It’s been just about ten years since video game developer Inifinity Ward and publisher Activison launched their best-selling first-person-shooter title Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare way back in 2007, and in the time since the eponymous franchise has been on a huge uptick. Serving to essentially remarket and rebrand what had been a series dedicated to World War II simulations, the fourth entry in the long-running shooter series shifted its focus to contemporary warfare and futuristic plot lines.
Enter Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, the latest title in the first-person-shooter franchise from Infinity Ward, which seeks to take the battle to new intergalactic heights with a groundbreaking core campaign set against the backdrop of the entire Solar System. Following the release of the game’s trailer starring none other than Game of Thrones lead actor Kit Harington, the hype train for the latest title in the series published by Activision is going full steam ahead. However, it would appear that the final product isn’t selling quite as well as expected in one particular foreign territory.
According to Eurogamer, launch sales for Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare were down by a grand total of 48.5% in the UK compared to the November 2015 launch of Call of Duty: Black Ops III developed by Treyarch. More likely than not, sales on the latest title in the series are suffering in the UK due to the fact that Infinite Warfare is the first entry in a new sub-brand of the series, whereas Black Ops is already a best-selling sub-title of the overarching franchise. While some might point to the fact that Infinite Warfare may have been held back by not launching on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, it should be additionally noted that sales were still down by 43.6% when accounting for the absence of last-gen platforms.
To add insult to injury, Reddit user “Hayz00s” took to the Internet to report that those who purchased Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare for PC to play the special edition add-on of Modern Warfare Remastered can only play online with other opponents using Windows 10 on the Windows Store - thereby barring the far more popular PC gaming platform Steam from being supported to play the rerelease of Infinity Ward’s much beloved 2007 title. Thankfully, Microsoft has seen fit to issue a full refund to anyone dissatisfied, and are actively working on a way to make online play for Modern Warfare on PC available across-platforms.
Despite the downturn in sales for Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare in the UK, the new game from Infinity Ward did still manage to become the second-largest launch in the UK of 2017 behind FIFA 17 - in spite of the fact that several fans of the franchise have been vocal in their distaste for the former title’s sci-fi setting and narrative premise. Only time will tell how well remembered Infinite Warfare will prove to be another ten years down the road - though with any luck Activision might yet decide to grant Modern Warfare Remastered its own independent retail copy for die-hard players of the franchise.
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare is currently available to purchase on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
Source: Eurogamer
