Call of Duty
Call of Duty is a first-person shooting video game franchise created by Ben Chichoski and published by Activision. The original game was created and released for PC, but it has since grown to include other gaming platforms, mainly Microsoft's Xbox and Sony's PlayStation. The two main developers of the Call of Duty series are Infinity Ward and Treyarch, however there are also other minor developers which help create individual aspects of the game, such as the campaign and multiplayer modes. There are currently eight Call of Duty games that have been released to the market, the most recent being Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, which was released on November 8, 2011. The Call of Duty series has quickly become one of the most successful video game franchises ever, recently securing a spot on an exclusive list of 11 video game franchises which have sold over 100 million copies worldwide. [1]
Series Background
The Call of Duty series is divided into two main parts, the main Call of Duty series and the Modern Warfare series. The Call of Duty titles mostly take place during World War II, with Call of Duty: Black Ops taking place during the Cold War. The Modern Warfare titles take place in a more modern setting, as the title suggests, with the most recent release being a representation of World War III.
Aside from the first Call of Duty, which was released in October 2003, Activision has released a new Call of Duty game every year in November, beginning in 2005. There have been many complaints that they simply use this strategy so that consumers are forced to purchase a new game every year, as the gameplay of each game hardly changes year to year. However, judging by their recent success, it seems as though their marketing strategy is not deterring many people from picking up the newest copy of Call of Duty each and every year.
Revenue
Shortly after the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, the total sales of the Call of Duty series exceeded 55 million copies worldwide, equating to roughly three billion dollars in revenue. [2] Over the past few years, the Call of Duty series has set revenue records with each game it has released. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 brought in $550 million in the first five days after release, Call of Duty: Black Ops generated $650 million in its first five days, and the newly released Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 broke the record again, grossing $775 million in its first five days. [3]
Ethical Implications
Similar to most first-person shooting games, many concerned parents have expressed their concerns about the Call of Duty series promoting violent behavior among their children. There has also been many concerns about the Call of Duty series causing desensitization towards the severity of guns and violence in general.
In the single player mode of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, there is a very controversial level, named "No Russian," which takes place in a airport with the user disguised as a terrorist. The entire point of the level consists of travelling through the airport, killing all the innocent civilians that are in the airport. This level has stirred up a lot of controversy as it is representative of a terrorist attack on innocent bystanders. During the level, many civilians are screaming and crying, and their deaths are often gory. The terrorists methods of killing the civilians range from gunshots to grenades, which cause the most gore and brutality. This level alone has made Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 one of the most controversial games to date.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 was also the source of more ethical issues, although it was before the game was even released. On November 6, 2011, two days before the official release of the game, a truck carrying 6,000 copies of the game was raided in France and the hijackers drove off with the delivery van along with all 6,000 copies of the game. They crashed their car into the van, and when the drivers of the van exited to check the damages, the hijackers used tear gas and proceeded to take control of the van. The total cost of the stolen goods was over $550,000. [4]
External Links
References
- ↑ Video game franchise sales. Retrieved on 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Call of Duty total sales. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Modern Warfare 3 Sales. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
- ↑ Delivery truck hijacked. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
