Modern Warfare & Warzone was the highest earning premium game of 2020

SuperData, a research analytical firm, has released their overview for the 2020 video game market share, and looking at how the overall market performed.

In the console premium space, Activision Blizzard took #1, incredibly higher than the #2 game, FIFA 20.

In the report, SuperData reveals that in 2020, Modern Warfare & Warzone combined to generate almost $1.93 billion in revenue. Call of Duty saw a massive uplight thanks to the free to play launch of Warzone in March 2020, and the lockdowns brought on by the pandemic caused a dramatic increase in player base.

SuperData’s report also showcases that Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War generated $678 million in revenue in 2020, with it’s launch happening on November 13, 2020.

The story for Modern Warfare’s success in becoming the best selling Call of Duty all time is thanks to the amount of players who upgraded from the free to play Warzone to the full game.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare rose to become the highest-earning premium game of 2020. The game shifted to a hybrid business model in March with the release of the free-to-play Warzone battle royale mode and the lower barrier to entry caused player numbers to jump. Many of these new players not only purchased in-game content but also ended up paying to upgrade to the full game.

Here’s the top 10 chart for the 2020 premium gaming market:

Activision announced back in early December that the Call of Duty franchise had generated over $3 billion in revenue from Dec. 2019 through end of Nov. 2020.

Whether we continue to see Warzone’s success in 2021 will be interesting. The company integrated Black Ops Cold War with Warzone in December 2020 with the launch of Season One, and much more content for the two titles are expected in 2021.

As always, stay tuned to CharlieIntel for the latest on what’s to come.