A big change, Microsoft Adds Call of Duty to Game Pass. Microsoft Corporation (MSFT.O) is going to do something entirely new by adding the next version of the famous video game “Call of Duty” to its Game Pass service. This choice is a big change from the long-standing practice of selling the game on your own.
The announcement is expected to come during Microsoft’s annual Xbox unveil on June 9. According to a source who asked not to be named because the information was confidential, this strategic shift is intended to strengthen Microsoft’s gaming subscription business.
Microsoft was able to acquire “Call of Duty” after completing the acquisition of Activision Blizzard for an astounding $69 billion. The transaction took place at the conclusion of the previous year. The first-person shooter game has become one of the most successful forms of entertainment, making over $30 billion over its entire history.
Activision has traditionally put out new versions of “Call of Duty” every year. In recent years, each one has cost around $70. This new way of adding the game to Game Pass is part of a larger plan to get more people to sign up for the service.
After Xbox President Sarah Bond said at a recent meeting that Microsoft plans to put all first-party Xbox games on Game Pass on the day they come out, this event happened very quickly afterward. Microsoft runs Game Pass, a service that lets people play a lot of games from Xbox and other makers for a monthly fee.
Microsoft, which is based in Redmond, Washington, has been actively growing its game subscription service like Netflix over the past few years. It is doing this as part of a bigger plan to compete with Sony Corp.’s PlayStation devices. Microsoft reported in February that Game Pass has 34 million subscribers, a significant increase from the 25 million customers it claimed in 2022.
Many experts believe that adding “Call of Duty,” a franchise with a large and passionate fan base, to Game Pass will result in increased sales. However, some people are concerned that this adjustment would harm the title’s regular sales revenue.
Circana, a company that monitors the industry, reports that “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III,” which was launched in November 2023, is the second-best-selling video game of the year, following Sony’s “Helldivers II.”
Microsoft is committed to modernizing the gaming industry, and one of the ways they are doing this is by implementing a subscription model that makes playing their favorite games more accessible and less expensive. It is clear that this is the case because the choice was made to add “Call of Duty” in Game Pass. Because of this action, it is possible that future sales and marketing techniques for well-known games will be significantly altered as the gaming industry continues to continue to develop.
