There’s no question that the Call of Duty franchise has made a huge mark in the U.S. gaming market, with billions of dollars in revenue in the franchise’s history. Now, the brand could be doing even more business in China, as Activision and Tencent have teamed up to bring Call of Duty Online to the masses. The main difference is that the game is free-to-play, rather than the pay-up-front model used in other parts of the world.
The two publishing giants have launched the game’s beta in China, providing millions of players the opportunity to take on single player missions, a survival mode (featuring cyborgs in place of the traditional zombies) and, of course, multiplayer. The beta is available for hundreds of millions of gamers, and should expand even further when the game finally launches, even though a date hasn’t been given yet.
“Millions of gamers in the West have come to appreciate that white-knuckled, epic thrill-ride that only Call of Duty delivers. And now an entire new audience of gamers will experience this for the first time. We believe Call of Duty Online is going to be a game-changer for Chinese gamers,” said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing. “We’ve worked closely with our partner at Tencent, and we’ve challenged one of our most trusted and talented development teams at Raven Software to create a true Call of Duty experience tailored for the Chinese market. Throughout testing, the community feedback has been tremendous. We couldn’t be more excited and we look forward to winning the hearts and minds of a new community in China.”
Steven Ma, senior vice president of Tencent, added, “Since announcing Call of Duty Online, we have gone through a series of alpha and closed beta tests, with each test generating incredibly positive results. Call of Duty Online is a top tier game developed by an elite team and we are honored to bring this highly anticipated title to the Chinese players.”
The gaming landscape in China has changed quite a bit over the past few years. A number of PC-based and mobile titles have stepped up in popularity, including Puzzle & Dragons and League of Legends. And with the recent announcement of the country’s removal of its ban on video game consoles, Microsoft and Sony have opted to make an impact with their own offerings as well.
But the spotlight remains firmly on the PC gaming scene for now, and the powerhouse teaming of Tencent and Activision will no doubt take a big chunk out of it, with millions of players expected to put the game through its paces while in its beta period.
There’s no question that both companies have put quite a promotional push behind the game. In fact, Activision produced a live-action trailer featuring plenty of Call of Duty action, as well as an appearance by Captain America himself, Chris Evans. You can view it below.
No word yet if Call of Duty Online will launch for other markets, but, at the moment, it isn’t likely. Fortunately, gamers still have the likes of Advanced Warfare and other titles to turn to.
