Activision Hedge’s Its Bet

Gamers continue to be skeptical of Activision’s stance on loot boxes. Although the company promised that Call of Duty Black Ops 4 would not have a loot box system, Activision changed its mind six months post launch. To make matters worse, Activision did not advertise the addition of loot boxes into Black Ops 4. With Modern Warfare 2019 launching next week, Activision appears to be taking a proactive stance. The company released a statement on Friday disavowing loot boxes in favor of a battle pass system. While skeptical, the gaming community is applauding this effort. A deeper look at the statement reveals some alarming concerns:

• The Modern Warfare 2019 Battle Pass will not be available at launch on October 25th, which Activision says it wants players to focus on collecting launch content.
• Activision is removing Season Passes and paid DLC multiplayer maps.
• Subscribers to the Battle Pass earn COD “points” that can be applied to weapon and cosmetic upgrades.

The question all gamers should be asking is the following: How is Activision going to make money with Modern Warfare 2019? Although the game will launch with a $59.99 price tag, Activision earns significant revenue on post-launch content. Relying solely on a Battle Pass system to generate similar levels of revenue as loot boxes is unrealistic. Activision is stacking the deck by not disclosing the release date for its battle pass or the price tag. Time will tell if the company will keep its promise with Modern Warfare 2019.

Conclusion

The last two weeks have been challenging for Activision. But we want to know what you think. Do you trust that Activision will not use loot boxes in Modern Warfare 2019? Let us know in the comments below or the social media links on the right. Be sure to check out our article on Blizzard’s debacle as well as our other news topics.