As a seasoned gamer with over two decades of experience under my belt, I must say that the recent trend of games like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 landing on platforms like Xbox Game Pass has certainly changed the landscape of gaming. From the perspective of a consumer, it’s an exciting time as there are more options available to play high-quality titles without breaking the bank.
The release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 on Xbox Game Pass has sparked discussions about its potential impact on the game’s sales. However, as more information emerges, the situation is starting to become clearer, though not entirely so.
Mat Piscatella from Circana revealed some intriguing insights today about the impact of Black Ops 6 being released on Game Pass in the US. Essentially, he stated that it resulted in an increase in subscription spending since people decided to subscribe to Game Pass rather than buying the game directly. Earlier, Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, had highlighted that the launch of Black Ops 6 on Game Pass recorded the highest single-day sign-ups for a new Game Pass launch ever.
Piscatella added that Microsoft’s decision to launch Black Ops 6 on Game Pass “shifted” the share of full-game sales to PlayStation. While Black Ops 6 might have helped Xbox become the most popular Call of Duty platform in a decade, for full-game sales, PlayStation remains on top (again, at least in the US, according to Circana).
During October, nearly 82% of Black Ops 6’s total console sales in full-game dollars came from PlayStation platforms, according to Piscatella. However, it should be noted that Microsoft is the owner of Call of Duty and earns money from every copy sold, regardless of platform. This means that a growing portion of sales on PlayStation also profits Sony due to their standard platform fee. It’s worth mentioning that Microsoft has committed to continuing to distribute Call of Duty on PlayStation consoles for at least the next ten years.
Beyond this, Piscatella stated that the data indicates that releasing Black Ops 6 on Game Pass did not lead to a “significant sales decline” or “massive erosion of sales”. This issue has sparked much discussion and debate among developers. While some have noted cannibalization effects from Game Pass releases, others have observed contrasting patterns. As far as Call of Duty is concerned, Piscatella suggests that there’s no clear-cut answer at the moment.
Piscatella responded to questions about the impact of introducing a new game to Game Pass on its sales by saying, “It’s possible there are advantages or disadvantages, but it might just balance out in the end. At this point, the data seems to indicate that we still don’t have a clear conclusion.
Previously, analyst Michael Pachter stated to GI.biz that if Microsoft were to release Black Ops 6, they could potentially lose up to six million sales due to existing Game Pass subscribers who would have purchased it regardless. However, he also suggested that the game’s release might attract as many as four million new subscribers to Game Pass.
As a passionate fan, I recall Microsoft’s admission that if Starfield, an exclusive title at one point, had only been released on Xbox, it could have cost them millions in potential unit sales. Interestingly, they made the same prediction for Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, but unlike Starfield, which never graced the PS5, The Great Circle is set to debut there in 2025.
Regarding Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, Piscatella mentioned that its launch didn’t result in a substantial increase in sales for the Xbox Series X|S console. Interestingly, during October 2024, Xbox hardware sales actually decreased by 18%, which was less than the drops experienced by PS5 (-20%) and Switch (38%).
Microsoft has expanded its definition of Xbox beyond simply selling gaming consoles. Today, the Xbox brand signifies much more than just a device you find beneath your television. However, it’s essential to note that consoles continue to hold significant value for Microsoft, and they are actively manufacturing more of these gaming powerhouses.
The financial specifics of Game Pass might remain unclear due to the fact that Microsoft keeps their developer and publisher contracts confidential. On a broader scale, Microsoft no longer reveals Xbox console sales figures, preferring instead to emphasize vague “engagement” statistics that can be easily manipulated to present a favorable image for the company.
In the United States, Black Ops 6 quickly became the top-selling video game in October 2024 within its first few days of release, and it currently ranks as the third best-selling game of the entire year so far.
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2024-11-22 22:09