Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Beta Early Access runs from October 2 to 5. Players who pre-ordered the game and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members can jump into the Early Access Open Beta. Microsoft has detailed how to start playing the multiplayer and zombies beta.
The early numbers show that Black Ops 7 is struggling when placed side-by-side to its biggest rival this year, Battlefield 6. Black Ops 7’s 24-hour peak on Steam was around 75,000 while its major competitor drew in around 335,000 within the same period.
ALSO READ: Former BioWare Producer Predicts Layoffs And Studio Sale To Beat EA’s $20 Billion Debt
On Twitch, the story is not too different. Black Ops 7 viewership stood at 204,419 at the time of writing. In comparison, Battlefield 6 attracted 504,000 viewers around the same period.
Several factors could have contributed to the lower Black Ops 7 Beta Early Access numbers. At the top of that list may be the recent hike in the price of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, which saw some subscribers cancel their subscription. It is still unclear how many people canceled their subscription over the incident.
It’s too early to write off Black Ops 7
Black Ops 7 numbers will likely increase over the weekend when more gamers will have time off work to play. However, the cloud hovering over the upcoming entry in the Call of Duty series has been that of uncertainty, especially after this week’s Call of Duty NEXT event.
Many players are particularly concerned that the series has lost innovation, calling the upcoming entry a reskin of Black Ops 6. Not everyone agrees with this, though. Some have praised the arsenal and movement. But there are still those in between and those who purchase the franchise’s yearly entries as a habit.
While judging a game’s performance by its Steam and Twitch numbers alone doesn’t paint the entire picture, it is still concerning that not many people are playing the game on these platforms, notwithstanding how easy it is to get an access code.
Do you think the annual releases have contributed to Call of Duty fatigue, which now presents as lower player interest? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.
