Call of Duty Needs to Remove Skill-Based Matchmaking for it to be Successful Again - Insider Gaming
By Google News Technology ·
New data from Circana reveals that although Modern Warfare 4 is widely considered one of the better Call of Duty games in years, it still failed to attract players at launch.
The newly released data paints a concerning picture for those under the Activision umbrella working on Call of Duty, as Circana shows that active players during Modern Warfare 4’s launch were fewer than those on Black Ops 7, at least on console.
On the PlayStation 5 in the US, active players fell from Black Ops 7‘s 23% to 19% for Modern Warfare 4, and from 29% to 17% on Xbox, with the huge downturn here being because Black Ops 7 was available for Game Pass at launch. Steam did see an uptick, from 1.5% to 4.2%, but the numbers across the board unfortunately don’t reflect that Modern Warfare 4 was a brilliant title; players still aren’t buying Call of Duty.Franchise fatigue is real, and Call of Duty has suffered from it for a long time. Warzone during the COVID pandemic was a lifeline for the franchise, but since then, the franchise has seen a year-on-year decline, which is a trend that can no longer be sustained with increasing development costs. That’s one reason Call of Duty has relied heavily on the ‘Black Ops’ and ‘Modern Warfare’ sub-franchises over the last few years, but with Sledgehammer Games set to release its premium title in 2027 as a new sub-franchise, the risk is greater than ever.
Sources working on Call of Duty tell me this reality isn’t being ignored, and although Sledgehammer Games’ next title is well underway, it’s a massive risk for the franchise.
So how can Call of Duty get players back, especially on a subfranchise that no one would have heard of? The answer is actually quite simple, and despite all the data Activision has thrown in our faces over the years, it’s simply to…
Originally published by Google News Technology