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Activision is in full-throttle mode right now as they get ready to launch their newest installment in the never-ending Call of Duty series. Lots of fans have been enjoying the MW3 beta, but, unfortunately for Activision, there was a Battlefield 2042 resurgence over the weekend. This undoubtedly came at the absolute worst time for Activision as they attempted to get as many people as possible on board the Modern Warfare 3 hype train.
We already know the Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 release date is coming in November and fans have been enjoying the beta weekend on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC though impressions have been mixed. Although fun, many fans agree that the absolute worst map is Estate, and some have even started canceling their pre-orders because of the completed deal between Microsoft and Activision.
To make matters worse, Activision was bombarded out of nowhere by the surprising resurgence of Battlefield 2042. This took lots of eyes away from Call of Duty as soldiers decided to give EA and DICE another shot.
Battlefield 2042 resurgence upsets Modern Warfare 3 beta weekend
Battlefield 2042 recently saw a massive uptick in players following the release of season 6. This chapter launched on October 10th, and over the weekend Battlefield 2042 managed to gain a concurrent player count of over 100,000 simultaneous players. This can be seen over on Steamcharts where, as of writing, the concurrent player count is still over 100,000.
This is a remarkable and surprising feat. Many considered Battlefield 2042 pretty much dead and buried because its highest simultaneous player count in September didn’t surpass more than 12,000. However, aside from the release of season 6, the return of the masses can be attributed to Electronic Arts’ cheeky free weekend.
EA’s free weekend strategy undoubtedly took away some players from the open beta weekend for Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3. However, although annoying for Activision, they still had a really strong turnout of gamers. Not to mention, it’ll be interesting to see how long the Battlefield 2042 resurgence lasts as the game will no longer be free-to-play beyond October 16th.
The same is true for Modern Warfare 3 as the open beta weekend is a one-off. If you wish to play MW3 come November, you will need to pre-order and pay the hefty price of £69.99 for just the Standard edition. Then you have to pay £99.99 if you want early access to the campaign.
In other Call of Duty news, the Activision and Blizzard Xbox deal has been completed, but MW3 will not join Xbox Game Pass in November 2023.
