Apparently Activision wanted to wait until June 9 to make the big announcement, but the Game Pass app has a mind of its own
After Microsoft bought up half the gaming world, more and more games are logically ending up directly in Game Pass, for example the portfolio of Bethesda, as well as various titles from EA and Ubisoft. But one brand has made itself scarce – until now! Rumors and reports have been circulating for a while that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will be the very first CoD to land in Microsoft’s Game Pass at launch, as recently reported by the Wall Street Journal . Now comes the official confirmation from an unexpected source: as a push notification in the Game Pass app.
Our colleague Alex Schneider captured the message on X (formerly Twitter), for example:
Just got this on my phone: “Just announced” Where? I mean, @Xbox @XboxGamePass announced it with this push notification CallOfDuty pic. twitter.com/GVK2w6QR6g
– Alexander Schneider ️ (@JannLee360) May 28, 2024
Whether someone pressed the wrong button or the announcement was deliberately published today, we do not yet know – but we will most likely find out more details at the latest at the Microsoft Show as part of the Summer Game Fest 2024 on June 9.
What can already be said: The decision to include CoD in the Game Pass fits in quite well. While the annual full-price release is still extremely important for Activision – otherwise the supposed add-on Modern Warfare 3 would not have been sold as a complete game last year – the financial traction of Call of Duty is increasingly shifting towards microtransactions and service offerings
And this is where the Game Pass is no match for Call of Duty: As a subscriber, you get access to the game, but you still have to buy Battle Passes and Skin Bundles in-game. So if you want to stay up to date in multiplayer, the regular subscription fee won’t really get you very far
The most exciting question for 2024 is therefore: Will Black Ops 6 continue the service of MW2 and MW3 or, like Modern Warfare 2 a few years ago, mark a major caesura that won’t let you carry over old unlocks, weapons and skins into the new CoD? We’ll find out on June 9 at the latest, on site in Los Angeles, but of course also in the livestream here at home.
