In a recent interview with Edge-Online, Activision CEO Mike Griffith claimed Activision is looking to “monetize” Call of Duty’s online and multiplayer features to the fullest extent. “Over time, we’ll qualify more opportunities to increase the monetization of these activities,” said Griffith.

Activision has seen the potential on Call of Duty’s online features, citing that “The average Call of Duty player has spent nearly five full 24-hour days of their lives online since purchasing the game.” Griffith also said downloadable content would be a bigger priority in Call of Duty: World at War, having over 3 times the content, something he labeled as the “Day One Advantage.” Upon further questioning, Griffith said this “Day One Advantage” would allow players to earn experience points faster, giving them a clear advantage over those who weren’t willing to purchase the content.

Continuing to engage consumers online with Call of Duty [4] is a large part of the reason you still see the title selling for $59.99 in stores and the absence of any used games in the market for Call of Duty

Whether you believe this is a good thing or a bad thing depends on your optimism, or lack thereof. We will definitely be getting more downloadable content, but at what price is unknown. If what Mike Griffith says is true, we could see people paying as much as the game itself just for downloadable content in the long-run.

Activision just revealed the Call of Duty: World at War Beta for the XBOX 360 and PC. To register for the beta, you can go to callofduty.com, or by pre-ordering the game from GameStop.

Santa Monica, CA – September 4, 2008 – Boot camp will soon take on a new meaning, as Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) and developer Treyarch, have confirmed plans for Call of Duty: World at War multiplayer betas in October for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and separately for download on Windows PC. These betas will serve as an early chance for players to practice the tactics needed for survival in the intense chaos of Call of Duty: World at War’s Pacific and European theaters. Players will experience the game’s new squad system, as well as fan favorite perks and kill streaks.

All preparation for the full battle will commence on November 11, 2008 when Call of Duty: World at War is released to retailers nationwide.

“We are excited to share a sneak peak of Call of Duty: World at War multiplayer with the community,” says Mark Lamia, Treyarch Studio Head. “The team has worked hard to build upon the great history and foundation of Call of Duty multiplayer and we can’t wait to go online to ramp up for our November launch.”

For players who are looking to feel the all-out combat and get tokens for the Call of Duty: World at War Xbox 360 multiplayer beta, they can register at www.callofduty.com or pre-order the game at any GameStop retail location or online in North America at:

http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/ProductDetails.aspx?product_id=71812.

Call of Duty: World at War is in development for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Games for Windows®, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Nintendo® Wii™ and Nintendo DS. The title has been rated M for Mature for blood and violence by the ESRB. The Nintendo DS version has been rated T for Teen by the ESRB.

For more information and exclusive updates about Call of Duty: World at War, visit www.callofduty.com.

According to Gamesutra and a Screen digest-authored report, Electronic Arts and Activision released 75% of the games released from July to September.

Electronic Arts released 21 titles including their yearly sports games such as the Tiger Woods and Madden series. Activision, not far behind, released 19 games. Collectively, they have released 75% of all games in Quarter 3 (July-September) and will cover 40% of all releases in Quarter 4 (October-July)

According to the report, the Wii currently has the most titles out of the three consoles.

Recently, the FTC ruled that Electronic Art’s takeover of Take-Two Interactive did not violate any anti-trust laws. In July we saw a 35% increase in year-to-date sales. However, in the last month we’ve seen three developers, NCSoft, Midway, and Radical Entertainment, layoff dozens of workers.

The video game industry is drastically changing with the influx of so many gamers thanks to Sony’s, Nintendo’s, and Microsoft’s efforts in marketing to the casual gamer. In this multi-billion dollar industry we are now seeing certain publishers initiating more aggressive business tactics. Although growth is welcomed, it’s never good to see a few select publishers dominating in an industry as young as this.

In a disturbing trend, Vancouver developer Radical Entertainment will be laying off 100 employees — going down the same road as NCSoft and Midway. The decision comes from Radical Entertainment’s parent company, Activision-Blizzard. Activision-Blizzard cut Radical’s total staff down to half, and from four games down to two.
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