Coming in as Microsoft’s biggest acquisition yet, a new deal has been proposed between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard. This deal would mean that Microsoft would pay $68.7 billion to acquire Activision Blizzard.

Activision Blizzard is one of the biggest video game companies in the world, owning some of the most well-known games in the modern era, such as Call of Duty, Overwatch, Candy Crush, and World of Warcraft. If the Federal Trade Commission approves this acquisition, all of these franchises would be under Microsoft’s control.

If Microsoft wanted to, they could even hurt their competition by not releasing future games on Playstation, leading to more Xbox exclusives. If Microsoft continues to acquire more studios, Sony may struggle to compete with all of the exclusives, leading to a monopoly, as the only other big gaming console company, Nintendo, doesn’t compete with the other two, instead opting to have unique experiences over the competition.

In response to Microsoft’s attempt, Sony has decided to purchase Bungie, the studio behind the Destiny games. This should be able to help in the case that Microsoft goes exclusive-crazy and leaves Sony in the dirt.

Overall, no matter the result, this deal will change the gaming industry from now on. Personally, I’m very excited to see what happens, especially as an owner of a Playstation; it’s very important.