Microsoft plans to make the next Call of Duty a day-one release on Xbox Game Pass

Alfonso Maruccia

Posts: 1,175   +341
Staff
In context: Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer recently confirmed the company's ambition to bring Activision Blizzard games to the Xbox Game Pass subscription service. The Xbox division will likely formalize the plan next month as it introduces the next installment in the Call of Duty series.

The enormously successful Call of Duty franchise has entertained first-person shooter fans on all platforms since 2003. The title is one of the main reasons Microsoft fought tooth and nail for approval of its $69 billion Activision Blizzard acquisition. Redmond's gaming arm has fully embraced a subscription-based future, with the idea of bringing its Game Pass service to other competing platforms in addition to Xbox and PC.

While third-party, gamer-focused companies still resist the urge to go all in with this supposedly unavoidable cloud-based future, Microsoft is willing to exploit Activision Blizzard's IP portfolio as a promotional tool for Game Pass. The Wall Street Journal reports that Xbox will announce the debut of Call of Duty on Game Pass during a showcase scheduled for June.

The Call of Duty franchise has sold over 425 million units as of October 2023. In addition to sales earnings, Activision collects additional revenue through its in-game stores and microtransactions. The next game in the series arrives in October this year, barring any upsets. The game features a dramatic setting change, transitioning from World War III (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III) to the 1990s Gulf War.

One of the main arguments against the Activision Blizzard acquisition was Microsoft's ability to turn Call of Duty into a PC/Xbox exclusive. Although Microsoft signed a 10-year agreement to keep the cash cow on Sony's PlayStation platform for the next 10 years, the contract does not prevent Xbox from releasing it as a day-one title on Xbox Game Pass, a move that could prove equally disruptive. It would be the first real change to Activision's traditional business model imposed by its new owner.

Microsoft expects to introduce the upcoming plans for Xbox on June 9, with a new Gears of War game and many other interesting tidbits. We can expect to hear news on Flight Simulator 2024, Avowed, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, and more. The Call of Duty series will have a separate broadcast after the main Xbox show.

Permalink to story:

 
Might just play this one with the guys at one point then. Don't want to spend around $100 on a MP game we might or might not play for more than a month...
 
Call of Duty at no additional cost with GamePass or pay over $70.00 on other platforms.

The choice is clear, GamePass is the absolute way to go.

👍😁👍
 
Last edited:
Call of Duty at no additional cost with GamePass or pay over $70.00 on other platforms.

The choice is clear, GamePass is the absolute way to go.

👍😁👍

Well, this way those that get it on Game Pass can't complain about how crummy the game is because they didn't actually pay for access to it other than the monthly Game Pass fee.
 
Well, this way those that get it on Game Pass can't complain about how crummy the game is because they didn't actually pay for access to it other than the monthly Game Pass fee.
Just imagine how those on PlayStation will feel after paying over $70.00

Thank goodness for GamePass.
 
Can't understand why PS outsells Xbox so much, even after this news, personally been hell bent on xbox post PS3 anything Sony pushed out sucked
 
Can't understand why PS outsells Xbox so much, even after this news, personally been hell bent on xbox post PS3 anything Sony pushed out sucked
Because Xbox has no games? Pretty simple really. You have precisely ZERO (0!)exclusives, and a whipping ONE (1) console exclusive in halo infinite. Wow. What a lineup.
 
Because Xbox has no games? Pretty simple really. You have precisely ZERO (0!)exclusives, and a whipping ONE (1) console exclusive in halo infinite. Wow. What a lineup.
Every single guy I know that owns either console, just plays two games FC24 or COD, who cares about exclusives anymore, games collection is built on Steam, not on consoles anyways
 
Ah, COD. I remember buying the very 1st one on PC back in the day. Enjoying the single player experience and getting bored ****less on the outdated multiplayer 'deathmatch' then going straight back to RTCW and Enemy Territory for some good online multiplayer games. Never bought another COD since. Played Wolf ET for 10 years on a daily basis AND that was free. Still remember those days fondly.
 
Back