Call of Duty
GameBy Infinity Ward · Released Oct 29, 2003
Documents about Call of Duty
Team Vitality Partners With CHERRY XTRFY
Team Vitality has entered into a two-year partnership with gaming gear manufacturer CHERRY XTRFY.
- Team Vitality has entered a two-year partnership with gaming gear manufacturer CHERRY XTRFY.
- CHERRY XTRFY will supply keyboards, mice, and mouse pads to Team Vitality’s players and its facilities, including V.Hive in Paris and performance centers in Berlin and the Stade de France.
- The partnership includes plans for both companies to collaborate on the development of future co-branded products for the gaming and esports market.
World Series of Warzone Returns in 2023
Activision Blizzard has announced the 2023 return of the World Series of Warzone, a global competitive circuit for the Call of Duty: Warzone franchise.
- Activision Blizzard has announced the return of the World Series of Warzone with a total prize pool of $1.2 million USD.
- The competition features a global final in September, which includes a $500,000 prize pool for the main event and a $100,000 prize pool for a solo event.
- Regional finals for North America and Europe are scheduled for May 18 and May 17 respectively, each offering a $150,000 prize pool.
Call of Duty League Will Be Broadcast on Both YouTube and Twitch
Activision Blizzard announced in April 2023 that the Call of Duty League would expand its broadcast distribution to include both YouTube and Twitch.
- As of April 7, 2023, the Call of Duty League (CDL) began broadcasting live on both YouTube and Twitch.
- This move reverses the league's December 2022 announcement that the 2023 season would be exclusive to Twitch.
- The CDL's previous three-year exclusive broadcasting rights deal with YouTube, valued at $160 million, officially expired in January 2023.
Overwatched Out: A Beta Test for Incoming Management
The Overwatch 2 beta release serves as a critical case study for the current state of Activision Blizzard, a publisher facing significant corporate and financial headwinds.
- Activision Blizzard faces significant financial pressure, evidenced by a 28% year-over-year decline in net bookings and ongoing legal challenges from the New York City Employees' Retirement System.
- The industry is undergoing rapid consolidation, highlighted by Microsoft’s pending acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Embracer Group’s $300 million purchase of Square Enix’s Western studios, and Lego’s $1 billion investment in Epic Games.
- The first-person shooter genre is a critical driver of engagement, generating six billion viewing hours in 2021 and necessitating strategic alignment with live-streaming platforms.
OverActive Media Makes Strategic Staff Cuts
OverActive Media, a Canadian-based esports organization, implemented a series of strategic staff reductions in March 2023.
- OverActive Media has initiated a restructuring plan involving staff cuts, with estimates suggesting between 5 and 10 employees have been impacted.
- The company has eliminated specific roles and shifted responsibilities among remaining staff, with reports indicating that further layoffs may occur.
- Confirmed departures include Connor Chambers, team manager for the Toronto Ultra, and Cameron Bloom, marketing manager for MAD Lions.
Tencent Financial Results: 2022
Tencent’s 2022 financial results reveal a historic turning point for the company, which recorded its first annual revenue decline since going public in 2004.
- Tencent recorded its first annual revenue decline since its 2004 IPO, with total revenue falling 1% year-over-year to 554.6 billion yuan ($79.6 billion).
- Profitability metrics saw significant contraction in 2022, as operating profit dropped 13% to 235.7 billion yuan and net profit fell 17% to 188.7 billion yuan.
- The gaming division, representing 43% of total revenue, saw domestic gaming revenue contract by 4% to 123.9 billion yuan.
SVB Collapse / Applovin spawns Redemption
Microsoft is currently navigating a complex regulatory environment surrounding its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, utilizing long-term cloud gaming partnerships with providers like Boosteroid and Ubitus to appease antitrust concerns.
- AppLovin is pivoting away from mobile game development toward its ad-tech software business following a 30% revenue decline in its games division caused by post-App Tracking Transparency (ATT) market disruptions.
- The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has forced tech and gaming startups to shift treasury management strategies, moving away from concentrated risk toward diversifying cash holdings across multiple institutions and short-term government treasuries.
- Major Western publishers are increasingly centralizing operations internally and reducing reliance on third-party Chinese co-development studios to improve margins and mitigate cross-border partnership complexities.
Esports Engine Co-Founder and President Adam Apicella Is Leaving the Company
Adam Apicella, co-founder and president of the esports production firm Esports Engine, has departed the company.
- Adam Apicella, co-founder and president of Esports Engine, has mutually agreed to depart the company.
- The exit follows the March 1, 2023, acquisition of Vindex—the parent company of Esports Engine—by the ESL FACEIT Group.
- ESL FACEIT Group is owned by Savvy Games Group, which is backed by the Saudi government’s Public Investment Fund.
Desperate Measures
The gaming industry is currently witnessing a period of extreme, performative posturing as the proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft nears its regulatory conclusion.
- Sony and Microsoft have submitted final responses to the UK's Competition and Markets Authority regarding the Activision Blizzard acquisition, with Sony arguing that Microsoft could intentionally introduce bugs or performance degradation into PlayStation versions of Call of Duty.
- Microsoft is utilizing full-page newspaper advertisements to promote its claim that bringing Call of Duty to Nintendo and Nvidia platforms will reach 150 million new players, a figure derived from the 125 million existing Switch units and 25 million GeForce Now subscribers.
- Warner Bros. is delaying the release of Rocksteady’s Suicide Squad game from May to later this year following negative fan reception to its gameplay reveal.
The Path: Rafi Huezo and the Origin of OMIT
The profile examines the career trajectory of Rafi Huezo, a former marketing executive who transitioned from corporate roles at Procter & Gamble and Ciroc Vodka to founding OMIT, an esports organization built on the principles of diversity and inclusion.
- Rafi Huezo, a former marketing executive for Ciroc and Procter & Gamble, founded the esports organization OMIT with a core mission to prioritize diversity and inclusion for underrepresented talent.
- OMIT originated from Huezo’s personal experience as a content creator during the COVID-19 pandemic, where he grew a streaming channel to over 10,000 followers and 3,000 subscribers before transitioning into an organization.
- The organization supports its players by providing salaries, equipment, legal services, travel funding, and content production resources to help talent who were previously overlooked or excluded from the industry.
Esports Illustrated Officially Launches
Esports Illustrated officially launched in March 2023 as a collaborative media venture between GaudHammer Gaming Group, Sports Illustrated, and The Arena Group.
- Esports Illustrated officially launched as a joint venture between GaudHammer Gaming Group, Sports Illustrated, and The Arena Group.
- The publication focuses on 'snackable' content for Gen-Z and Millennial audiences, covering core titles such as Call of Duty, Valorant, Apex Legends, and League of Legends.
- A three-year partnership has been established with the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) to prioritize and expand coverage of the collegiate esports scene.
Assembling a Community Before You Start Making Your Game
The core thesis of this analysis is that modern game discovery and long-term success depend on proactive community cultivation and strategic content delivery.
- Prioritize building a dedicated community, ideally via Discord, before entering production to validate market fit and mitigate the risk of launching to an empty audience.
- Windwalk Games demonstrated that a zero-dollar budget can yield a 30,000-member community by utilizing genre-specific evangelism and giveaways prior to finalizing game design.
- Monomi Park’s Slime Rancher 2 achieved 300,000 units sold within days of launch by leveraging the Games-as-a-Service model and delivering substantial, adventure-like content updates during Early Access.
Companies behind it
As the documents state it.