Activision News Articles
Wednesday26th Apr 2017
Poll Do You Think Call Of Duty: WWII Will Come To Switch, And Would You Want It If It Did?
War is hell
Today Activision is hosting a livestream event to officially lift the lid on this year's Call of Duty entry. After the last few instalments pushed the action further and further into the future, the company has decided to turn back the clock and return to World War II, the conflict in which the very first Call of Duty game was based.
Wednesday1st Feb 2017
News Nintendo Switch Version Of Skylanders Imaginators Doesn't Support Traps Or Vehicles
Drastic plastic
It's a sad fact that the Wii U era was packed with instances where Nintendo players missed out on content in third-party games, and it would appear that history is repeating itself - with Skylanders Imaginators, at least. As we all know, the concept behind Skylanders is that toys and items from older games are backwards-compatible...
Thursday19th Jan 2017
News Ubisoft Buys Guitar Hero Live Studio FreeStyleGames From Activision
Studio renamed Ubisoft Leamington
Ubisoft has acquired the UK studio behind Guitar Hero Live and DJ Hero, it has been revealed. FreeStyleGames, which is based in Leamington Spa, will be renamed Ubisoft Leamington. Ubisoft Reflections boss Richard Blenkinsop will be stepping in as managing director, and had this to say: We're thrilled to have...
Tuesday3rd Jan 2017
News Activision's Amazing Spider-Man Games Make A Sharp Exit From The Wii U eShop
The web-slinger runs out of time
Activision's two Amazing Spider-Man games for the Wii U have been yanked from the Wii U eShop. While neither title could be considered a solid-gold classic, The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 presumably had an audience thanks to the licence alone - and it would seem that is also the reason for their...
Friday9th Dec 2016
News Skylanders Developer Vicarious Visions Is Now Working On Destiny
Backs up rumours of series cancellation
It has been confirmed thatSkylanders developer Vicarious Visions is helping Bungie with Destiny, adding credence to rumours that Activision is pulling the plug on its defining toys-to-life franchise following disappointing sales of the latest entry, Skylanders Imaginators. Vicarious Visions has worked on the...
Tuesday29th Nov 2016
Rumour The Skylanders Franchise Might Be Facing Cancellation
Liam Robertson weighs in on the topic
It seems that the writing's been on the wall for the toys-to-life market for a while now. The Disney Infinity franchise just got cancelled this summer, and the general sales in this industry have been steadily shrinking. Lego Dimensions and Skylanders have been holding the line thus far, but it seems that...
Monday3rd Oct 2016
News Skylanders Creator App Turns Your Wii U Skylanders Into Physical Toys
Getting creative
Activision has just unveiled its Skylanders Creator app. This sucks characters from the console version of Imaginators and enables players to tweak and order 3D printed versions of their creations - as well as T-Shirts and Cards, too. The app is quite low-tech in its connectivity. Select transfer from the Wii U and it plays an...
Wednesday17th Aug 2016
News Crash, Cortex And Thumpin' Wumpa Islands Are All Headed To Wii U In Skylanders Imaginators
Hands-on at Gamescom 2016
At E3 Activision had announced that PlayStation owners would get a special Crash Bandicoot Starter Pack with characters and levels from the classic game in the forthcoming Skylanders Imaginators. At Gamescom 2016 we finally got to hear how Wii U (and Xbox) owners can get in on the Crash action. First off we have another...
Tuesday16th Aug 2016
News Crash Bandicoot's Nemesis Is Confirmed For Skylanders Imaginators
You can't keep a good doctor down
The big news regarding this year's Skylanders outing is that Crash Bandicoot is coming along for the ride, and thanks to GameStop's website we now know that his arch enemy Dr. Neo Cortex will also be immortalised in NFC-powered plastic. The image in question has been removed from GameStop's site, and shows the...
Monday15th Aug 2016
News Guitar Hero Live Is Still Rockin' With Two New GHTV Premium Shows
Back to school, in style
Guitar Hero Live is headed 'Back to School' with two new GHTV Premium Shows that are sure to get the new term off to a rockin' start. The first show 'Rock the School Bus' is available now with the second show following later this month. Hop on to GHTV and ace the following tunes: Rock the School Bus Marcy Playground –...
Wednesday20th Jul 2016
Video We Need To Talk About Ghostbusters 2 On The NES
Scrolling to the left, doing its own thing
In case you hadn't noticed, there's a new Ghostbusters film out at the moment, and it has endured its fair share of unfair criticism purely for having four female busters instead of four male ones. Yes, that's the kind of crazy world we now occupy. Putting such gender-related silliness to one side for a...
Tuesday28th Jun 2016
News Activision Was Closer To Owning Rare Than You Might Think
Xbox co-creator Ed Fries says it was a close-run thing
UK company Rare is responsible for some of the best games of the past 30 years, and was once a Nintendo second-party studio thanks to the Japanese giant purchasing 49 percent of the firm. Nintendo and Rare's alliance resulted in titles like Donkey Kong Country, Diddy Kong Racing, GoldenEye 007,...
Tuesday14th Jun 2016
News Crash Bandicoot Will Be Playable in the Wii U Port of Skylanders Imaginators
It's been awhile, Crash
Crash Bandicoot is one of those characters that's always been seen as an unofficial "Mario" for PlayStation systems, though this has been something of a misconception. The character has actually belonged to Activision for some time now, and a few of his later titles even appeared on Nintendo systems. Obviously, the character...
Friday15th Apr 2016
Video Learn About Hero World, the MMO That Could Have Changed Guitar and DJ Hero Forever
Struck the wrong chord as the series collapsed
In the last generation of systems there was a frenzied period when Guitar Hero and Rock Band went head to head and dominated the gaming industry. With pricey yet desirable accessories and gameplay that struck a nerve with the public, the concept of plastic instruments and music games was a huge...
Tuesday29th Mar 2016
Rumour The Next Call Of Duty Game Is Boldly Venturing Into Space
Could it come to NX?
Call of Duty: Ghosts was a first for Activision's famous FPS series as it featured an opening segment which was set in space. If you liked that bit - we sure did - then you'll be pleased to know that the franchise could go one better by taking place entirely in this environment. The rumour - as reported by our pals over at
Wednesday2nd Mar 2016
News Activision Won't Have a Booth at E3 This Year
Still intends to show off new COD footage at the event
Activision is one of the most pivotal third party companies in the industry, with Skylanders and Call of Duty obviously being its most popular properties. While Call of Duty has a somewhat hit or miss history with Nintendo consoles, Skylanders still shows up year after year, with the most recent...
Friday12th Feb 2016
News Activision's 2015 Figures Show Slight Growth, But Skylanders And Guitar Hero Underperform
Skylanders faced "greater competition" in the Toys to Life genre
Things are on the up for what is arguably the world's biggest publisher of video games. Activision has reported its full-year earnings for 2015, and results show a slight increase in sales, operating income and net income. Revenues hit $4.6 billion, which is up from the $4.4 billion...
Thursday14th Jan 2016
News Skylanders Superchargers Nintendo Combo Packs Are Exclusive To Smyths Toys In The UK
£24.99 a pop
Donkey Kong and Bowser were surprise additions to the Skylanders Superchargers line-up, and have recently been re-launched independently from the starter packs they were originally bundled in, making it easier than ever for amiibo collectors to get their hands on them. The packs are now available in the UK, and are exclusive to Smyths...
Tuesday5th Jan 2016
News Activision Blizzard Has Acquired Major League Gaming
Aims to create the "ESPN of eSports"
For those of you that like to follow the more competitive side of gaming, you've no doubt heard about Major League Gaming, or MLG. The organization regularly puts on tournaments and competitions for games such as Starcraft, League of Legends, Super Smash Bros., and Call of Duty; pitting the very best of the best...
Thursday31st Dec 2015
News Bowser And Donkey Kong Skylanders Superchargers amiibo Releasing In Cheaper Combo Packs
No need to shell out for the starter pack, collectors
Skylanders Superchargers was pretty unique on Nintendo formats as the starter pack launched with either Bowser or Donkey Kong, and the figures could be toggled between Skylanders and amiibo functionality by turning the base. The problem for serious amiibo collectors is that you have to purchase...
Tuesday24th Nov 2015
News Guitar Hero Live to Add 34 New Tracks on 25th November
With popular bands like Cinderella and Five Finger Death Punch
Guitar Hero Live on Wii U may not have stormed the charts as successfully as versions on other platforms, but Nintendo's system is still getting the full works of new songs and content additions. New tracks have gradually been added to the online GHTV and related areas, even if you're...
Saturday7th Nov 2015
News Activision Blizzard Has Just Opened a TV and Film Studio
Skylanders and Call of Duty are first up
Activision has no shortage of big hitter video game franchises, but it's a fairly safe bet that Skylanders and Call of Duty are the biggest successes to come from the company. It seems that Activision wants to continue to hit new heights and has just recently announced that it's opening Activision Blizzard...
Friday23rd Oct 2015
Video Watch Our Resident Songsmith Ryan Craddock Rock Out On Guitar Hero Live
Flawless fret work at EGX 2015
Those of you in the UK will no doubt be aware that EGX 2015 took place a little while ago, and the Nintendo Life team was in attendance for all four days running tournaments and live events on the Nintendo UK stand. While we were there we also got chance to flex our gaming muscles on Activision's
Monday28th Sep 2015
News Super Mario Maker Continues Steady UK Run as Skylanders Performs Well on Wii U
Not much else to shout about for Nintendo
The UK chart results have now been released for the most recent week, and bring a mix of expected results along with occasional surprises. FIFA 16 seizes top spot, naturally, though there are a couple of interesting outcomes from a Nintendo perspective. For starters, Super Mario Maker continues to...
Thursday24th Sep 2015
Weirdness Bowser Bummed by Skylanders amiibo Tie-in
GAME store has a cheeky time of it
Anatomically, Bowser's nose can be considered to have two primary purposes. First, it provides something to breathe through when he has a mouth full of hot, fiery death to spit. Second, its presence keeps him from looking like a total goober. Case in point, one GAME store seems to have come across a Hammer Slam...
Friday4th Sep 2015
News A Supercharged Star Fox amiibo Hybrid Was A Possibility for Skylanders SuperChargers
I can't let you do that, Star Fox!
We're still kind of amazed that Nintendo allowed supercharged versions of Bowser and Donkey Kong to be included in the upcoming Skylanders SuperChargers game. In addition to being playable characters they also get their own amiibo figurines which have a handy switch in the base to flip into Skylanders mode...
Monday10th Aug 2015
News Skylander SuperChargers Racing On Wii And 3DS Will Offer Bespoke Tracks And Progression
Racing experience "unlike" anything you'll see on current-gen systems
Activision may have unveiled a lot of the Wii U version of Skylanders SuperChargers at Gamescom 2015, featuring heavily the platform-wide addition of its Kart Racing mode, but we are still light on details relating to the Wii and 3DS versions of the game. Talking to Vicarious...
Wednesday5th Aug 2015
News Online Multiplayer and Kart Racing Gameplay Unveiled for Skylanders SuperChargers
Bowsers and Donkey Kong go up a gear
While we had expected Activision to unveil the Wii and 3DS version of Skylanders SuperChargers at Gamescom, when doors open today what we'll see is something much more substantial. Not only have we a new online multiplayer kart racing game in all versions of Skylanders SuperChargers, but also online for the main...
Wednesday8th Jul 2015
News The Peanuts Movie: Snoopy's Grand Adventure Will Bring Its Wit to Wii U and 3DS
Also suitable for those with nut allergies
The Peanuts comic-strip, by Charles M. Schulz, is a truly iconic part of the art-form. Readers of various ages are surely familiar with the adventures of Peanuts, Charlie Brown and company, and it's not surprising that celebrations are due for its 65th anniversary. A big part of the celebrations will be a...
Friday3rd Jul 2015
Will the tie-in pay off for Nintendo and Activision?
While Skylanders SuperChargers isn't - according to our surveys - particularly high up the wishlists of active Nintendo Life readers, it could be a notable release for Wii U, in particular. During E3 Nintendo and Activision confirmed a smart and unique collaboration that brings Bowser and Donkey...
