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'Call of Duty: Black Ops 4' gets a second battle royale map tomorrow
Call of Duty: Black Ops 4's Blackout battle royale mode is about to get a new map. The second arena in which players will duke it out for supremacy is Alcatraz. The map hits PS4 tomorrow and will arrive on other platforms later.
'Call of Duty' swatter to serve 20 years in prison
Tyler Barriss was sentenced to 20 years in prison by a US district court judge today for placing fake 911 calls, including a swatting incident in 2017 that resulted in the death of a man in Wichita, Kansas, according to the Associated Press. The fatal shooting was the fallout of an argument over a $1.50 bet in Call of Duty between Barriss and another gamer.
'Call of Duty: Mobile' beta opens soon with classic maps and gameplay
Late last year Tencent and Activision started testing an Android mobile version of Call of Duty, and today at GDC, announced that the game will start a beta test soon that's available in regions including Europe as well as North and South America. Call of Duty: Mobile maintains the look and feel of the game's performance on at least Xbox 360 and PS3-era hardware, plus it promises familiar maps from previous entries like Black Ops and Modern Warfare. The mobile version is a free-to-play title focused on competitive multiplayer matches in modes like Search-and-Destroy, Team Deathmatch and free for all. There's no word on exactly when the beta test will start on both iOS and Android, but interested players can sign up for access on the official site here, and check out a brief trailer below.
Owning a 'Call of Duty' eSports franchise could cost $25 million
Activision Blizzard is apparently making headway with the launch of the city-based Call of Duty League it announced in February. According to ESPN, an esports executive from the company has already been meeting with prospective buyers -- namely professional CoD teams and Overwatch League owners -- to talk business and tell them that the franchise fee will cost them a whopping $25 million per team slot. That puts its franchise fee in the same price range as the Overwatch League, which also cost the first batch of owners $20 million per team. ESPN says the company later sold expansion slots for between $30 to $60 million.
Windows 10 is getting a picture-in-picture mode
Microsoft just made it easier to use multiple applications at once on Windows 10, especially when dealing with video-focused programs. The company released Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 15031 to developers today, and the main attraction is the introduction of so-called Compact Overlay windows.
'Call of Duty: Black Ops III' second DLC arrives April 19
Treyarch announced on Thursday that the second DLC pack for Call of Duty: Black Ops III, dubbed Eclipse, will be released on April 19th. The new content, which will initially be available only on the PlayStation 4, features four new maps as well as a new Zombies storyline set on a remote, WWII-era island somewhere in the Pacific.
There goes the neighborhood: 'Black Ops 3' brings back Nuk3town
Activision announced on Monday that Nuk3town, the single most popular map in the Call of Duty franchise's entire history, will be available on CoD: Black Ops 3. Anybody that pre-orders BO3 for the PS4, XBone or PC will receive a download code that unlocks the legendary map when the game hits store shelves on November 6th. Nuk3town made its debut back in the first Black Ops game and returned as Nuk3town 2025 for BO2.
This is the new Zombies mode in 'Call of Duty: Black Ops 3'
It was known Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 would have a Zombies mode, but Treyarch hadn't revealed any more details beyond that -- up until now, at least. Today, as part of the San Diego Comic-Con festivities, the game developer introduced Shadows of Evil, a survival co-op experience that will be in Black Ops 3. What's more, Treyarch managed to cast some celebrities for the project, such as Jeff Goldblum (Independence Day, Jurassic Park), Heather Graham, Neal McDonough, Ron Perlman and Robert Picardo. The latest edition of the Call of Duty franchise is set to be released on November 6th for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. But while you wait for it to come out, here's the Zombies Shadows of Evil trailer for your viewing pleasure.
Buckle up for 'Call of Duty: Black Ops 3'
This year's Call of Duty is likely to be Black Ops 3, as hinted at in a fresh teaser trailer titled "#backinblack." Well, either it hints at Black Ops 3 or Activision is trying really, really hard to throw the entire world off its scent. Treyarch, the studio that created the Black Ops franchise within Call of Duty, is in charge of the 2015 game, so it was already likely that we'd see a third this year. Activision plans to reveal the new Call of Duty on April 26, and you bet we'll have all of the juicy details then. Watch the new teaser below.
UK schools threaten to report parents who let their kids play 18+ games
If your child is playing 18-rated games such as Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto, you could be reported to the police and social services. That's the message being sent to parents by a group of primary and secondary schools in Cheshire. In a letter, the Nantwich Education Partnership has warned parents about the levels of violence and sexual content that are prevalent in mature games. It says regular exposure could lead to "early sexualised behaviour" and leave children "vulnerable to sexual exploitation or extreme violence." Some parents have already voiced their disapproval, but headteachers say they're merely following the guidance set by their local authority: "If your child is allowed to have inappropriate access to any game or associated product that is designated 18+, we are advised to contact the police and children's social care as this is deemed neglectful."
Exo Zombies invade Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare trailer
The latest trailer for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare shows off the game's upcoming downloadable content, Exo Zombies. Arriving as part of the first content pack, Havoc, Exo Zombies features the voice acting talents of John Malkovich, Bill Paxton, Rose McGowan and Jon Bernthal. The Havoc DLC pack will launch on January 27 for Xbox One and Xbox 360. Havoc also includes four multiplayer maps, the AE4 assault rifle and Widowmaker custom variant. While the Havoc DLC can be purchased separately for $15, season pass holders will receive the pack at no additional charge. Advanced Warfare's $50 season pass grants access to three other pieces of downloadable content: Ascendance, Supremacy and Reckoning. Activision struck a deal with Microsoft to bring Advanced Warfare DLC to the Xbox platforms before it arrives on other systems, so the publisher has yet to offer a release date for Havoc on PS4, PS3 or PC. [Image: Activision]
Activision takes victory lap, Destiny biggest new game franchise launch
Let us be colloquial: Activision makin' mad bank, yo. Like, all the cheddar. The publisher took a victory lap this morning, reiterating the top placement of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare during yesterday's NPD, the success of Skylanders among children and making a pertinent addendum to Destiny's sales in 2014. Last night, US retail tracking group NPD released its year-end data, with Destiny ranked third behind Call of Duty and Madden NFL 15. Activision noted this morning that Destiny was in second place "among all titles in the U.S. in 2014, based on revenue." This would reflect the significant digital distribution push Destiny had, as well as the special editions and expansion bundles.
Call of Duty Championship offers $1M prize pool in March
Activision's Xbox-sponsored Call of Duty Championship returns to Los Angeles across March 27-29, and 32 teams are once again doing battle for their share of the $1 million prize money. A new championship requires a new battlefield (wordage intended), so it's fortunate there is the recently-released Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare for this year's competitors. If you and your friends think you've got what it takes, the championships are open to players both pro and non-pro (you're no amateur). You'll need to qualify first, though, and to do that you'll have to make it through online tournaments and live regional finals, all played on Xbox One. MLG.TV has further details here. As for the main event, you can tune in live to the Championship's semi finals and grand final on Xbox Live, and the final's confirmed for "other broadcast partners" too. [Image: Disney, Activision]
Not even 'FIFA 15' could dethrone 'Frozen' in the UK last year
It should shock no-one to hear that Frozen outsold every other piece of entertainment in the UK in 2014. Even so, the emphatic style with which it did so might surprise you. According to new figures from the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA), the Disney sing-along extravaganza racked up just over 4 million DVD and Blu-ray sales last year, beating the nearest competition, which included films, video games and music, by a huge margin. Its closest rivals were FIFA 15, which scored 2.6 million sales, and Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, which shifted 1.8 million copies -- a stellar effort, considering they debuted at least six months after Frozen's release. The film's soundtrack even made the top 20, besting entertainment home-runs such as Destiny, Gravity and Watch Dogs. The numbers aren't perfect though; the ERA's data only includes physical film and video game sales, while its music figures account for digital sales too. Even so, were downloads fully embraced we doubt Elsa and friends would have been toppled from their icy throne.
Report: Call of Duty retail sales fall for third straight year
Following yesterday's NPD report, Piper Jaffray analyst Michael Olson points out that retail sales for the Call of Duty series have declined by 27 percent year-over-year. This is not isolated news, either. The Call of Duty series has posted slumping sales in each of the past three years. While Activision's military shooters manage to sell well compared to other games the franchise is unable to reach the heights it once saw. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare currently tops the NPD sales chart, but as Games Industry notes, this entry attracted less than half the first month sales of 2011's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. Earlier this year, analysts at Cowen And Company pointed out that alongside declining sales, the Call of Duty games are also attracting declining pre-orders, with Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare drawing nearly 40 percent fewer retail pre-purchases than its predecessor. Activision claims that Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is the highest selling digital launch in console history but Olson does not believe that digital sales (which these analysts are not privy to) can entirely soften the blow of the retail sales slide. "NPD data does not include digital copies or international sales, which, if included, would lessen the year-over-year decline, but we believe this data suggests potential for Q4 revenue upside is now very low," Olson stated. [Image: Activision]
CoD: Advanced Warfare gets 6 million viewers on Twitch in first week [Update]
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is apparently as fun to watch as it is to play, given that players spent 5.4 million hours watching Twitch streams of the game in its first week. That figure came from Variety, which noted that over 75,000 broadcasters streamed gameplay footage of Advanced Warfare on Twitch, resulting in more than 26 million views by six million people across all videos during the week. As Twitch confirmed via Twitter, Advanced Warfare became the most streamed console game on Twitch of the year "based on launch week comparisons." The latest Call of Duty dethroned Destiny, which saw five million unique viewers during its introductory week in September. The streaming platform, which was acquired by Amazon for nearly $1 billion in August, has in fact seen better weeks: After inking a three-year deal to become the Electronic Entertainment Expo's official streaming partner in March, 12 million viewers tuned in to Twitch during E3 2014 in June. Update: As a point of clarification, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare was the console game with the biggest launch week of the year on Twitch based on the number of streamers, but has not been confirmed as the most streamed game of the year on the platform. We've updated the article and headline to reflect this. [Image: Activision]
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare scales up to 1080p on Xbox One
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare runs at 60 frames per second on both Xbox One and PlayStation 4, Sledgehammer Games confirmed. The first-person shooter is also locked in at 1080p on PS4, though it "runs at 1080 scalable," according to the developer's co-founder, Michael Condrey. The resolution of the Xbox One version of the game will change "on a frame by frame basis" in real-time, according to the developer. Condrey told Metro that the game "will scale from 1360 all the way up to true 1080," shifting from resolutions of "1360×1080 up to 1920×1080" on the Microsoft console. It's an improvement on the series' efforts last year on the console, as Call of Duty: Ghosts trotted out an upscaled 720p version on Xbox One. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is out now and received positive marks in our review. [Image: Activision]
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare review: House of CoDs
PC, Xbox One, PS4, Xbox 360, PS3 You get just a novel snippet of peace in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. In this shooter's future, technology has trumped terrorism, rooted out the last evil masterminds and flexed its bionic muscles in total defiance of lead-footed politicians who'd rather talk than get things done. "The world is running out of bad guys," your partner says, hopeful but tragically unaware that he's basically describing a video game glitch. Call of Duty never runs out of bad guys. This one gets points for honesty, though, in that there is no pretentious cover-up of why the good guys beat the bad guys (or why the plot finds them easily interchangeable). In Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, you win because you have better guns, stronger sights, super abilities and superior movement. Whether it's in the rich and varied multiplayer mode, or the frantic, thrill-a-minute single-player campaign, you're constantly relying on cool weapons and combat data to make taking lives easier. Advanced Warfare front-loads the benefits of power in a franchise that has always made technology the exalted, almost fetishized solution to every problem. And you know what? It's more fun when it admits as much.
Zombies are in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare DLC
As a leak suggested earlier this week, zombies will gather once more to crowd around soldiers in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, according to a press release from GameStop. The mode will be "part of" Advanced Warfare's season pass, a $49.99 purchase that includes four packs of multiplayer maps as well as the bonus Atlas Gorge map. For those who purchase the Day Zero Edition of Advanced Warfare, double XP will be granted for the entirety of Monday, November 3, the game's launch day for those who pre-order. Early buyers will also get the "Advanced Arsenal bullet brass exoskeleton and EM1 Quantum directed energy weapon, plus the AK-12G Assault Rifle and Crossbow-B2 custom weapons." If you were planning on upgrading to a PS4 for Advanced Warfare's release, GameStop is offering $125 in store credit from today until November 9 in exchange of a PS3 (20 GB or higher) or an Xbox 360 (250 GB or higher) traded toward the purchase of a PS4. If you purchase a PS4 along with a matching copy of Advanced Warfare, GameStop will also throw in a year of PlayStation Plus for free. If an Xbox One is more your speed, you might to consider the recently-announced holiday bundles. GameStop's press release does not give a sense of when season pass holders can expect to fend off the undead. Advanced Warfare's leading piece of DLC, the Havok map pack, is due to reach Xbox One first in January, with arrivals on other platforms following. Update: An Activision representative has clarified that the zombies mode is part of the downloadable content map packs and does not require the purchase of the full season pass. The map packs containing zombies will be available a la carte. [Image: Activision]
CoD Black Ops writer Anthony: National security a matter of marketing
Call of Duty: Black Ops series writer and director Dave Anthony addressed U.S. military defense as part of a recent presentation for political think tank The Atlantic Council, claiming that public opinion regarding national security can be manipulated using methods similar to video game marketing. "When we have a new product that has elements that we're not sure how people will respond to, what do we do as a corporation?" he asked, in reference to Activision's pre-release strategy for Black Ops and Black Ops 2. "We market it, and we market it as much as we can - so that whether people like it or not, we do all the things we can to essentially brainwash people into liking it before it actually comes out. When you have decided to make these changes, you have a marketing campaign to introduce them before it is forced upon you. "I'd like to see the government doing this too, because the government is becoming more and more unpopular and I have a lot of sympathy for it. It is an enormously tough job they have. I would like to see more effort into how we communicate with the people and educate the people into what we are doing and why."
