Call of Duty: Vanguard didn’t sell as well as Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, and now Activision has offered some insight into why that may have been. In its latest annual report for 2021, the company said it failed to perform and the World War II setting didn’t particularly appeal to fans.
“While Call of Duty remains one of the most successful entertainment franchises of all time, our premium version of 2021 did not meet our expectations, we believe mainly due to our own execution,” Activision said. “The World War II game setting didn’t resonate with some members of our community, and we didn’t deliver as much innovation in premium gaming as we’d like.”
Management said it is “certainly” addressing both of these issues with the 2022 version of Call of Duty, which is Modern Warfare 2. The modern-day Modern Warfare series is known to be particularly popular. In fact, 2019’s Modern Warfare is the “most successful” Call of Duty game in history, Activision said. The game is said to have sold more than 30 million copies.
As for the “innovation” that Modern Warfare 2 might include, Activision has anticipated that the game will be the “most advanced” in the history of the series.
Not only is a new Call of Duty premium coming this year, but developer Infinity Ward is also spearheading the development of the next Warzone game.
“We are working on the most ambitious plan in Call of Duty history, with over 3,000 people now working on the franchise and a return to the Modern Warfare setting that produced our most successful Call of Duty title ever,” he said. Activision.
While Vanguard may not have sold as well as Black Ops Cold War, it was the best-selling game ever in the US in 2021, followed by Black Ops Cold War in second place.
In other news, Activision Blizzard is in the process of being acquired by Microsoft for $ 75 billion. Going forward, the Call of Duty series is expected to continue releasing on PlayStation and potentially Nintendo Switch. But in a big change for the series, Activision won’t release a new premium Call of Duty game in 2023.
This is all happening amid reports of workplace issues at Activision Blizzard, including allegations involving CEO Bobby Kotick, who is expected to leave the company if / when the sale to Microsoft goes through. The company is facing multiple lawsuits and is also facing ongoing attempts at organizing among its workers.
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