The Tanooki » Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Call of Duty: Black Ops breaks first-day sales records

Jason Leavey — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 16:14:26 +0000

Activision has reason to smile today, as the publisher’s “internal estimates” praise Call of Duty: Blacks Ops as having the most successful first day game launch of any video game title. Figures state that the game has brought in $360 million between the U.S.A. and the U.K. on day one alone. The game launched on November 9 for all next-gen consoles.

Figures indicate the Treyarch developed game sold 5.6 million copies at launch, which significantly trumps last year’s record holding Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 with 4.7 million units. The game is naturally on par to break last year’s $550 million 5-day record.

Despite what it’s done for the music rhythm genre, it appears releasing annual war shooters is good for business.

Call of Duty®: Black Ops Sets New Opening Day Sales Record With Approximately $360 Million in North America and United Kingdom Alone

Most Anticipated Game of the Year Becomes Biggest Entertainment Launch in History

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov. 11, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Shattering its own day-one sales record, Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) announced that Treyarch’s highly-anticipated Call of Duty®: Black Ops has become the biggest entertainment launch ever with an estimated sell-through of approximately $360 million in North America and the United Kingdom alone in the first 24 hours of its release, as compared to last year’s estimated day-one sell-through of $310 million for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare® 2 in North America and the United Kingdom, according to internal Activision estimates.

Call of Duty: Black Ops, marks the second year in a row that the Call of Duty franchise has set day one launch records across all forms of entertainment. In its first day on November 9, the blockbuster title sold through approximately 5.6 million copies in North America and the United Kingdom, as compared to 4.7 million copies for last year’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, according to internal Activision estimates.

Call of Duty: Black Ops is one of the most critically acclaimed games of the year worldwide and was released with unprecedented retailer support and more than 12,000 midnight openings around the globe.

“There has never been another entertainment franchise that has set opening day records for two consecutive years and we are on track to outperform last year’s five-day global sales record of $550 million,” said Bobby Kotick, CEO, Activision Blizzard, Inc. ”The game’s success underscores the pop culture appeal of the brand. Call of Duty: Black Ops is the finest game that Treyarch has ever made and raises the bar for online gameplay by delivering the deepest and most intense Call of Duty experience yet. The Call of Duty franchise has over 25 million players around the world that are engaged in billions of hours of online gameplay, and we are committed to supporting them with new content and features on a more frequent and regular basis.”

Call of Duty: Black Ops is rated “M” (Mature) by the ESRB for Blood, Drug Reference, Intense Violence and Language.

Modern Warfare 2 Resurgence Pack available today on Xbox

Jason Leavey — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 18:44:52 +0000

Starting today, FPS enthusiasts can download the latest map for Infinity Ward’s mega hit Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Dubbed the Resurgence Pack, players will gain access to five new multiplayer levels, including three new locales. Two of the levels are updated versions of two popular maps from the original Modern Warfare.

The levels include Carnival, Fuel, Trailer Park, Strike and Vacant. For descriptions of each multiplayer map, continue reading below the break.

For 1200 Microsoft Points, Xbox 360 players can download the pack today. No release date has been given for the PS3 or Steam versions, but Activision notes that you can expect it “soon.”

“Carnival,” a large abandoned theme park that offers lots of unique vantage points that work well for all game modes. The once vibrant rides now sit idle and neglected as perfect cover points in one of the most original multiplayer locations for Modern Warfare 2.
“Fuel,” a massive oil refinery with extremely long sightlines great for medium- to long-range firefights. The spacious surroundings offer a great sniper advantage; offices, warehouses, and buildings house objectives and provide opportunity for close-range firefights.
“Trailer Park,” a medium-sized mobile estate with a maze of tight flank routes and lots of cover. Junk covered yards, deserted trailers, and debris-riddled surroundings offer intense firefights with a wide variety of vantage points and routes available.
“Strike,” a large urban desert town, excellent for medium-to-large team games. The large monument, connecting streets, and surrounding buildings offer great firefights in Team Deathmatch, and great vantage points for objective team games.
“Vacant,” a deserted Russian office complex offering a great mixture of interior and exterior combat. Long hallways with minimal cover points offer a fast escape route for potential runners, but high accuracy and fast aiming is required when advancing through this large complex.

Infinity Ward

Modern Warfare 2′s Resurgence Pack available June 3rd

Jason Leavey — Mon, 17 May 2010 18:50:40 +0000

Coming to Xbox LIVE on June 3rd comes the second pack of multiplayer maps for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Titled the Resurgence Pack, the DLC will include 5 new maps, two of which are reincarnations of popular Call of Duty 4 maps Strike and Vacant.

The other new maps will include the new Trailer Park, Fuel (an oil refinery) and Carnival (pictured above).

A date for the PS3 release of the Resurgence Pack has yet to be announced.

ModernWarfare2

Demand for WoW and MW2 raises Activision’s forecasts

Christian Ponte — Sun, 18 Apr 2010 20:00:54 +0000

Thanks to the continuing success of World of Warcraft and Modern Warfare 2, Activision has raised its fiscal year forecasts thanks to the successful first quarter that ended March 31st. Initial predictions placed net revenue for the period at $1.1 billion and adjusted revenue at $525 million, but the publisher expects to pull in an adjusted revenue of $533 million instead. Full figures are expected to be released by Activision Blizzard by the 6th of next month.

Canadian Business & The Wall Street Journal

PS3 and PC owners getting “Stimulus Package” in May

Christian Ponte — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 08:00:21 +0000

Finally! After seeing Modern Warfare 2‘s “Stimulus Package” achieve record-breaking success on Xbox Live, Infinity Ward’s Robert Bowling has confirmed in a tweet that the DLC package will be coming to PlayStation 3 and PC owners early next month. PS3 users in the US and PC users worldwide will see a May 4th release date for the new content, while the rest of PS3 owners worldwide will be able to purchase the new maps starting the next day, May 5th.

Twitter
via Joystiq

“Stimulus Package” DLC nets 2.5 million sales in one week

Christian Ponte — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 09:30:12 +0000

It seems the $15 price point isn’t enough to deter gamers from downloading the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 “Stimulus Package.” Activision has revealed that, according to Microsoft’s figures, the DLC has been purchased by over 2.5 million users in its first week of availability, with 1 million of those purchases having been made on Day 1. Both of those are reportedly records for Xbox Live.

Gamasutra

MW2 Stimulus Package owners getting free week of Xbox Live

Christian Ponte — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 08:00:21 +0000

Remember the issues that plagued the launch day release of Modern Warfare 2′s “Stimulus Package” DLC? It seems that you’ll be getting a little gift from Microsoft for all your troubles. If you haven’t checked the notice yet, you receive an additional seven days of free Xbox Live Gold service on your account by the end of the month.

As 1UP points out, this mathematically works out to just under a dollar’s worth of value, but it’s the thought that counts. Microsoft explains that the complimentary time is a thank you for customer loyalty and for contributing to the DLC’s successful launch.

1UP.com

Game companies going green with Eco-box

Holly Green — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:49:09 +0000

Did you buy a copy of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 or Left 4 Dead 2 recently? OK, go, check the inside of your case. What you’re seeing is the latest in eco-friendly measures in the video game industry.

Now, I’m a fan of these measures myself. I hope we usher in an age where all games are downloaded from consoles or kiosks and there aren’t any unnecessary games printed. Smaller cases are a good idea too, I much prefer the PS3 cases to the Wii or XBOX 360 ones. Viva Group had a different idea: take out a few slats of plastic and voila, you have less total plastic used. Dubbed “Eco-box”, the case is already being used for DVDs and is finally making the transition to the video game industry.

But this eco-chic comes with a price–not only is there no price reduction to consumers to compensate for the cheaper materials and shipping, but some are complaining that the cases are too fragile. Anecdotal tales from faceless Gamestop employees are echoing on the web, mostly noting that their store’s Modern Warfare 2 and Left 4 Dead 2 shipments arrived with damaged cases.

I called my local Gamestop in Bellevue, WA, and the manager there told me that so far they have “not seen any more or less copies of Left 4 Dead 2 or Modern Warfare 2 come in damaged than was to be expected”, and no customers have complained about the “flimsy” packaging. Are the complaints merely overblown flukes, or will we see more in the future? That remains yet to be seen, but for now, the Eco-box is reducing CO2 emissions one case at a time.

IGN

Call of Duty franchise reaches 3 billion in sales

Holly Green — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 19:01:12 +0000

Hey here’s something you may not have heard lately: Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 made a lot of money! And now Activision has found another way to tell us so, with a new press release trumpeting their latest achievement. According to “The NPD Group, Charttrack, GfK and internal Activision estimates”, with the $550 million in five-day sales of CODMW2, the Call of Duty franchise has officially made over $3 billion in revenue world wide. Says Activision CEO Bobby Kotick:

“Call Of Duty has become one of the greatest entertainment franchises of all time. If you consider the number of hours our audiences are engaged in playing Call of Duty games, it is likely to be one of the most viewed of all entertainment experiences in modern history.”

Self congratulatory press-speak aside, it certainly is quite an accomplishment, one that clearly illustrates how powerful video games have become in the entertainment industry. Kudos to Activision.

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov 27, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ — Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) announced today that the Call of Duty(R) franchise has surpassed $3 billion in retail sales worldwide, according to The NPD Group, Charttrack, GfK and internal Activision estimates.

Since its first release, the award-winning Call of Duty franchise has sold in excess of 55 million units worldwide. The latest title in the franchise, Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty(R):Modern Warfare(R) 2, recently shattered box office and video game records with a worldwide estimated five-day sale through of approximately $550 million, establishing the game as the biggest entertainment launch in history.

“Call Of Duty has become one of the greatest entertainment franchises of all time,” said Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, Inc. “If you consider the number of hours our audiences are engaged in playing Call of Duty games, it is likely to be one of the most viewed of all entertainment experiences in modern history.”

Modern Warfare 2 picks up following the historic events of Call of Duty(R) 4: Modern Warfare(R), the blockbuster title that remains the top selling first person action game in history. Modern Warfare 2 is rated “M” (Mature) by the ESRB for Blood, Drug Reference, Intense Violence and Language. For additional information about the game, visit www.modernwarfare2.com.

Activision: Modern Warfare 2 “biggest launch in history”

Holly Green — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:28:09 +0000

Ever the self promoter, Activision has pumped out a press release citing some very self congratulatory figures. So far Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has made $550 million in five days, which is $50 million more than previous record holder GTA IV‘s five day record. Some other noteworthy 5-day milestones:

The largest reported five-day opening worldwide box office gross figures, held by Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ($394 million)
The largest reported five-day opening domestic box office gross figures, held by The Dark Knight ($203.8 million)
The largest reported five-day worldwide video game sales record, previously held by Grand Theft Auto IV (6 million units, $500 million)
The largest reported opening first-day domestic box office gross figures, held by The Dark Knight ($66.4 million)
The largest reported first-day book sales in dollars, held by Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows ($220 million)
The largest reported first-day worldwide video game sales record, previously held by Grand Theft Auto IV (3.6 million units, $310 million)

And if that’s not enough “Yay, go us!” for you, CEO of Activision Blizzard Inc. Robert Kotick says:

“In just five days of sell through Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has become the largest entertainment launch in history and a pop culture phenomenon. The title’s success redefines entertainment as millions of consumers have chosen to play Modern Warfare 2 at unprecedented levels rather than engage in other forms of media.”

Don’t pull a muscle giving yourself the ole reach around there, Kotick. I’m just as excited to play this game as the next dude but seriously, the hype machine needs to just caaaaalm down.

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov 18, 2009 – Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) announced today that Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 continues to shatter theatrical box office and video game sales records for five-day worldwide sell through in dollars. The biggest entertainment launch in history set a new worldwide estimated five-day sell-through record of approximately $550 million, according to internal Activision estimates.

Modern Warfare 2′s launch beat all previous first-and five-day entertainment industry box office, book and video game sell-through records*:

- The largest reported five-day opening worldwide box office gross figures, held by Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ($394 million)
- The largest reported five-day opening domestic box office gross figures, held by The Dark Knight ($203.8 million)
- The largest reported five-day worldwide video game sales record, previously held by Grand Theft Auto IV (6 million units, $500 million)
- The largest reported opening first-day domestic box office gross figures, held by The Dark Knight ($66.4 million)
- The largest reported first-day book sales in dollars, held by Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows ($220 million)
- The largest reported first-day worldwide video game sales record, previously held by Grand Theft Auto IV (3.6 million units, $310 million)

Modern Warfare 2′s blast radius also extends to Xbox LIVE, in which the blockbuster title’s epic release established the following new standards, according to Microsoft:

- More than 5.2 million multiplayer hours were logged playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on the first day alone.
- More than 2.2 million unique gamers played Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 in one day on November 10th. A new one-day record for Xbox LIVE.

- More than 11 million achievements were unlocked on Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on the first day.

“In just five days of sell through Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has become the largest entertainment launch in history and a pop culture phenomenon,” said Robert Kotick, CEO, Activision Blizzard, Inc. “The title’s success redefines entertainment as millions of consumers have chosen to play Modern Warfare 2 at unprecedented levels rather than engage in other forms of media.”

Despite the success of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Activision Blizzard remains cautious about the U.S. and global economy as well as other variables that can affect industry fundamentals and our own performance, including consumer spending which remains a significant concern.

Modern Warfare 2 first-day sales to top 7 million?

Holly Green — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 18:31:18 +0000

Some numbers on the sales in the UK for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 have been released, and boy are they a doozy. Estimates indicate that the highly anticipated title sold 1.23 million on its first day in the UK. Compare that to GTA IV‘s 631,000 first day sales in the UK, and you have a ratio of about 2:1. Taking that ratio and applying it to GTA IV‘s total first week sales (and assuming that the trends are similar throughout the rest of the world), you have a projected 12 million in units sold. Says Broadpoint AmTech analyst Benjamin Schachter in a note to investors:

“We estimate that Modern Warfare 2 could have sold up to approximately 7 million units at worldwide retail in its first day… in addition, with GTA IV selling-through 6 million units worldwide in its first week, that suggests week one of Modern Warfare 2 worldwide sell-through could approximate 11.7 million.”

“While two-times the week one tally for GTA IV may seem aggressive, the bottom line is that we believe current consensus estimates of around 12 million for the December quarter may end up being conservative.”

He goes on to point out that competitive pricing and heavy discounting have contributed to the strong numbers for first day UK sales, but for some reason does not assume this will mean a different ratio, and therefore different sales numbers, in other parts of the world.

While we’re on the subject, anyone pick up this title yet? I’m interested in it, but I can’t decide if I want it for XBOX 360 or PS3 or PC. At this point I’m tempted to go with PS3 simply because that part of my game library shelf looks mighty empty. But I’ve heard some bad things about the server reliability on the PS3 version, which has me a little wary. And truth be told, I’m a PC loyalist through and through, so that always holds more appeal. Which would you choose?

IGN

Breaking street dates good for gamers, bad for business?

Jason Leavey — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:04:14 +0000

Some video game retailers have been known to release a title before the designated street date. Modern Warfare 2 is the latest game to be released early by GameStop, where several stores started selling the title over the weekend. While GameStop is using “competition” as its reasoning behind the release, this type of pre-release presents an unfair scenario for all retailers and publishers.

GameStop declares its decision was reached through several conversations with Activision, however a statement from Activision indicates the two aren’t on the same page. “Activision has not given any retailer permission to sell Modern Warfare 2 prior to the Nov. 10 street date,” said a company spokesperson to GameSpot.

Publishers set specific release dates for specific reasons, and releasing a title even a few days early could throw off sales figures. Additionally, it sets a standard for retailers to start selling a big title whenever they receive it, which can be dangerous to put that type of responsibility into the hands of retailers and not the makers of the game. Do you think “competition” is an invalid reason for retailers to sell a game early, or are you just happy to get your hands on a game early.

GameSpot

Activision donating $1 million to help war vets

Jason Leavey — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:37:42 +0000

Activision Blizzard has announced plans to donate $1 million to war veterans through a foundation titled The “Call of Duty Endowment,” or CODE. The funds are to help charities which specifically provided assistance for former troops to help find them careers post service.

CEO of Activision Bobby Kotick spoke about why the company was determined to help veterans. “How do you expect people to actually join the military if when they leave the military they can’t integrate back into the free market they’re supposed to be protecting?” Great point, considering it was reported last month that the unemployment rate for veterans is 11.6 percent, more than the national unemployment average.

Activision’s philanthropic project is coinciding with tomorrow’s release of the much, much anticipated release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

Washington Post via
Joystiq

The Tanooki » Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Call of Duty: Black Ops breaks first-day sales records

Call of Duty®: Black Ops Sets New Opening Day Sales Record With Approximately $360 Million in North America and United Kingdom Alone

Most Anticipated Game of the Year Becomes Biggest Entertainment Launch in History

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