Next Call of Duty will be released on Xbox Game Pass, reveals report

The next Call of Duty, possibly a sequel to Black Ops set during the Gulf War, is about to become the first new entry in the franchise to be released on Xbox Game Pass. According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the official announcement will be made during Microsoft's annual Xbox Showcase in June.

Developed by Treyarch Studios, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, is expected for 2024 and was previously mentioned by Insider Gaming. Microsoft had hinted at an extended reveal for an unknown game after their June presentation, and fans speculate it is the new Call of Duty.

Producing a new Call of Duty title costs hundreds of millions of dollars annually, with sales reaching tens of millions of copies. This lucrative cycle led Activision to direct all of its studios to contribute to the series. Since Microsoft completed the $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, one of the big questions was whether Call of Duty would join other games on Game Pass.

Despite Microsoft's efforts to boost the Game Pass on the Xbox Series X/S generation, subscription growth has stabilized. It is unclear whether adding Call of Duty will attract enough new subscribers to offset those who would choose not to buy it at the full price of $70. Former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick previously stated that putting Call of Duty on subscription services was not financially viable.

Microsoft had around 34 million Game Pass subscribers as of February this year. To match the $1 billion generated in the first week of release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, three months of paid subscriptions of $11 would be needed, without considering other games in the service.

In February, Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, stated that all games from ZeniMax, Activision Blizzard, and Xbox Game Studios would be on Game Pass from day one.

However, recently, Microsoft has closed some studios, including Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks. Bloomberg reported that the acquisition of Activision Blizzard increased pressure on Xbox to generate more profits.

As a result, Microsoft has started to bring some of its big first-party games, like Sea of Thieves, to the PlayStation 5, which has been outselling the Xbox Series X/S. Call of Duty on Game Pass could be a significant competitive advantage that the PS5 will not have.