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Call of Duty now Online in China, monetization not ready yet
An alpha version of Call of Duty Online – the China-exclusive, free-to-play game based on the Activision shooter – is now live, Kotaku reports. Monetization systems for the game (i.e. those sweet, sweet microtransactions) are unavailable in its current form; however, Call of Duty Online is playable in the region.Call of Duty Online was announced by Activision last year and pairs the western publisher with China investment holdings firm Tencent, a company that offers social networks, e-commerce, multiplayer online games and more within the country.China has a rich history with freemium video game experiences, including Tencent's own hugely successful Cross Fire. But if a brand as large as Call of Duty strikes gold in China, we may see other popular franchises form-fitted to work in the region's microtransaction-focused industry.
Report: Activision stock may rise 50 percent with Pandaria, CoD Online
Activision Blizzard may see its share price increase as much as 50 percent as it prepares to launch the Mists of Pandaria expansion for World of Warcraft and Call of Duty Online in China, financial newsweekly Barron's reports. Activision Blizzard is currently trading at $11.25, after reporting Q2 earnings above expectations but below the previous year, bringing in $1.08 billion.Investors expect shares could reach a high of $17 due to Mists of Pandaria's launch in September and Activision's partnership with Chinese Internet provider Tencent Holdings to launch the free-to-play game Call of Duty Online, potentially in "mid-2013," Barron's says. The Chinese gaming market generated $7 billion and included 160 million gamers in 2011, and is expected to grow by 20 percent this year to cash in more than $9 million in 2014.Activision Blizzard's shares have fallen 10 percent this year, while the broad market has gained 11 percent. Parent company Vivendi was looking to sell its 61 percent stake in Activision Blizzard earlier this year, but it appears those efforts have shifted focus.
See Call of Duty Online in action (spoilers: it looks like Call of Duty!)
You'll be shocked to hear this, we know, but Activision and Tencent's just announced, free-to-play Call of Duty game, Call of Duty Online, looks an awful lot like a Call of Duty multiplayer game. Take a peek for yourself above.
CoD goes to China with 'Call of Duty Online,' from Activision and Tencent
Activision, partnering with Chinese game company Tencent, is launching a free-to-play Call of Duty shooter in the Chinese market, the companies revealed this morning. "Call of Duty Online" is the name, but beyond that little is known – the image above is from the game's teaser site, and the site contains no other information (unless you're into reading legalese, that is).That said, after two years of hearing about such a game, we've got some ideas of what it might be. For instance, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick said back in 2010 that Activision had "dedicated teams in these new markets creating content for the audiences that, to date, have only been satisfied by Blizzard games." Kotick said that the new CoD game would leverage CoD's "fantasy of being a soldier," which he said is a shared global sentiment, regardless of cultural differences. Today's news also makes those Activision URL registrations a lot more logical, eh?Tencent apparently has the "exclusive license" to run Call of Duty Online in China, and Activision CEO Bobby Kotick is "very excited" about the game's prospects.Update: A press release about the game says it "will capitalize on the rich multiplayer experience that the Call of Duty franchise is known for," and that it will also implement, "a new gaming model designed specifically for the Chinese market." Said model sounds like the game's free-to-play microtransaction system. "Using an in-game store, players can enhance their weapons, gear, and perks built specifically for the Chinese market," the release reads. Apparently the game is more than just online play, with "an original story told through a series of Special Operations missions based on the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare universe."
Kotick: Microtransaction-based Call of Duty 'just for China' [update]
The microtransaction-based Call of Duty game Activision is making for China, first announced in a February investor conference call (and in the presentation that went along with it) is, at least for now, unlikely to leave China. Though, of course, the door's open. Answering a question during an investor conference call, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick called the game "specific for the Chinese audiences," and clarified, "The product that we announced today is being developed just for China." Kotick added, "That's not to say it might not have applicability elsewhere, but what we're doing right now is focused on China." The "applicability" could refer to integrating the free-to-play model with other, Western-focused iterations of Call of Duty (which would make sense given the Beachhead-developed "digital platform" in the works) -- or even an eventual localization of that game. [Update: A previous iteration of this post, published before Kotick made these comments, presented the free-to-play Call of Duty as a new announcement, when it had actually been first announced in February.]
Analyst: Call of Duty Online could make $100 million in its first year
Rumors have been flying around about a subscription-based Call of Duty game for some time now -- Activision boss Bobby Kotick loves the idea, because he loves money, and the company's other subscription-based game, World of Warcraft, is quite the cash-printing machine. So why not go down that road? Many still believe Activision will, including Janco Partners analyst Mike Hickey. With the publisher's plans to break into China and Korea, Hickey told IndustryGamers he sees Call of Duty as the perfect platform for accomplishing that goal and strengthening ties with NetEase, the online powerhouse of the Chinese market. "We expect the Company [NetEase] could extend their relationship with Activision Blizzard, by establishing an additional license to operate Call of Duty Online in China and Blizzard's unannounced MMO, which will likely leverage their Battle.net platform," he said. "The eventuality of COD in China could bring an additional +$50 to +$100 million in sales and +$0.15 to +$0.30 in EPS in its first year of operation." EPS, to clarify, is short for "earnings per share." Who knows what's in store for the future, but for now, rest assured: you won't ever have to fork over extra cash to play Modern Warfare 2 online.
