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According to Microsoft president Brad Smith, the company has just signed a rather significant new deal with Nintendo. This deal will bring various Microsoft-owned Xbox games to Nintendo platforms, allowing more players to experience games they may not have access to otherwise. The legally binding agreement will last for 10 years until it either expires or a renewal occurs. Thanks to this agreement, Microsoft’s games will arrive on Nintendo’s consoles on the same day that they come out on Xbox consoles. Smith says that the deal represents just one aspect of Microsoft’s overall goal of expanding its library’s reach to more players.
Smith’s tweet announcing the agreement repeatedly brings up Call of Duty as a major example of what Nintendo fans can expect to receive as part of the deal. This appears to demonstrate Microsoft’s confidence in its ability to go through with the Activision merger that made headlines last year. As of right now, the merger has not yet become official due to the Federal Trade Commission’s decision to file an antitrust claim against Microsoft. Additionally, Sony currently aims to convince EU regulators to put an end to the merger.
Any Switch ports?
Notably, Smith’s tweet does not specifically state that Xbox games will come to the Nintendo Switch, only that “Nintendo’s gamers” will have a chance to play them. The Switch’s low power compared to other consoles could mean that Microsoft will opt to port Xbox games to future Nintendo platforms instead. At the same time, though, it remains feasible that at least some Xbox games could make the transition to Switch without too much hassle. Having Microsoft games be playable via Nintendo’s cloud service will also be feasible.
Although Microsoft focused on Call of Duty in its announcement, players will no doubt want to see what other games will come to Nintendo platforms. Even if Nintendo fans aren’t into Microsoft’s heavy hitters, there are probably at least a few Xbox games they would be interested in.
Image via Xbox Game Studios
