Fans of the record crushing Call of Duty franchise appear to be making their displeasure with changes in the long running series’ newest installment Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare emphatically known. According to a CNBC article released today, sales of the most recent iteration of the best selling game have plummeted 48.6 percent in relation to last year’s Call of Duty: Black Ops 3. Despite these numbers, the latest installment of the game could hardly be called unsuccessful. In the U.K., the game’s launch placed second behind EA Sports FIFA 17, according to Eurogamer.net.
Speculation as to what may have caused such a precipitous drop in revenue point to several possible sources. The fans made their voices heard loud and clear when the Infinite Warfare trailer was released as it was quickly and massively down voted to become the second most disliked video on YouTube. It was second only to Justin Bieber’s “Baby,” a video with several hundred million more views, but only four million more dislikes. The backlash was brutal, and sustained. Fans heaped scorn onto the video itself, and the fact that the remastered Call of Duty: Modern Warfare would only be packaged with expensive, deluxe versions of the game and unavailable otherwise. Modern Warfare has a more traditional combat premise in relation to Infinite Warfare’s space combat themed storyline, which the players seem to prefer. Activision’s CEO Eric Hirshberg disregarded the criticism, saying it was nothing new, and pointing out that the launch trailer had still garnered more likes than any other Call of Duty trailer.
Another possible factor in Infinite Warfare’s lagging sales might be the fact that Activision passed on releasing versions of the game for XBOX 360 or Playstation 3. This action forces devotees of the franchise to either upgrade, or do without. This is leaving a bad taste in the mouths of some of the series most loyal followers, especially when bundled with the eighty dollar price-tag to get the premium versions.
As Hirshburg pointed out, Call of Duty Black Ops 2 also boasted the most disliked launch trailer for its time, and lackluster initial sales. It went on to be one of the most successful installments of the Call of Duty franchise. The subsequent numbers also show that Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare outshined the sales numbers for Battlefield 1 AND Titanfall II combined on first week sales. If this past history is to be believed, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare will continue to demolish sales records and continue to redefine the first person shooter genre with its cutting edge graphics and gameplay.
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