Call of Duty's latest ad loudly reminds everyone it's not coming to Game Pass

[midian182]

Facepalm: Remember how much Microsoft promoted the fact that Call of Duty would be on Game Pass from day one? The series doesn't appear on the service at launch anymore, and Redmond is making sure everyone remembers this in an ad that makes it look almost like a boast.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 arrives on October 23 (October 16 for players who pre-ordered), and for the first time in two years, it won't be coming straight to Game Pass.

While one would imagine that Microsoft doesn't want to keep repeating this point, it's plastered in huge letters across a social media ad campaign for the game that started on June 27.

Back in July, Microsoft reversed the price increases it had introduced to Game Pass subscriptions a year earlier – which resulted in millions of subscribers leaving – making them just slightly higher than before the 2025 hikes. It also confirmed that Call of Duty games would come to Game Pass a year after release.

Microsoft obviously wants gamers to know they once again have to buy Call of Duty titles to play them straight away. It's estimated that Black Ops 6's appearance on Game Pass resulted in $300 million in lost of sales.

Black Ops 6 still managed to set a series sales record, but that was with 82% of full-price sales coming on PlayStation 5.

Game Pass has been under the spotlight more than ever recently. In addition to the revelation about the millions of people who left following the price hikes, there have been complaints about the service's content. According to the director of the Ori games, the subscription service would be much more successful if studios weren't incentivized to "slop out mediocre content like a factory."

Then there are Microsoft's other issues. We recently heard that the company is closing Ninja Theory and Double Fine, with Compulsion and others set for the chopping block – part of the major layoffs that are being implemented. There were also reports that Microsoft could consider spinning off the Xbox brand or forming a joint venture.

Modern Warfare 4 launches on October 23 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.

Permalink to story:

Call of Duty's latest ad loudly reminds everyone it's not coming to Game Pass

 

[yRaz]

Reminding me I need to buy what? I haven't bought a COD game in over a decade.

 

[NumberNine]

One day I'm going to tell some unwitting child that every Call of Duty must be played in chronological order to understand the story in the latest one and hopefully they'll try. I feel like that's worth throwing away my credibility.

 

[Kirby1]

Microsoft's approach to gaming has been pretty strange. At first, after they bought all these studios they thought a hands off approach was best and they didn't really step in to direct these companies. It feels like a lot of them got lazy and put out mediocre stuff, knowing they were financially safe under Microsoft. Now, they're doing the opposite but way too late after a lot of these acquisitions are starting to feel like they're under water.

I think Microsoft would be in a much better position if they had bought Ubisoft instead of Activision, and actually stepped in to direct development and help Ubisoft become better. Ubisoft would have been vastly cheaper, and I think they have a reputation of consistently being close to greatness but letting their own agenda for things like loot boxes get in the way. Microsoft could have basically turned Ubisoft around had they thought more strategically, instead of just buying the largest IP and hoping that would work out.

Beyond that, Ubisoft has really good tech. Now one is ever disappointed in the graphics from an Ubisoft game these days. Seeing their engine used for more stuff across Microsoft could have been really great.

You could probably apply the same logic to EA as well, tho that would have been more expensive than Ubisoft.

 

[MasterMace]

The 9th in the Modern Warfare series of:
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4

It remains to be seen if it is a Sequel of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 or Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III

 

[Jim Lahey]

I’m torn here, because I love playing Zombies mode, all the way back to when it was an Easter egg unlock. All the same, I think COD is basically the worst side of the gaming industry and the business model is a blight on what I care about.

As a PC and Xbox user since the OG/Duke I think MS is so destructively alienating its legacy base that it may be in a death spiral.

 

[Rapob]

Reminding me I need to buy what? I haven't bought a COD game in over a decade.

No wonder, you got tired of dying.

 

[Rapob]

I’m torn here, because I love playing Zombies mode, all the way back to when it was an Easter egg unlock. All the same, I think COD is basically the worst side of the gaming industry and the business model is a blight on what I care about.

As a PC and Xbox user since the OG/Duke I think MS is so destructively alienating its legacy base that it may be in a death spiral.

Death spiral? Watch their financial reports. Xbox revenue goes up year after year. From like 9 billion USD 10 years ago, to 25 billion USD in 2025.

Reality calls.

 

[Jim Lahey]

I was talking about the brand alienating its player base, but apparently Xbox finances are so great that they needed to fire their exec team (always done to the best performers) and totally didn’t record their worst May ever, nor 32% year over year decline in market share.

No, things are financially great at Xbox!

https://www.techspot.com/news/111115-microsoft-xbox-struggles-continue-hardware-sales-fall-32.html

 

[texasrattler]

I was talking about the brand alienating its player base, but apparently Xbox finances are so great that they needed to fire their exec team (always done to the best performers) and totally didn’t record their worst May ever, nor 32% year over year decline in market share.

No, things are financially great at Xbox!

https://www.techspot.com/news/111115-microsoft-xbox-struggles-continue-hardware-sales-fall-32.html

Happens all the time in business, nothing new. New tech is out, AI, shifting, firings are part of the norm. One year you can have financial downfall and the next you can have huge financial gains. A lot of companies are restructuring for AI. These things have all been done before.

 

[Axeia]

As I'm very much against the 'you will owe nothing' route big tech is trying to push I'm happy to see Microsoft throwing in their own windows.

I am surprised by how early on in the process they went with making gamepass less and less attractive though. Expected them to eat the costs of trying to make it popular for much longer.