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<\/p>\nThe world’s best-selling war game saga, Call of Duty, releases its latest installment Friday, under pressure to rival the strong launch of longtime competitor Battlefield.<\/p>\n
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 plunges gamers into the near-future and follows a special forces team facing off against a Nicaraguan terrorist.<\/p>\n
For the past 20 years, Call of Duty and Battlefield have dominated the first-person shooter series with an intense rivalry.<\/p>\n
The former still claims the number on spot, with more than 500 million copies sold since the first game’s release in 2003, according to its publisher, Activision Blizzard.<\/p>\n
Several of its installments are said to have individually surpassed 20 million sales.<\/p>\n
However, setting the new game in 2035 could be seen as a risky choice, with previous Call of Duty games set in the future proving the least popular.<\/p>\n
Rivalry <\/p>\n
“Black Ops 7” removes features unpopular with fans, like “jetpacks” and “wall running” gameplay, Activision communications director Stephanie Snowden told Agence France-Presse (AFP).<\/p>\n
A new feature allows characters to instead bounce off walls with a double jump.<\/p>\n
Overall, it remains close to recent installments while cultivating the success of older titles in hopes of keeping fans happy.<\/p>\n
The latest story follows on from Black Ops Two and Six, including familiar characters and maps.<\/p>\n
Stretching the formula would risk alienating Call of Duty’s audience.<\/p>\n
At the same time, “the franchise doesn’t innovate enough,” said Lou Martin, a marketing student who tested the game at Paris Games Week.<\/p>\n
And then there is the blockbuster success of Battlefield 6, released on Oct. 10.<\/p>\n
“Battlefield 6 Shatters Records Becoming the Biggest Launch in Franchise History,” its publisher Electronic Arts said one week after its release.<\/p>\n
More than seven million copies of Battlefield 6 were snapped up in what EA touted as one of the biggest gaming and entertainment launches of 2025.<\/p>\n
Some specialised media estimate that it has since surpassed 10 million sales.<\/p>\n
It marked a significant rebound after Battlefield 2042, released in 2021, was deemed disappointing.<\/p>\n
“I was planning to buy Black Ops for the end of the year, but ‘Battlefield’ made me change my mind,” said Martin.<\/p>\n
Battlefield challenges its rival with smaller multiplayer maps than usual and a “battle royale” mode where players eliminate each other one by one, similar to a popular mode found on Call of Duty.<\/p>\n
“Even if there’s not enough innovation, comparatively I prefer (it) … to the Battlefield franchise, which is too complex for me,” Reda Mbarki, a gamer in his thirties, said after testing the game.<\/p>\n
By continuing to offer multiplayer and zombie modes, Call of Duty can still rely on a loyal audience.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
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