Microsoft plans to buy the powerhouse but troubled video game company Activision Blizzard for nearly $70 billion making it biggest deal ever and one that places a major bet that people will be spending more and more time in the digital world.

The blockbuster acquisition announced would launch the company into a leading spot in the $175 billion gaming industry. In an industry driven by big franchises, Activision makes some of the most popular titles, including Call of Duty and Candy Crush.

Games ranging from bulky consoles to smartphones, have gained even greater popularity during the pandemic and technology companies are swarming around the industry, looking for a bigger share of attention and money from the world’s three billion gamers.

Microsoft makes the deal as strengthening the company’s hand in the so-called metaverse , the nascent world of virtual and augmented reality. The metaverse has attracted huge amounts of investment and talent, though so far is more of a buzzword than a thriving business.

The focus is on the futuristic metaverse belies the significance of the deal in the present: The acquisition helps Microsoft gain on its rival Sony in the long-running battle for gamers’ attentions and wallets by offering top titles. It also helps the software giant stay ahead of powerful newer competitors in gaming, like Amazon and Google.

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 is about gaining a stronghold in mobile gaming, where Microsoft barely competes, and a studio that produces hugely popular games. He called Call of Duty “one of the amazing entertainment franchises on the planet.”

Microsoft is valued at more than $2.3 trillion, second only to Apple. The takeover of Activision would make Microsoft the world’s third-largest gaming company by revenue, behind Tencent and Sony, the company said.