Do you think Call of Duty will remain as popular as it is now without PlayStation?

[SilverX]

I see most, if not all, the discussion seems to be about how this acquisition harms PlayStation and benefits Xbox immensely, but what about CoD itself? The franchise has always been powered by the "It" gaming brand (Xbox was that in NA during the 360 days, with PlayStation overtaking that status with the PS4). Hell, Sony has used their popularity to market the hell out of it for almost 7 years now. But regardless of who was the CoD marketing rights holder, the series always had the less popular platform in the mix which attributed to CoD's popularity. The series sold millions and millions of copies on every platform it was on.

Now we are entering an age where CoD is likely only on Xbox/PC, removing PlayStation which currently has the majority of it's player base. Do you think CoD is big enough to get the bulk of it's player base on PS to get a second console, PC, or stream Game Pass if needed? Or are we going to see a chunk of players who will live without it now making the series decline in the position it is in and another series benefiting from it?

 

[scare_crow]

Yes.

 

[PlanetSmasher]

It will lose players, but it will remain CoD and remain the top of the pile. There is nothing that compares to it. Battlefield is a joke.

 

[Arn]

It depends more on the quality of their releases and the support they receive.

But yes, Warzone 2.0 and its siblings have every chance of dominating the next decade of gaming, especially as it would become more accessible than ever with low-cost entry consoles and xCloud game streaming.

I think game quality will be an important factor, although I'd imagine Microsoft will be beneficial for that if they reduce the release cadence and give the games enough development time.

Many of the Call of Duty players from the PS4 era were 360 players. They will play where they can get their fix and they really do not have huge brand loyalty beyond "where can my friends and I play the games that are of most value to us"

 

[Raigor]

COD went from being super popular on Xbox 360 to being super popular to PS4.

The audience is going to move like they moved during the past gen

 

[Normal]

CoD is a system seller. People will buy an Xbox just to play it.

 

[shadowman16]

Not like it wasnt super popular on the 360... So yeah, it'll be more than fine if new releases and Warzone start skipping Playstation.

 

[Raigor]

Battlefield is a joke.

Click to shrink...

With Vince Zampella leading the franchise there's a higher chance for a return to form for Battlefield, not as big as COD ofc

 

[Josh5890]

Call of Duty's base was on the 360 back in the day before the crowd largely migrated to PS4,. COD hasn't been associated with Playstation for ~20 years like Final Fantasy, Metal Gear, or other long standing IP's have been.

Yes, COD will lose some people but it likely won't matter in the grand scheme of things. Microsoft has a $299 brand new console that will guarantee you access to future Call of Duty games for at least the next decade. The barrier of entry is not that large compared to a PS4 or building a PC.

 

[Jroc]

It depends more on the quality of their releases and the support they receive.

But yes, Warzone 2.0 and its siblings have every chance of dominating the next decade of gaming, especially as it would become more accessible than ever with low-cost entry consoles and xCloud game streaming.

I think game quality will be an important factor, although I'd imagine Microsoft will be beneficial for that if they reduce the release cadence and give the games enough development time.

Many of the Call of Duty players from the PS4 era were 360 players. They will play where they can get their fix and they really do not have huge brand loyalty beyond "where can my friends and I play the games that are of most value to us"

Click to shrink...

PS4 was also cheaper and more powerful than the Xbox One at the start. If COD goes exclusive and the Series S hits $250 then it won't be hard for people to jump ship.

 

[Pai Pai Master]

Sure, it's still one of the biggest brands in gaming. It'll lose some players. It'll still be massive.

 

[KDC720]

It was popular before the Sony co-marketing deal and it will be popular after. I think Activision switched the deal from Xbox to PS4 after Advanced Warfare because the PS4 was doing absolute gangbusters, much like the 360 was that previous gen. They just went where everyone else was going.

Call of Duty never needed Sony.

 

[BobLoblaw]

I'm more interested in the implication of COD being back on Steam. That's going to be big, so even if it lost some popularity by no longer being on PS, it's going to make up for some of it by being on Steam.

 

[IrishNinja]

is it confirmed that no version of COD (even simply delayed) will show up on playstation down the road, or is this simply a popular assumption now?

 

[benzopil]

It's a system seller

 

[PlanetSmasher]

is it confirmed that no version of COD (even simply delayed) will show up on playstation down the road, or is this simply a popular assumption now?

Click to shrink...

They will do exactly what they did with Bethesda's games: existing live service models (Warzone) will remain supported on Playstation, and after all existing deals are completed everything will be exclusive to the Xbox platform.

Anyone expecting things to be different will be in for a rude awakening.

 

[Izzard]

If it isn't on PlayStation then it immediately loses a huge amount of its player base. So the only real answer is no based on maths.

 

[criteriondog]

I'm surprised option 1 is leading, I do not expect even 50% of Playstation cod players to switch to streaming it from game pass on their phones if they only have a PlayStation.

 

[lunanto]

All I know this is for Xbox to win.

 

[Jiraiya]

I can't see why not. I don't know why people play where the games are wouldn't apply to Xbox. It's how Nintendo and Playstation got where they are.

 

[beansontoast]

I haven't played a CoD game in years, so correct me if I'm wrong, but my perception is that the popularity of the series had been waning for a while before Warzone revitalised it. Of course 'waning' popularity is relative - it still sold well, but it didn't seem to have anywhere near the hype of the MWII/Black Ops peak. It's just inevitable that people get tired of an annual formula eventually and I'm sure the same will be the case for Warzone (and battle royales in general) in a few years time. Future popularity primarily becomes a question of how nimble MS/Activision can be in repositioning the series to keep up with trends.

If the series becomes console exclusive that will likely accelerate any fatigue, because for half the potential player base there is now an additional barrier that any slightly bored consumer won't really bother too hard to overcome.

 

[Zebesian-X]

I'm surprised option 1 is leading, I do not expect even 50% of Playstation cod players to switch to streaming it from game pass on their phones if they only have a PlayStation.

Click to shrink...

PS4 CoD players will just buy a Series X

 

[Raigor]

I'm surprised option 1 is leading, I do not expect even 50% of Playstation cod players to switch to streaming it from game pass on their phones if they only have a PlayStation.

Click to shrink...

There's no such thing as "PlayStation cod players".

There's one crowd, that moved from XBOX 360 to PS4 when Sony had mkt deals with COD, came out with a better and cheaper console than Xbox One at that time.

The COD audience is never going to abandon COD because....*checks note*...they are no longer on PlayStation, it's nonsense.

 

[Cloud-Hidden]

is it confirmed that no version of COD (even simply delayed) will show up on playstation down the road, or is this simply a popular assumption now?

Click to shrink...

No, armchair analysts on Era just know that it is so, and we're running with it now because we've never been wrong.

 

[Dyle]

Only Call of Duty can hurt Call of Duty. It will sell more or less well no matter where it is available

 

[Jinaar]

It will take one hype trailer to be released and consumers will lick it up like they always do.

 

[Strike]

People has been betting against Call of Duty for years. Maybe one day it'll be irrelevant, but that's not now and it'll unlikely be anytime soon.

 

[Damn Silly]

There will probably be less in terms of people, but between the re-introduction to Steam and moving folks from Playstation to Xbox and Game Pass, it'll (probably) be worth it monetarily.

 

[IrishNinja]

They will do exactly what they did with Bethesda's games: existing live service models (Warzone) will remain supported on Playstation, and after all existing deals are completed everything will be exclusive to the Xbox platform.

Anyone expecting things to be different will be in for a rude awakening.

Click to shrink...

maybe? i don't think that precedent so neatly applied to such a large franchise/player base, where even timed exclusives or other options to show xbox as the definitive version might be more financially appealing to something on this level

you could very well be right, mind you - i just don't see how its a given, despite all the reactionary fears this forum is currently enduring

 

[Faceless_Caesar]

We really won't see what happens to the franchise under Microsoft for another couple of years and a lot could change.

 

[Josh378]

It will lose its user base. Sony/EA will create other alternatives to Call of duty that will suffice the user base. Sony made CoD huge and will never get the numbers it had before once it goes exclusive. Battlefield will get an uptick of more people and possibly EA and Sony are already possibly creating their own alternate CoD to combat the loss.

 

[Raigor]

I haven't played a CoD game in years, so correct me if I'm wrong, but my perception is that the popularity of the series had been waning for a while before Warzone revitalised it

Click to shrink...

COD popularity during the PS4/One gen went like this....

Ghosts - Disappointement
Advanced Warfare - Disappointment but fun
Black Ops 3 - Great MP
Infinite Warfare - Shit MP
WW2 - Uninspired
Black Ops 4 - Unispired
MW2019 - MASSIVELY BELOVED
Black Ops Cold War - Middling at best
Vanguard - See WW2

It will lose its user base. Sony/EA will create other alternatives to Call of duty that will suffice the user base. Sony made CoD huge and will never get the numbers it had before once it goes exclusive. Battlefield will get an uptick of more people and possibly EA and Sony are already possibly creating their own alternate CoD to combat the loss.

Click to shrink...

What is EA losing? Sony and EA working for....?

There's no alternative for COD and the Battlefield reboot is going to take some years and for sure EA (one of MS biggest partners) are not going to ditch Xbox and especially PC, you are all dreaming.

 

[Deleted member 93062]

Like i said before, Sony needs to put a big Studio behind a good FPS , not to beat COD but to make a recover.

Click to shrink...

I see people mentioning competitors and what Sony can do. Something I feel like everybody forgets is COD isn't just massive because one game sells 30M. They're huge because its the same thing every single year, they have insane mind share that would take a lot of resources to replicate. Any new arena shooter can come out, blow up, but if its not making news waves every year, it won't compete with COD. COD will remain massive.

War Zone will remain popular, however I do think Microsoft will release a Halo BR and absolutely crush it for a few years.

 

[shadowman16]

It will lose its user base. Sony/EA will create other alternatives to Call of duty that will suffice the user base. Sony made CoD huge and will never get the numbers it had before once it goes exclusive. Battlefield will get an uptick of more people and possibly EA and Sony are already possibly creating their own alternate CoD to combat the loss.

Click to shrink...

Ok I'll bite. Please explain how Sony made COD Modern Warfare huge? Seems to me that it was pretty fucking huge on Xbox 360 and only ballooned from there. Or does MW1, 2, BO 1&2 etc. not count?

 

[beansontoast]

It will lose its user base. Sony/EA will create other alternatives to Call of duty that will suffice the user base. Sony made CoD huge and will never get the numbers it had before once it goes exclusive. Battlefield will get an uptick of more people and possibly EA and Sony are already possibly creating their own alternate CoD to combat the loss.

Click to shrink...

Sony definitely did not 'make CoD huge' considering that the 360 was the main console for it during the CoD4/MW2/BO/MW3 peak

 

[DSN2K]

if it genuinely does leave Playstation it will lose players, but it will still be very much successful.

 

[Hernan532]

Sony will lose money and players, Activision too .
If ecosystem doesn't matter then why the game sells better on PS than Xbox every year? If a COD player could buy an Series S cheaper than a PS

Of course this will impact revenue , but stop believing 100% of people playing COD on PS will buy an Xbox .

Like i said before, Sony needs to put a big Studio behind a good FPS , not to beat COD but to make a recover.

Is COD , is a great Brand, but the latest games are 6/10. The fanbase is recoverable through the years.

Assuming they make it Xbox exclusive , and i don't think that will occur at least this year.

Another thing to ask is if the numbers that you are handling includes Warzone or not

 

[henhowc]

Everyone is just guessing at this point, it has only been 24 hours. Playstation is probably going to get at least 1-3 more CODs in development before this deal closes. Maybe someone that actually plays both modes know this but is Warzone more popular than the standard COD MP?

Assuming MS does make it exclusive eventually, in hindsight the console shortages will have helped MS in this regard since potential PS5 owners may be eyeing Xbox now instead. I think cross-play also has largely made owning a specific console as your COD box a moot point. On the other hand, there are also people who currently play COD who might not necessarily buy another console just to continue playing it. However that could be made up by players who stopped playing COD who come back via Gamepass lol There are various scenarios where you could lose and gain players. MS will go with the one they think will make them more money long term.

 

[SimplyComplex]

I haven't played a CoD game in years, so correct me if I'm wrong, but my perception is that the popularity of the series had been waning for a while before Warzone revitalised it. Of course 'waning' popularity is relative - it still sold well, but it didn't seem to have anywhere near the hype of the MWII/Black Ops peak. It's just inevitable that people get tired of an annual formula eventually and I'm sure the same will be the case for Warzone (and battle royales in general) in a few years time. Future popularity primarily becomes a question of how nimble MS/Activision can be in repositioning the series to keep up with trends.

Click to shrink...

You're not wrong in that the popularity of the series was kind of stagnant. Still super popular and sold gangbusters but hype was somewhat minimal.

Until MW2019 and the hype for the game seemed to reach MW2 levels. Combine that with Warzone and CoD had a massive resurgence. That momentum fell off with Vanguard a bit but the series still has quite a bit of forward momentum I feel

 

[Niosai]

If anything, more people might buy into GamePass to play CoD. I think it'll lose players in the short term but grow even bigger in the long term.

 

[Tsuyu]

I think gaming as a whole has expanded a lot since PS360 era, there's plenty of options and platforms to grab gamers attention.

CoD would remain popular but will lose players count as well is my objective assessment.

 

[Aaron D.]

I haven't played a CoD game in years, so correct me if I'm wrong, but my perception is that the popularity of the series had been waning for a while before Warzone revitalised it.

Click to shrink...

I'm not a CoD player either but Vanguard and Black Ops were the #1 and #2 best selling games last year.

 

[Hernan532]

is it confirmed that no version of COD (even simply delayed) will show up on playstation down the road, or is this simply a popular assumption now?

Click to shrink...

Assumption. I don't expect them to make this first party this year . Sony will lose but they will too.
But anyway, for me is not a big deal. Is not a great game lately and i don't play more Cod games since a few years ago

 

[Deleted member 24052]

It will lose its user base. Sony/EA will create other alternatives to Call of duty that will suffice the user base. Sony made CoD huge and will never get the numbers it had before once it goes exclusive. Battlefield will get an uptick of more people and possibly EA and Sony are already possibly creating their own alternate CoD to combat the loss.

Click to shrink...

Sony made COD huge, huh?

Pretty sure COD made COD huge, regardless of platform.

 

[SimplyComplex]

It will lose its user base. Sony/EA will create other alternatives to Call of duty that will suffice the user base. Sony made CoD huge and will never get the numbers it had before once it goes exclusive. Battlefield will get an uptick of more people and possibly EA and Sony are already possibly creating their own alternate CoD to combat the loss.

Click to shrink...

EA can't even satisfy Battlefield players. And they already have Apex that you can play on PlayStation. Why would EA create another FPS just to cater to Sonys needs?

 

[Kaah]

Lol at people voting it's going to become more popular thanks to gamepass, like explain to me how ? Call of Duty is already massive and accessible to everyone because it's on every platforms AND f2p.

 

[PlanetSmasher]

It will lose its user base. Sony/EA will create other alternatives to Call of duty that will suffice the user base. Sony made CoD huge and will never get the numbers it had before once it goes exclusive. Battlefield will get an uptick of more people and possibly EA and Sony are already possibly creating their own alternate CoD to combat the loss.

Click to shrink...

Every idiot publisher thinks they can make their own CoD and they always, always fail. Why do people think it's going to be different this time?

 

[Normal]

It will lose its user base. Sony/EA will create other alternatives to Call of duty that will suffice the user base. Sony made CoD huge and will never get the numbers it had before once it goes exclusive. Battlefield will get an uptick of more people and possibly EA and Sony are already possibly creating their own alternate CoD to combat the loss.

Click to shrink...

lol

 

[Lobster Roll]

Nothing stops the COD train, and Gamepass will offset lost consumers.

 

[hydruxo]

We don't know for sure that it won't be on PlayStation anymore. Of all the franchises that ActiBlizz has, it would make the most sense for it to remain multi-plat. At least for a few more entries.

Minecraft is still multi-plat for example, and will remain that way.