Tencent has announced that Call of Duty Online will be shut down at the end of August. The company made the announcement on the game’s official website, and was translated by Niko Partners senior analyst Daniel Ahmad on Twitter. Call of Duty Online has been around since 2015, and is exclusive to the Chinese market. Apparently, Activision chose not to renew the game, and players will instead be encouraged to check out Call of Duty: Mobile. In an effort to encourage players to make the switch, Activision will reward Call of Duty Online players with items in Call of Duty: Mobile.
The Tweet from Ahmad can be found embedded below.
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Tencent will be shutting down Call of Duty Online in China at the end of August.
The F2P PC game for China launched in 2015 and was fairly successful.
Declining revenue and lack of renewal from Activision will see the game close. Users will be pushed towards CODM instead. pic.twitter.com/pBMQ05N32x
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) May 31, 2021
Call of Duty Online is notable in that it was the first free-to-play game in the franchise. Activision was looking for a way to introduce the series to gamers in China, and the game seems to have served that purpose over the last few years. Call of Duty: Mobile was introduced in the region late last year, which likely made Call of Duty Online‘s demise inevitable.
From a branding standpoint, it makes sense for Activision to fold Call of Duty Online. While some players are bound to be disappointed, live service games only last so long, and Call of Duty Online has had a very impressive run in China. It remains to be seen whether or not players will make the jump to Call of Duty: Mobile, but the incentives could help in that regard. Earlier this month, Activision revealed that Mobile has seen 500 million downloads worldwide. With Activision and Tencent making a bigger push for the game in China, it could grow that fanbase even bigger!
Are you happy that Call of Duty: Mobile is getting a bigger push in other regions? Are you surprised Call of Duty Online is ending? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!
