Former Call Of Duty boss Bobby Kotick has claimed that low Black Ops 7 sales are due to competition from Battlefield 6.
READ MORE: ‘Battlefield 6’ review: modern multiplayer warfare – with an unusually good campaign too
Kotick was head of Activision from 1991 to 2023 before retiring after Microsoft bought the company in a $69billion takeover.
The acquisition was criticised by many, with the UK, US and European governments all investigating the deal to ensure it wouldn’t give Microsoft an unfair advantage over its rivals Sony and Nintendo. The takeover was allowed to go through in 2023 but a few companies are still taking legal action against Activision, including Swedish pension fund Sjunde AP-Fonde. They claim the sale was rushed through to distract from ongoing claims of sexual misconduct at the company.
Sjunde AP-Fonde filed a lawsuit in 2022 that named Kotick as one of the defendants. Earlier this month, he filed an official reply to the accusations. As well as speculating that the sexual misconduct claims were a way for rival publishers The Embracer Group to boost their own sales (an allegation Embracer have denied, via GameFile), Kotick revealed that Call Of Duty sales in 2025 were down 60 per cent compared to the year before.
“Call Of Duty is on track to perform over 60 percent below last year because of intense competition from titles like Battlefield,” he wrote. Kotick added that the performance of Black Ops 7 “destroyed” the debate about Call Of Duty’s monopoly in the first-person action game category, and the lack of competition that Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard would create.
Former Activision CEO Bobby Kotick claims in a legal filing Call of Duty sales in 2025 were 60% lower compared to 2024
COD “is on track to perform over 60 percent below last year because of intense competition from titles like Battlefield — destroying the FTC’s now defeated… pic.twitter.com/ZdHwCFiP0o
— CharlieIntel (@charlieINTEL) January 14, 2026
In December, it was reported that sales of Call Of Duty: Black Ops 7 were much lower than Black Ops 6 and the franchise had a “tough” 2025. Players complained about the “terrible” co-op campaign which features zombies, giants and killer robots, while others aren’t impressed by how similar the rest of the game is to Black Ops 6 despite Activision charging full price for the sequel.
“We also know that for some of you, the franchise has not met your expectations fully. To be very clear, we know what you expect and rest assured we will deliver, and overdeliver, on those expectations as we move forward,” said the Call Of Duty team in a statement. “We won’t rest until Black Ops 7 earns its place as one of the best Black Ops games we’ve ever made.”
A new Call Of Duty game is expected to launch later this year.
In other news, Grand Theft Auto bosses have banned any mention of Charlie Kirk in online multiplayer game GTA: Online.
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