2022 was a wild year for games and I’m still spinning | Kaser Focus

We’re almost to the finish line of 2022, and it’s been one for the history books. This year we had, in no particular order, multiple acquisitions, major gaming and hardware launches, massive leaks — oh, and a war that still threatens the lives of several members of our community. This is the year we saw the birth of the Steam Deck and the death of Google Stadia. We’ve seen tragedy, drama, success and so much controversy. As we’re about to exit to the other side, let’s look back on how we did in 2022.

Microsoft got this year started off by announcing in January that it intended to acquire Activision Blizzard. An acquisition on that scale was unheard of, so that got our collective blood pumping early. This month, the FTC announced it was suing to block the acquisition pending further investigation. That makes the deal feel like a nice bookend on each side of 2022. Sony has involved itself in the process by pointing out all the ways that the deal will hurt “competition” (meaning Sony itself) should it go through. That’s become the source of some ongoing drama.