While Sony continues to tell anyone who’ll listen that removing Call Of Duty from its platform would be incredibly detrimental, the last six months at least don’t seem to add up with that argument.
EA, not Activision Blizzard, has been the leading publisher in terms of player engagement across both Xbox and PlayStation consoles for at least the last six months, according to Ampere Analysis.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.Biz, Ampere Analysis research director Piers Harding-Rolls commends EA’s consistency since September 2022, with FIFA 23 leading the charge, even during the launch window of Modern Warfare II.
“EA’s consistency in delivering active user share across consoles is commendable,” said Harding-Rolls. “While Fortnite remains the title to beat, EA’s extensive catalogue puts it in a strong position across Xbox and PlayStation.”
And that’s the key factor here. EA has its annual sports series across FIFA, the NHL, and the NFL, all of which high-selling titles year after year.
It also has one of the best battle royale’s in the game today under its belt with Apex Legends, which has recently been enjoying record highs in player engagement.
This all before counting the multiple heavy-hitter titles in EA’s portfolio like Motive’s recent Dead Space Remake and Respawn’s upcoming Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
Oh, and Battlefield 2042 has seen a huge boost in player count recently, one that could potentially give the game a new lease on life after a rocky start.
All of these other titles filling out its portfolio help keep its lead of course, but the real power comes from the consistency of FIFA, and its other annualized titles.
With decisions to come from regulators in just a few weeks time on Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard, a report like this could be a final nail in coffin as to whether or not the deal goes through.
Either way at least, it looks like Sony would be fine regardless.
Source – [GamesIndustry.Biz]