Call of Duty fans are turning off the franchise, Activision’s latest user figures suggest.
Monthly active user data released by Activision shows that the number of players has declined over the past 12 months: from 127 million in June 2021 to just 94 million this year.
The details are part of a tough round of financial results for Activision Blizzard this quarter, despite the recent and highly profitable launch of Diablo Immortal.
Eurogamer Newscast: What do Rockstar’s changes really mean for GTA6 and the gaming industry?
Activision Blizzard’s global numbers saw revenue fall 28% year-over-year to $1.64 billion, and total monthly active users fell 12% despite growth in Blizzard’s business.
Activision’s unique player count has dropped repeatedly every quarter since peaking at 150 million monthly active users in March 2021.
This period followed the arrival of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, and was bolstered by the continued success of Call of Duty Warzone.
Activision’s monthly active users haven’t dipped this low — or below 100 million — since 2019, when Call of Duty Mobile hit the scene.
So whose fault? Activision has acknowledged that last year’s Call of Duty: Vanguard was a mistake, although it seems likely that interest in Warzone is also waning, especially with a replacement coming later this year.
Now all eyes will be on the twin releases of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2 later this year for Activision to turn things around.