Summary
TheCall of Dutyfranchise has always had a relatively fast release schedule for new games in the series, with the past few installments even having as little as one year between their releases. While it is impressive that the franchise has consistently maintained this pace for as long as it has,Call of Duty’s frequent release schedule isn’t without its downsides.
The main flaw with theCoDfranchise’s rapid release schedule is that the player base inevitably gets divided every time that a new game becomes available. One such way to address this is for theCoDfranchise to offer a subscription service that provides players the opportunity to play the newest games in the franchise upon release, as well as some of the older fan favorites.
Why Call of Duty Should Consider Offering a Subscription Service
Although the playerbase dividing upon every new game’s release is a long-running problem for the franchise, this has never stopped thelatestCoDgames from reaching record player countsand sales. Still though, considering that many players remain committed to some of the olderCoDgames, it might be best to address the franchise’s divided playerbase before it ever reaches the point of being detrimental.
Cons of a Subscription Service
Pros of a Subscription Service
From a consumer standpoint, a subscription model could be favorable because of the potential discounts, compared to the price of buying single or multiplefull-priceCoDgames. However, since this is unexplored territory, it’s impossible to know what the pricing of a subscription model would look like, including whether it would be a valuable discount in comparison.
While a subscription model could be beneficial for helping to avoid divisions among the player base for every new release, giving players access to the older games could be counterintuitive to this endeavor. Also, it might be a little messy to pull off given how manydifferent studios have worked on theCall of Dutyfranchise, meaning that it could prove to be quite expensive for consumers for the involved franchises to profit from offering a subscription model.
How a Subscription Service Has Impacted the Battlefield Franchise
Given how unique this franchise is from anything else in the industry, many influential factors would be impossible to consider without hindsight. However,Call of Duty’s natural rival, theBattlefieldfranchise, could still provide some valuable insight.
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Many unlisted factors deserve a mention, such as the difference between each game’s release dates, as well as some of the recentcontroversies surrounding theBattlefieldfranchise. Ultimately though, having a subscription model has seemingly proven to be advantageous for theBattlefieldfranchise, at least in terms of avoiding divisions in the playerbase, given that many players are still playing the older games instead of the most recent game in the franchise. With this in mind, it might be worth the risk forCall of Dutyto give a subscription model a chance to support the communities that are still playing the older games.
