Summary
- Call of Duty breaks a franchise record by hitting half a billion sales.
- The launch-day records were set under Microsoft ownership, emphasizing cross-platform success.
- Cooperative studios maintain series quality under Activision, suggesting more ambitious projects down the line.
Activision Blizzard's Call of Duty franchise has surpassed 500 million copies sold, marking an impressive milestone that places it among the best-selling video game series in history. Since its debut in 2003, Call of Duty has become a cornerstone of the first-person shooter genre, offering players military experiences across various historical and fictional settings.
The franchise's consistent annual releases have been developed by multiple studios under Activision, each bringing their unique touch while maintaining the series' core gameplay elements. More times than not, Call of Duty installments tend to sell well. CoD's position as an industry phenom remains irrefutable, considering how it managed to captivate a global audience and foster a massive online community while maintaining its status decades later.
The 500 million sales milestone coincides with significant developments for the franchise, as it debuts under Microsoft's ownership following the company's $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. According to figures shared with The Washington Post, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 set records for the series before Black Ops 6's launch. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella highlighted a substantial increase in first-day players and new subscribers to Xbox's Game Pass service during an earnings call. He also noted a 60% year-over-year increase in unit sales on PlayStation and Steam, emphasizing the game's cross-platform success.
Microsoft's executive vice president and CFO, Amy Hood, emphasized that the influx of new Game Pass subscribers is expected to generate recurring revenue, reinforcing the company's strategy of offering games through subscription models. Despite the change in ownership, Activision's production system — managing 15 different studios to develop the franchise — remains intact. Matt Cox, senior vice president and general manager of Call of Duty at Activision, mentioned that the longstanding collaboration between studios continues to contribute significantly to the quality of the final product.
What 500 Million Sales Mean for Call of Duty and Beyond
The surpassing of 500 million copies sold doesn't just celebrate Call of Duty's winning formula but also highlights the franchise's enduring appeal. Alongside the franchise's stat, the impressive launch of Black Ops 6 indicates that the series continues to innovate and attract a growing player base. Microsoft's integration of the franchise into its Game Pass subscription service appears to be a strategic move that broadens accessibility and encourages player engagement across multiple platforms. This approach aligns with the overall shift toward subscription models and could set a precedent for how blockbuster titles are distributed in the future.
Looking ahead, the collaboration between CoD's seasoned development teams and Microsoft's resources may may inspire bold new directions for Call of Duty's universe. The franchise's ability to maintain consistent quality while embracing new distribution methods also demonstrates its adaptability in a rapidly changing market. As the industry continues to evolve, CoD's success under Microsoft's ownership could influence various trends, potentially redefining how games are marketed, monetized, and experienced by players worldwide.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 83 /100 Critics Rec: 91%
- Released
- October 25, 2024
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Suggestive Themes, Strong Language, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
- Treyarch, Raven Software
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Engine
- IW 9.0
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- Yes - PlayStation, Xbox, PC
WHERE TO PLAY
Forced to go rogue. Hunted from within. This is Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.
Developed by Treyarch and Raven, Black Ops 6 is a spy action thriller set in the early 90s, a period of transition and upheaval in global politics, characterized by the end of the Cold War and the rise of the United States as a single superpower. With a mind-bending narrative, and unbound by the rules of engagement, this is signature Black Ops.
The Black Ops 6 Campaign provides dynamic moment-to-moment gameplay that includes a variety of play spaces with blockbuster set pieces and action-packed moments, high-stakes heists, and cloak-and-dagger spy activity.
In a best-in-class Multiplayer experience, players will test their skills across 16 new maps at launch, including 12 core 6v6 maps and 4 Strike maps that can be played 2v2 or 6v6.
Black Ops 6 also marks the epic return of Round-Based Zombies, the fan-favorite mode where players will take down hordes of the undead in two brand-new maps at launch. Post-launch, players can look forward to even more exciting maps and groundbreaking experiences dropping into both Multiplayer and Zombies.
- Cross Save
- Yes - PlayStation, Xbox, PC
- Prequel(s)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Call of Duty: Black Ops III, Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Call of Duty: Black Ops, Call of Duty: World at War
- Franchise
- Call of Duty
- Number of Players
- 1-4
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Unknown
- PC Release Date
- October 25, 2024
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- October 25, 2024
- PS5 Release Date
- October 25, 2024
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- How Long To Beat
- 8 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
- File Size Xbox Series
- 216 GB (October 2024)
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
