Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is reaping what its most recent predecessors have sown. Fans of the series praised Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and the free-to-play battle royale Warzone, and that positive sentiment led to huge excitement and sales for the latest entry in the military-shooter franchise. The game is selling so fast that it is already one of the best-selling games of all time in the United States, according to industry-tracking firm The NPD Group.
“Call of Duty: Black Ops — Cold War was January’s best-selling game,” NPD analyst Mat Piscatella said. “Call of Duty: Black Ops — Cold War has been the best-selling game in the U.S. each month since its November launch, and it now ranks as the 20th best-selling video game in U.S. tracked history by lifetime dollar sales.”
NPD has tracked game sales since the 1990s.
Call of Duty’s ongoing success is crucial to Activision, which shows now sign of slowing up the annual release cycle for the franchise. And while the popularity of the shooter series has ebbed and flowed, it has never slid from its position near the top of the sales charts. And Black Ops: Cold War’s blazing sales suggest it is once again picking up momentum. Especially after Activision reported that Call of Duty had its best year ever in 2020.