How did Call of Duty: Mobile get a whopping 100 million downloads within a week of its launch?
Origin
Call of Duty, the game most of the Gen-Zs grew up with, is going to be our topic for today’s case study. Launched in 2003, COD is a first-person shooter video game based on id tech 3. Activision Publishing, Inc., an American video game publisher initially published the game after it was developed by Infinity Ward back in 2003. It is one of the most successful franchises of all time. The idea behind the first version of the game is very interesting. The central theme of the game was based on Worl War II. With the release of new versions of the game from time to time, the setting did evolve but it returned to its early roots with the most recent update.
Evolution
The first version of COD was developed as a Microsoft Windows game which later on evolved to be played on different devices. The first version of the game called Call of Duty was made from the pov of an Infantry soldier in World War 2. This theme continued till the third game of the franchise. With the fourth installment called Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, the game started to expand as per the trends and the ever-changing technology. The game has had several developers throughout the years, the most famous being Infinity Ward, Treyarch, and Sledgehammer Games. Activision, the owner of COD, now releases a new video game in the COD series almost every year since its inception. The latest update in the franchise, Call of Duty: Vanguard is trying to return to the original roots of the game, the world war series. The most successful game in the franchise is Call of Duty: Black Ops, which has sold over 30 million units worldwide since it was first released in 2010. This gives a clear impression of the ever-increasing fanbase of the game.
Call of Duty: The eSport
Like every other game, COD also entered the World of eSports and became a brand name in the industry. Every year, multiple tournaments are organized for the COD eSports players. Call of Duty League 2022 kickoff classic organized by Activision from 21 Jan Jan to Jan 2022 had a prize pool worth $30,000. Many such tournaments are organized by different platforms and organizers with whopping prize pools. Like, the Call of Duty League Championship 2021 which had a prize pool of $2,50,000. Adding to that, we, at the ‘Tournafest’ app, conduct various COD tournaments with amazing prizes regularly. So, if you’re a COD fan, make sure to download our app and win some exciting rewards.
Why is COD so popular despite being such an old game?
A Battle-Royale game:
Everyone knows the popularity and demand of battle royale games in today’s time. Every gamer finds this mode the most convenient while playing online games. COD also didn’t miss the opportunity when the hype around mobile games was at its peak, they introduced the battle royale mode in COD: Warzone.
The genre of the game:
There is no refuting the fact that sports and shooter games have always got a separate fan base in the gaming world. Similarly, COD also gained a lot of members in its loyal community just because of the genre it belongs to. Most of the top-seller games every year belong to the sports and shooting category.
Easy accessibility:
Call of Duty is the most accessible shooter game in the market. Anybody can just come, join the game, play and have fun. There are no such prior requirements for someone to be a skilled COD player. You can be both competent and have fun while playing the game.
The mass appeal:
The game’s single-player campaign was already a hit amongst players but when they launched the online multiplayer experience COD4 offered, the audience went crazy because that was the need of the hour. The game featured complex rank systems, in-game rewards, challenges, etc. This all gave the game a massive appeal in the gaming industry.
The marketing strategy:
The publisher of COD, Activision adopted the most innovative and creative marketing ideas to promote the game. Be it the launch campaigns or the famous characters they feature. One such interesting stint would be the choice of the icon of the game. The icon features Simon “Ghost” Riley, a popular character known by everyone. He is featured on most of COD’s titles.
When Call of Duty: Mobile was released in 2019, it got a whopping 100 million downloads within a week. It was one of the most successful mobile game launches in history. COD is a fast-paced, competitive, and easy-to-learn and play game loved by many. The loyal community of the game keeps up with the new trends released by the company in the game which is the reason for its growing fame.
Call of Duty has become a significant name in the Esports industry and it is only expected to grow in the coming years with interesting updates being done in the game every year by the developers.
We hope you enjoyed this new addition to our case study series. Drop your views in the comments about this blog. Until next time, let’s #liveitforgaming.
