In a recent revelation, Phil Spencer, the head of Xbox and Microsoft Gaming CEO has dashed the hopes of gamers eagerly awaiting Activision Blizzard titles on Xbox Game Pass. In the latest episode of the official Xbox podcast, Spencer confirmed that there won’t be a swift influx of Activision Blizzard games into the Game Pass library in the coming weeks and that fans will need to exercise patience until 2024.

Spencer explained, “The regulatory process took so long… that we weren’t able to get in and work with Activision Blizzard on that back catalog. Now that the deal is closed, we’re starting that work, but there is work. I think the Activision Twitter handle… did put out something that talked about 2024, and I think that’s accurate. I would love it if there was some kind of secret celebration drop that’s coming in the next couple of weeks — there’s not.“

Prior to the Microsoft acquisition, Activision Blizzard had already informed gamers that titles like Modern Warfare III and Diablo IV wouldn’t be making their way to Xbox Game Pass this year. However, the status of older Activision Blizzard games remained unclear until Spencer’s clarification.

Spencer acknowledged the disappointment this news might bring to Xbox fans, saying, “This acquisition is definitely long-term, so the fact that we’re not hitting day one with a bunch of games dropping into Game Pass is a little bit of a downer, but I’m very excited about the future. And I just want to be straight with people that that’s where we are.“

Many had expected Microsoft to swiftly introduce older Call of Duty titles to Xbox Game Pass, similar to how they added 20 Bethesda games just days after their acquisition. However, Spencer’s statement reveals that integration work and regulatory hurdles have impeded this process. The anticipation had been fueled by the way Microsoft resolved issues with classic Xbox 360 Call of Duty titles ahead of the original Activision Blizzard deal deadline. Gamers were thrilled to finally experience improved matchmaking in games like Call of Duty: Black Ops and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, thanks to Microsoft’s efforts over the summer.

While there is clearly work ahead to bring Activision Blizzard games to Xbox Game Pass, fans can only hope that Microsoft is preparing a surprise backward compatibility release to bring some cherished older titles to modern hardware in the near future.