Microsoft CEO says Black Ops 6 broke CoD and Game Pass records

During an earnings call, Microsoft revealed that Call of Duty had the biggest launch for a title in the franchise’s history.

Despite criticism about Multiplayer’s disappointing map pool, skill-based matchmaking and troublesome glitches, Black Ops 6 had a successful launch weekend.

BO6 surpassed 306,000 concurrent players on Steam during the first weekend, besting Modern Warfare 3’s peak of 190,273.

That enjoyment paid dividends for Activision and Microsoft. CharlieIntel reported that Black Ops 6 set records for number of players on launch day and amount of new Game Pass subscribers in a single day.

BO6 brought in the highest total of PC players for an opening weekend in the series’ history. In addition, this opening weekend leads all CoD titles in total players, hours played and amount of matches.

Activision

“Last week’s launch of Black Ops 6 was the biggest Call of Duty release ever, setting a record for day one players, as well as Game Pass subscriber adds on launch day,” Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. “Unit sales on PlayStation and Steam were also up over 60% year over year.”

BO6 and Xbox fans doubted how well the title would perform, given its availability on day one for Game Pass subscribers.

In response to those concerns, Microsoft CFO Amy Hood cautioned that revenue in Xbox may be lower year over year because Call of Duty is now on Game Pass, which means the revenue there is recognized month over month versus at a single moment.

The challenge becomes how Treyarch keeps players engaged late into the game’s life cycle. Matt Cox, GM of Call of Duty, reassured fans that the development team is just getting started.

“Our goal from the start has been to bring this great game to as many players as possible wherever they are, however they play,” Cox said. “Black Ops 6 is an amazing game, and the response from the Call of Duty community has been incredible. This is only the beginning. Nuketown is only days away, and Season 1 is right around the corner. We’re just getting started,”

Black Ops 6 Season 1 officially arrives on Thursday, November 14, 2024.