Games Thirst – Amazing Life
Although Call of Duty: Ghosts sales are the lowest the Call of Duty franchise has seen in a while, Activision says that the problem isn’t franchise fatigue, but rather the console transition uncertainty.
That’s what Activision Publishing boss Eric Hirshberg told GameInformer was asked the question, adding that fans have voted year after year by making Call of Duty games continuously the bestselling titles each year.
“We’ve been pretty transparent all year that we think, because of the challenges of the console transition year, that that was likely in the short-term. I think it would be a mistake to conflate the challenges of the console transition year with any indications about the health of the franchise.”
Unlike EA, which suggested recently that annualising Battlefield could damage the series, Hirshberg doesn’t believe that Call of Duty faces the same problem.
“Well no, obviously not – and obviously I don’t agree with the critics there,” he said, replying to a question asking whether annual Call of Duty releases could ultimately harm the series. “I know that Call of Duty’s a polarising franchise with some of the critics, and it’s clear to me that not all the critics like our strategy of making a game every year, but thankfully our fans do.
“It’s also clear to me that the critical response doesn’t always mirror the fans’ appreciation of a game. We actually do read the critics’ comments and take them into consideration during our creative process, but we just can’t measure ourselves by that yardstick alone.
“Our most important audience is our fans, so we try to stay laser-focused on making games that they love. If you look at the fact that [Ghosts is] the most pre-ordered game of the year, it’s the most pre-ordered next-gen game of the year, it’s already the number one most played on Xbox Live, and that we’re seeing longer average playtimes than ever before, we’re confident that we’re doing well by the criteria that matter most.”
