Activision Wary of Call of Duty Going the Way of Guitar Hero

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Activision is flying high with all things Call of Duty, but fellow Activision property Guitar Hero also once had a seemingly limitless future before it flamed out. How is Activision responding to this potential trap?

An internal Activision memo from back in February obtained by Giant Bomb from CEO Eric Hirshberg shows that he and the company is aware of what can happen to even the biggest of franchises like Call of Duty. "Isn't Call of Duty today just like Guitar Hero was a few years back?" asks the memo to itself. "This is a great question," answers Hirshberg, "and one we have thought about a lot. But there are several key differences between the two franchises worth considering. Guitar Hero quickly reached incredible heights, but then began a steady decline. Call of Duty, on the other hand, has steadily grown every single year of its seven-year existence."

To Hirshberg, the key in sustaining the Call of Duty is simple: Quality. "...We need to focus: on making games that constantly raise the quality bar; on staying ahead of the innovation curve; on surrounding the brand with a suite of services and an online community that makes our fans never want to leave. Entertainment franchises with staying power are rare. But Call of Duty shows all of the signs of being able to be one of them. It’s up to us."

Beyond that, Hirshberg says that there other factors that currently help the Call of Duty brand. He believes the fact that the series is an FPS and the online community are factors that help make the franchise "perhaps the 'stickiest' of all time."

While time will indeed tell whether Call of Duty really is here to stay, fans should be heartened by the fact that Hirshberg's memo appears to show a company that knows that making good games is the win-win scenario for everyone that will ensure any series' continued success. Then again, consistent quality is no easy task, and that's made even harder the more games you put out for a franchise.

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/archive/2011/04/20/activision-wary-of-call-of-duty-going-the-way-of-guitar-hero.aspx

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"Activision Wary of Call of Duty Going the Way of Guitar Hero" :: Login/Create an Account :: 32 comments

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wells51Posted:

dirttyturban757
Eazy-E Cod series are amazing but they are getting old with the same graphics engine over and over again

What are you talking about? They uprade the graphics every game.


Are you blind or just stupid black open and mw2 look exactly the same as call of duty 2.

ODSTPosted:

"quality" my *ss. their games are only getting worse due to the thought that everyone is just going to buy the next thing, no questions asked.

dirttyturban757Posted:

Eazy-E Cod series are amazing but they are getting old with the same graphics engine over and over again

What are you talking about? They uprade the graphics every game.

Eazy-EPosted:

Cod series are amazing but they are getting old with the same graphics engine over and over again

3OH3Posted:

I personally think that they have been on a steady decline since call of duty 4.... WaW left a lot to be desired, MW2 was okay but other than new guns there wasn't anything too new about it, and Black Ops..... I had such high expectations for the game and I have to admit that it was pretty fun for the first few weeks. But then I feel like it just got so repetitive every game I played. Since they took out quickscoping I couldn't use the sniper which was a large part of what I did in call of duty so I had to resort to the automatic weapons.... Well that was okay for a little bit but then every single person started using the ak74, famas, ak47, etc... and I felt tht every game I played wa exactally the same. There was no diversity in the game at all. So then I quit call of duty.... And now I'm wondering if I'll even buy the next one.

So even thought the popularity is going up I think that it's just because of the title associated with it and because of the title "Call of Duty" people decide to hop on the band wagon and play it just because their friends are and because of the name.

clawPosted:

World at war is awesome its truthfully the only cod modible online anymore i never see legit lobbys on Mw2 because only the stickys are legit

SeanPosted:

RemeAmaze i don't know why everyone hates on world at war it was a quality game besides some mistakes jugga mp40 dual mag etc but sniping and semi automatic guns were sick and i thought that most of the maps were well made. The fact is that every cod has mistakes that should be fixed in the testing stage black ops has the worst bullet detection and everyone seems to see everyone in a different position even with everyone on 4 bars. Battlefield would be the best by a mile except the fact that it feels like your carrying a truck on your back the whole time just pisses me off and the movement is so sluggish its a joke


one of the reasons i dislike battlefield its very sluggish call of duty has more of a fast moving feel to it

AJTeamkillerPosted:

Call of Duty now was nothing like Guitar Hero in say 2005. It allows for mass's of ones friend to get together and play whereas Guitar hero at its prime allowed up to 4 players leaving some of your buddies to sit and watch. Plus CoD nowadays is the game everybody hates to love and loves to hate. Regardless of the quality of the game itself people think its cool to hate the game when they really don't and when you ask them why, Its the same thing. "Oh it takes to long to kill somebody" Well no its called get some skill and then you kill more often. The gun balance made it lame. Well no again, I think a larger selection of weapons is a good thing not a bad thing. And other lame excuses about why they don't like it, Most people just to afraid to admit they got butt hurt by me and my 4RUM buddys. But I'll admit Black Ops is kinda sluggish in the flow of things but it doesn't suck

RemeAmazePosted:

i don't know why everyone hates on world at war it was a quality game besides some mistakes jugga mp40 dual mag etc but sniping and semi automatic guns were sick and i thought that most of the maps were well made. The fact is that every cod has mistakes that should be fixed in the testing stage black ops has the worst bullet detection and everyone seems to see everyone in a different position even with everyone on 4 bars. Battlefield would be the best by a mile except the fact that it feels like your carrying a truck on your back the whole time just pisses me off and the movement is so sluggish its a joke

BapPosted:

Comb I LOLed so hard when I read: "To Hirshberg, the key in sustaining the Call of Duty is simple: Quality. "...We need to focus: on making games that constantly raise the quality bar; on staying ahead of the innovation curve; on surrounding the brand with a suite of services and an online community that makes our fans never want to leave. " Really? CoD is not what I would call a quality game.
I would agree.

Especially Black Ops, it is honestly the most overrated game out there in my opinion. It actually disgraces the franchise in my mind.


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