SEATTLE: Microsoft has agreed to buy video game company Activision Blizzard in a $70 billion.

Activision makes some of the most popular titles, including Call of Duty and Candy Crush.

Phil Spencer, the chief executive of Microsoft’s gaming business, said that whatever the metaverse may end up being, “gaming will be at the forefront of making that mainstream.”

For now, he said, the acquisition was about gaining a stronghold in mobile gaming, where Microsoft barely competes, and a studio that produces blockbuster games. He called Call of Duty “one of the amazing entertainment franchises on the planet.”

The takeover of Activision would make Microsoft the world’s third-largest gaming company by revenue, behind Tencent and Sony, the company said.

Microsoft now makes Xbox consoles and owns studios that produce hits like Minecraft.