'Shipping a Major Franchise Like Clockwork Every Year Is a Really Difficult Task' — Microsoft Responds to Call of Duty: Black Ops 7's Disappointing Launch

Clearly, each is not good successful the satellite of Call of Duty. Black Ops 7 appears to person struggled for players and income comparatively speaking amid pugnacious contention from the likes of EA’s Battlefield 6 and Embark Studios’ Arc Raiders, and coming retired conscionable a twelvemonth aft Black Ops 6. Microsoft is yet to denote a subordinate number oregon a income fig for Black Ops 7, nor has it elaborate immoderate boost to Game Pass subscriber numbers arsenic a effect of its launch. Clearly, it hasn’t met its expectations.

Last month, income information suggested Black Ops 7 was struggling not conscionable against rival shooter Battlefield 6, but besides past year’s Black Ops 6. The Game Business reported that Black Ops 7’s European motorboat saw opening week income down 63% versus Battlefield 6 during the equivalent motorboat periods for each shooter, and Black Ops 7 besides down by much than 50% versus Black Ops 6. All successful all, Black Ops 7 had a “terrible” launch, The Game Business’ main Chris Dring said successful a station connected societal media.

Then, successful a daze development, Activision promised ne'er to merchandise Black Ops oregon Modern Warfare games backmost to backmost again. In a connection attributed to "the Call of Duty team" (Treyarch, Sledgehammer, Infinity Ward, Raven Software and co.), Activision admitted “that for immoderate of you, the franchise has not met your expectations fully. To beryllium precise clear, we cognize what you expect and remainder assured we volition deliver, and overdeliver, connected those expectations arsenic we determination forward.”

Activision continued: “We volition nary longer bash back-to-back releases of Modern Warfare oregon Black Ops games. The reasons are many, but the main 1 is to guarantee we supply an perfectly unsocial acquisition each and each year. We volition thrust innovation that is meaningful, not incremental. While we aren’t sharing those plans today, we look guardant to doing truthful erstwhile the clip is right.”

Fast guardant to this week, and Xbox Game Studios brag Matt Booty has painted a somewhat rosier picture. When asked astir Black Ops 7's show by Variety, Booty responded to corroborate that it's 1 of the most-played games connected Xbox close now, and that helium was arrogant of what the improvement squad was capable to achieve. He past said Call of Duty is “its ain unsocial category” due to the fact that of Activision’s quality to merchandise contented via a seasonal model, truthful the motorboat isn’t the extremity of Black Ops 7’s story.

Here’s the punctuation successful full:

“Right now, it is 1 of the most-played games connected Xbox. And I’m truly arrogant of what the squad did, successful presumption of diagnostic innovation, moving the franchise forward. Shipping a large franchise similar clockwork each twelvemonth is simply a truly hard task, and I’m truly arrogant of what the squad did to determination the franchise guardant successful that way.

“And the absorbing happening astir Call of Duty is, I deliberation that arsenic an IP, it is truly good positioned to proceed to present contented for players going forward; the strategy of seasons. And it’s not conscionable astir the launch, but it’s benignant of successful its ain unsocial class and quality successful presumption of however the squad keeps delivering contented passim the year. So we’re existent blessed with wherever we’ve landed with that.”

Amid the doom and gloom, Microsoft has said Call of Duty (overall) ended 2025 arsenic the fig 1 franchise connected Game Pass for full players and hours each year, which possibly doesn’t travel arsenic overmuch of a astonishment fixed this is Call of Duty we’re talking about. But it does amusement that adjacent erstwhile Call of Duty has a atrocious twelvemonth comparative to erstwhile games successful the series, it's inactive massively fashionable comparative to different games.

Call of Duty is present astatine thing of a crossroads. 2026’s Call of Duty crippled is astir surely a continuation of Modern Warfare from Infinity Ward, but what volition 2027 bring? Black Ops 8? Activision’s nonaccomplishment to found a 3rd Call of Duty sub-brand means that it has go overly reliant connected Modern Warfare and Black Ops to support the franchise going astatine the subordinate numbers executives demand. Could Microsoft instrumentality the drastic measurement of giving Call of Duty a twelvemonth disconnected to retrieve from its caller struggles? Given Microsoft paid $69 cardinal for Activision Blizzard, it seems unlikely.

As for Black Ops 7 successful the present and now, Activision has promised "unprecedented play support," saying it "won't remainder until Black Ops 7 earns its spot arsenic 1 of the champion Black Ops games we’ve ever made."

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].