What you need to know
- Activision Blizzard shared its Q4 2021 financial results.
- The company missed expectations for the quarter due to lackluster sales of Call of Duty: Vanguard.
- Infinity Ward is confirmed to be leading the next Call of Duty game, due out sometime later in 2022.
Activision Blizzard earned a record $8.8 billion in revenue in 2021, despite missing expectations in the fourth quarter, as shared by the company in its Q4 2021 earnings.
Sales were down in the fourth quarter, primarily attributed to lower sales of 2021's Call of Duty: Vanguard when compared to 2020's Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. As part of the earnings report, Activision also officially confirmed that the next mainline game in the Call of Duty franchise for 2022 is being developed by Infinity Ward, the team behind Modern Warfare 2019.
Other highlights include Call of Duty Mobile, which saw over $1 billion in revenue in 2021, while Diablo 2: Resurrected is Blizzard Entertainment's best-selling remastered game ever. Looking ahead, Blizzard Entertainment is currently working on both Diablo 4 and Overwatch 2, both games that have been delayed in the past year. Blizzard is also working on a new IP, as well as bringing Warcraft to mobile devices through a new game.
Activision Blizzard currently faces a lawsuit, with the company accused of sexist workplace practices and allowing abusive behavior to take place without reprimand. Activision Blizzard is also being acquired by Microsoft, with a deal set to close sometime before June 2023. When the deal completes, Activision Blizzard will be part of the Xbox first-party unit.
When the deal closes, sources familiar with both parties state that Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick is expected to depart the company.
