The "Call Of Duty" franchise is finally taking a break after almost 20 years of annual releases. But while this might lead to a better game being launched in 2024, one game industry analyst believes that the effects on the gaming industry as a whole are far more widespread.
GameSpot reports that the analyst Mat Piscatella, who works for the research firm NPD Group, thinks that the "Call Of Duty" delay can directly affect what would happen with live service games and sales numbers of "premium" game releases.
Piscatella believes that the delay will be a "huge blow" to retail and premium gaming segments. He shared his thoughts on his Twitter profile recently:
Aside from the apparent effects on the game retail business, the delay could also influence how game subscriptions like Xbox Game Pass work for the foreseeable future. According to Piscatella, a delayed "Call Of Duty" game could cause a "leap forward" in the increase of game subscription sales-but only if the delay proves to be accurate.
Lastly, he also believes that the absence of a mainline "Call Of Duty" title in 2023 could also push Activision Blizzard to ramp up its marketing to encourage people to play existing titles like "Warzone" or "Call Of Duty Mobile," which are seeing massive success on their own.
The "Call Of Duty" delay is the first time since 2005 that the massive first-person shooter franchise won't see a mainline launch every year. Despite the so-called "franchise fatigue," however, COD games are still among the best-selling ones in the US and the rest of the world-accentuated by the excellent sales numbers for "Vanguard" and "Black Ops Cold War."
Furthermore, the delay's apparent announcement is also in the midst of the massive $68.7 billion deal that will bring Activision Blizzard under the Microsoft and Xbox banner.
Read also: 'Battlefield 2042' 'Recycled' Character Models Are Pissing Players Off
Why Is 'Call Of Duty' Being Delayed After So Long?
Not a lot of people know why this is the case. Also, it's not even officially confirmed by Activision Blizzard yet, as the original report comes from so-called "insider sources" within the company.
The original report comes from Bloomberg correspondent Jason Schreier, who has made a name for himself as a reliable gaming industry insider in his own right. In the report, sources who are "familiar with the situation" allegedly say that Activision Blizzard execs weren't too excited with the sales numbers of "Vanguard." As such, they're now thinking that they're "releasing too rapidly," which likely caused the delay.
Should the delay be confirmed, it will now mean that Activision Blizzard will have to continuously support the rumored 2022 "Modern Warfare" launch and "Warzone" for two straight years with new content, according to Polygon. As of late, Infinity Ward is confirmed to be handling the new entry in the "Modern Warfare" series.
This will be a change from last year's "Vanguard," whose development was headlined by Sledgehammer Games.
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Story posted on GameNGuide
Written by RJ Pierce
