Call of Duty: Black Ops 6has already been quite a successful release for the longstanding FPS franchise, with fans seemingly being receptive to its thematic changes from the IP’s recent focus on theModern Warfaresub-franchise. Not only is the content of the title quite different from what fans have come to expect, but the way in which the game has been delivered has also broken a lot of records for the series.
Perhaps the most unique element ofCall of Duty: Black Ops 6’s release was its presence on the Xbox Game Pass subscription service as a day-one title.Black Ops 6remains one of the most high-profile and surprising additions to the Xbox Game Pass catalog, and this ambitious move from Activision and Microsoft has seemingly paid off. Early figures concerningCall of Duty: Black Ops 6’s player numbers and demographics bode extremely well for the game’s popularity on Xbox consoles, likely marking the start of a new era for howCall of Duty’s annual releases are delivered and marketed.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Has Proven the Effectiveness of the Franchise’s New Xbox Partnership
Xbox had a successful partnership withCall of Dutybetween 2010 and 2015, with the platform receiving earlier releases for coveted things like DLC map packs during this time.Activision then shifted to aCoDpartnership with PlayStation instead, with the Sony platform enjoying its own lucrative benefits that have only just come to an end.
The conclusion of this deal with PlayStation was largely down toMicrosoft’s recent record-breaking $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, with theCall of DutyIP sitting as the crown jewel of this deal and now falling under Microsoft ownership. As expected, Microsoft is using this acquisition to its full advantage withCall of Dutyin particular, andBlack Ops 6is the first title to really show what this looks like and how effective the move could be going forward.
Xbox Game Pass Content Delivery Seems Likely to Define Call of Duty’s Future
Of course,Black Ops 6’s Xbox Game Pass presence has brought a huge number of new and returning eyes to the franchise, likely being a major factor behindBlack Ops 6having the largest opening weekend ever forCall of Dutyin terms of total players and hours played. This is further evidenced by the recent announcement thatBlack Ops 6is more popular on Xbox than other platforms, breaking a nine-year streak that saw PlayStation as the most dominant platform for the series.
This seems like very good evidence that Microsoft and Activision’s ambitious Game Pass approach has been successful, and players should expect day-one Game Pass launches to be the new norm forCall of Duty. It seems unlikely that Microsoft will venture too deeply intoXbox exclusivity forCall of Dutycontent given its outspoken stance against this, but at the very least,Black Ops 6seems like a massive indicator of Xbox cementing itself as the go-to platform for accessibleCoDreleases from here on out.
