Activision's decision to remove the single-player component from their latest installment to the "Call of Duty" franchise may have been an unpopular decision, but it seems that the video game publisher has nothing to worry about after "Black Ops 4's" release. With "Black Ops 4" beating one of the video game industries most anticipated titles in sales, it looks like Activision may be doing something right.
According to GameSpot, "Black Ops 4" currently holds the distinction of having the number one video game sales numbers for October, beating the popular Rockstar Games action-western, "Red Dead Redemption 2." While some fans may wonder if "Black Ops 4's" release date happening earlier in October may have influenced its dominance over Rockstar's latest installment to the "Red Dead Redemption" franchise, it seems to not be the case.
While "Red Dead Redemption 2" does hold the distinction of achieving at least 17 million sales units just a few weeks after its release, "Black Ops 4" sales continue to grow in number. "Black Ops 4" now currently holds the title of the best-selling game for 2018 with "Red Dead Redemption 2" at a respectable second place for the title.
Fans of the "Call of Duty" franchise waiting in hope for "Black Ops 4" may have been surprised by Treyarch's decision to not even plan for the inclusion of a single-player campaign. While the franchise was born from the said experience before multiplayer gaming was in vogue, it seems that gamers themselves have started to gravitate towards a more social experience.
According to Treyarch studio co-head, Dan Bunting, the numbers of people actually engaging with the later installments to the "Call of Duty" franchises' single-player campaigns have been dropping over the years. Bunting mentions that the studio has realized that almost 90 percent of their players simply focus on the multiplayer experience for games like "Black Ops 4."
The decreasing number of single-player campaign players influenced the choice to drop development of the said campaign from "Black Ops 4." Bunting emphasized that games such as "Black Ops 4" will be more focused on providing an experience that gamers can play with their friends. It seems that the risk of dropping the single-player experience has definitely paid off with "Black Ops 4" coming in at a close second to "Call of Duty: WWII" sales.
With its undeniable success, fans can now only look forward to how Treyarch and Activision plan to expand the "Black Ops 4" experience after its release. Hopefully, the future of "Black Ops 4" won't be filled only by $20 skin packs for days to come.
