There are multiple Call of Duty games with active playerbases right now, and these games continue to see fresh content from developers. A recent Call of Duty: Warzone Season 2 update set internet usage records because so many players downloaded it, and Call of Duty: Mobile just released its Season 2 Day of Reckoning update as well. The Call of Duty franchise is huge, but it has been notably absent from the esports scene for much of its existence. The Call of Duty series only entered the esports world with the creation of the Call of Duty League in 2020.
Since then, Call of Duty has proven it can draw an audience. 2021 is already off to a good start for the franchise, as the CDL's first Major event of the year saw 131,000 viewers watch OpTic Chicago vs. Atlanta FaZe play Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. The Atlanta FaZe won the Major event, which offered a good prize pool of $200,000. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's fast-paced action makes for exciting competitive play, but the League wants to see more of other games in the series as well.
The CDL's Chief Revenue Officer, Brandon Snow, believes that Call of Duty is in a special position to shine in the esports arena. When asked how Call of Duty would measure up to other popular first-person shooter esports titles like Rainbow Six Siege and CS:GO, Snow said Call of Duty games benefit from "franchise strength." He elaborates further, saying "Call of Duty is as big as Star Wars. It’s been around for 10-plus years, and over 200 million people have played the game. That’s the foundational difference."
Snow also wants more competitive possibilities for titles like Call of Duty: Warzone and Call of Duty: Mobile. He states that the Call of Duty League sees Warzone as an "opportunity to talk to more casual gamers," but the League still recognizes the game's appeal and has plans for Warzone to "play a part of our esports product around the Call of Duty franchise." It may draw a slightly different crowd than Black Ops Cold War, but Warzone still struggles with a veritable Bingo board of bugs and hacks that need to be ironed out to make it a smooth competitive experience.
As for Call of Duty: Mobile, the CDL has competitive plans for it too. Snow says that amateur tournaments for Call of Duty: Mobile last year were "a great success," and there will be "future plans for Call of Duty: Mobile esports for 2021 very soon." The inclusion of Call of Duty: Mobile into esports territory widens the playing field for even more gamers who don't play on PC to enjoy competitive events. Though PC gaming still dominates the the esports scene, the Call Duty League seems focused on making competitive esports an option for all Call of Duty players, no matter their platform.
Source: Inverse