(San Francisco) As a teenager, James Spratt ran home from school to connect to the Internet and carry out military operations on the maps of the internationally successful video game “Call of Duty”, which will celebrate its twentieth anniversary with the Friday release of a new opus.
Over the years, the Activision Blizzard franchise has become a phenomenon attracting millions of aficionados around the world. In twenty years, it generated more than $30 billion in revenue for the studio, establishing itself as one of the industry’s biggest successes.
James Spratt is now 30 years old and, much to his father’s amazement, Call of Duty is now a source of income for him as he shares his CoD games live on his YouTube channel, from the comfort of his living room in the UK .
“When we came home from school, we’d run home and make a team of six, because if you missed the opportunity to be with your friends, you found yourself playing by yourself,” Mr. Spratt recalls.
“There’s something about this game that keeps me coming back to it every year. I was hooked,” he confides.
The first opus, created by Infinity Ward and published by Activision, was released in October 2003. Since then Call of Duty returns every fall with a new version: the next one, Modern Warfare III, is due out on November 10.
This annual rhythm has become “the secret ingredient” of the franchise “almost like a traditional festivity”, estimates Johanna Faries, general director of the game, to AFP.
According to Michael Pachter, entertainment software analyst at Wedbush, these annual releases are undoubtedly “the main cause” of the success, with the variety of content, which ranges from World War II to recent conflicts, including special operations.
The other driving force behind its success lies in the developers’ desire to constantly improve the experience, giving thousands of players on the internet – like James Spratt and his friends – the opportunity to come together to play. amuse.
“It’s not just the game, but also what it represents, every year you have a community that continues to grow,” he recalls. “You can talk to anyone about it, on the street corner or on the internet, everyone seems to know what Call of Duty is.”
His partner’s nephews and nieces play the game themselves, as does his brother-in-law.
“I thought it was a teenage thing when I started playing, but today you have gamers of all ages,” he emphasizes.
One of the forums dedicated to the franchise on the social network Reddit has 1.2 million members, who share memories of their favorite phases of the game in previous versions and their opinions on the latest one, to which some had a early access.
“I will always get goosebumps every time I reach the mission “El Sin Numéro” in Modern Warfare 2,” wrote one forum member, indicating that he is in his 20s and spends 90% of his free time playing video games .
Originally a modest military shooter for computer, the franchise took on another dimension with Call of Duty 2, released on Microsoft’s Xbox360 in 2005, according to Mat Piscatella, video game analyst for Circana.
After its launch, 70% of new Xbox owners also purchased the game, which was a perfect fit for the machine. But the real leap forward came two years later, with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, which incorporated new possibilities for online gaming.
“Call of Duty is one of the few games that can be considered “infinite” as it offers sufficiently compelling content and features for online play, which make it the default game for those who want to have some quick fun between friends or family,” emphasizes Mr. Piscatella.
And the results are there: in the United States, the franchise has been at the top of the sector’s sales for more than ten years and the new opus should be no exception, according to him.
“We are very proud of it,” assures Ms. Faries, for whom video games are “undoubtedly the most dynamic form of entertainment today.”
“And having Call of Duty as a benchmark in the field is an honor. »
