Activision released their fourth quarter 2016 financials today, and non-surprisingly the publisher is doing very well. 2016 proved to be a record breaking year for the company, as revenues were up 42% year over year. This includes a cash flow of over $2.2 billion, which is up 71%. These better-than-expected results were largely attributed to three main areas: Overwatch was the fastest game to reach over 25 million players globally, the company was able to integrate Candy Crush developer King, and they were able to find success in esports.
While these numbers are impressive, some of the most interesting pieces of information from the report concern the company’s 2017 releases. A follow-up to Bungie’s Destiny was confirmed in the report. As it said that there will be a “full Destiny sequel in 2017 to broaden the franchise’s global reach, which along with follow-on content plans, sets the stage for growth.” This was expected, as a Destiny sequel was originally set for 2016, until it was delayed and Rise of Iron was released in its place.
Activision also announced a major change for Call of Duty, as the publisher’s signature series will be going “back to its roots” in 2017. It’s especially interesting that Advanced Warfare developer Sledgehammer Games would be the ones to take Call of Duty back to traditional combat, as they kicked off the more futuristic setting that recent games have had. Finally, Call of Duty: Black Ops 3‘s DLC was well received as it brought “record add-on revenues” for the company. So, don’t expect Activision to follow Titanfall 2‘s path of making maps free for all players.
(Source: Activision)
