Activision Blizzard does not hide it, the results of the Call of Duty ecosystem are largely responsible for this decline. While Call of Duty: Mobile is stable, sales of Call of Duty: Vanguard are lower than those of its predecessor, while at the same time we see a drop in engagement at Call of Duty: Warzone. The good news for Activision is that its Call of Duty 2022 is none other than the successor to 2019’s Modern Warfare, in other words the best-selling opus in the history of the saga. The game will be launched at the end of the year at the same time as a new Warzone specially tailored for the new generation and also developed by Infinity Ward. Added to this is the development of a Call of Duty: Warzone specific to the mobile market.
Blizzard isn’t in great shape either. In the absence of major news at the start of the year, the label’s financial results are lower than those of last year. That said, it can’t be said that Blizzard is twiddling its thumbs. While the Hearthstone: Heart of the Sunken City expansion launched on April 12, the World of Warcraft team has just unveiled the Dragonflight and Wrath of the Lich King Classic expansions, while preparing to unveil its first mobile warcraft game. Speaking of mobile, the release of Diablo Immortal will take place on June 2 on iOS and Android but also PC. As for the development of Diablo 4 and Overwatch 2, it “also progressing satisfactorily“, we are told. Internal testing of the former is underway across the company and the beta of the latter begins tomorrow.
In addition to the costs associated with the Microsoft acquisition, Bobby Kotick’s group continues to invest and has recruited “several hundred peoplein the first quarter to support its many projects. A few days ago, management also announced the transformation of more than 1,000 temporary workers into full-time employees, most benefiting from a salary increase and benefits. Around the same time, the band announced the appointment of Kristen Hines as the company’s new Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer.