A new report from GamesIndustry.Biz, based on data provided by Alinea Analytics, shows that in the lead-up to launch, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 trails "far behind" the numbers that Battlefield 6 was able to pull.
Setting the parameters here: this is based on data from Steam pre-order sales for Battlefield 6 and Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, 18 days ahead of their respective launches. Within that 18-day lead-up period, Battlefield 6 was able to sell close to a million copies in pre-orders. Black Ops 7 has only managed 200K pre-order copies sold.
These numbers start to look even worse when placed beside a Eurogamer report that spotted Black Ops 7 in the 173rd spot for Steam wishlists. It more or less paints a picture of a player base that isn't exactly looking forward to this year's entry in the long-running annual shooter franchise.
Of course, a few caveats, including the fact that not everyone buying Black Ops 7 on PC will do so through Steam, and that this only accounts for PC players, which says nothing of what pre-orders will be on consoles. There's also the fact that Black Ops 7 will be available on Xbox Game Pass for Ultimate tier subscribers, which, there may be less of since the recent price increase, but that still represents a subset of players who won't pre-order because they don't need to, they know they'll play Black Ops 7 right at launch.
It's also difficult to really count Call of Duty out. Battlefield 6 has made some impressive strides, like how its concurrent player count on Steam has yet to fall below 300K according to SteamDB, the fact that it sold 7 million copies in just three days (according to Alinea Analytics in this report, Battlefield 6 has now passed 10 million copies), and how at least in the EU, Battlefield 6 beat out the launch sales for last year's Black Ops 6.
But even that comes with a caveat because last year was the first time Call of Duty was available through Xbox Game Pass. So once again, it's difficult to say that the current fighting shape of Battlefield 6 is enough to topple Call of Duty in its peak form.
Particularly because it can easily be argued that Call of Duty is not in peak form, with the game in an ongoing identity crisis. EA and Battlefield Studios are trying to take every advantage they can, and the fact that Battlefield 6 currently has an edge in pre-order sales with the PC shooter player base is definitely a point in favor of Battlefield, but empires like Call of Duty aren't toppled overnight.
"Call of Duty has an entrenched global audience across consoles and PC - including more casual gamers - that purchases the game each year out of habit and brand loyalty," Rhys Elliot, head of market analysis at Alinea Analytics told GI.Biz. "Its causal player base dwarfs Battlefield's, and its integration with Warzone ensures that millions of players are constantly exposed to marketing, in-game promotions, and social tie-ins that convert attention into purchases."
"Even if Black Ops 7 feels less exciting to us and the enthusiast media, the sheer reach of Call of Duty's ecosystem - through cross-promotion, platform partnerships, and content cycles - guarantees massive sales volume once the game launches."
And of course, that'll be the ultimate test. When we have sales numbers for November 2025 and player engagement figures from the usual suspects (Newzoo, Circana, Alinea Analytics, GSD, etc.), will Battlefield 6 stand above Black Ops 7 in regional or global charts? That'll likely depend more on what players continue to see out of Battlefield, than what Call of Duty brings to the table.
Today, Battlefield 6 launched its Season 1 update, which included new weapons, vehicles, a new Conquest map, the launch of its first battle pass, and, most importantly, Battlefield REDSEC, the battle royale mode tied to Battlefield 6. This 100-player mode is EA and Battlefield Studios' response to Call of Duty: Warzone.
So far, it's off to a strong start with over 500K concurrent players on Steam. If things continue to go well, then even if Battlefield 6 isn't able to beat out Black Ops 7 on the charts where it matters, it will have gained a win on perhaps the more important battle, the one within players minds that'll now clearly ring out: there's something else besides Call of Duty that's worth playing and buying going forward.
That said, to match the launch of REDSEC, Activision made Black Ops 6 multiplayer and zombies free for players to try out. The modes you'll usually have to pay for will be free until November 3.
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