming (streaming) rights for Activision games to Ubisoft for 15 years (mostly to make the UK happy).
Main Competitors
- Sony (PlayStation)
- Nintendo (Switch, Mario, Zelda)
- Electronic Arts (EA) – FIFA, Madden, Apex Legends
- Take-Two Interactive – Grand Theft Auto, NBA 2K
- Epic Games – Fortnite
- Mobile-game companies like Tencent and NetEase
Where is the headquarters?
Santa Monica, California, USA.
Summary
Activision Blizzard is one of the biggest and most famous video-game companies in the world. It started when Activision and Blizzard joined in 2008, and in 2023 it became part of Microsoft. Its games are played by millions of people on almost every gaming device, and titles like Call of Duty and World of Warcraft have changed gaming forever.