This is just in: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is selling well despite all the negative feedback.
Just like when you tell someone that water is wet, Call of Duty is flying off the store shelves once again. However, the newest installment has failed to match the launch weekend sales numbers of Modern Warfare 2.
According to GfK chart data (as reported by GamesIndustry.biz), MW3 has shot to the top of UK’s sales leaderboard as it debuts at the No. 1 spot. Finally, mirroring what has been an ongoing trend in recent years, the physical sales of the popular shooter were down 25% compared to last year’s title.
To be fair, it’s still surprising to see the game on top of the UK sales charts, especially with Modern Warfare 3 being on track to be the lowest-rated entry in the Call of Duty series. The Metacritic scores are at an all-time low with critics giving the game a rating of 56 while its user grade of 1.7.
UK Physical data (GfK) has Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3’s launch sales as 25% lower than last year’s Modern Warfare 2. 72% of sales on PS5, 20% on Xbox and 8% on PS4. Obviously, digital data will change all this.
— Christopher Dring (@Chris_Dring) November 12, 2023
Interestingly, the PlayStation has brought in the most sales for physical copies of Modern Warfare 3 even with all the drama surrounding the Activision Blizzard franchise over the last year. Sony consoles have outsold its Xbox counterparts 4 to 1. It may be a different story for digital sales of Modern Warfare 3 but we expect Sony to have a lead in the sale of digital copies but not by much.
Taking a look at the charts, EA Sports FC has a firm grip on second place while Super Mario Bros Wonder, which was the top game in the previous two weeks, tumbled down the order to number 3. Spider-Man 2 slipped down the order to fourth with Football Manager 2024 rounding out the top 5.
Nintendo Switch Sports and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe occupy the sixth and seventh spots respectively while Hogwarts Legacy, this year’s bestselling game, is at number eight. Minecraft for the Nintendo Switch and Assassin’s Creed Mirage complete the top ten.
MW3 has been struggling to capture the magic of previous entries in the series as many players have been put off by the comically short story campaign. The latest reports suggest that Sledgehammer Games worked on the title for just 16 months which is half the development time of standard Call of Duty games. Devs from the studio revealed that they had to work long hours to meet deadlines to get the game ready for release.
In response to the revelations by staff members, Sledgehammer Games chief Aaron Halon issued a statement saying that the studio was “incredibly proud” of developing Modern Warfare 3.
“We have worked hard to deliver on this vision which has been years in the making. Anything said to the contrary is simply not true – this is our game and we cannot wait to play it online with all of you,” Halon wrote.
Statement from Aaron Halon, studio head, SHG.
“We’re incredibly proud of Modern Warfare III – both the full game experience at launch and the upcoming year of content we have planned for the community. On behalf of the extremely talented team across Sledgehammer Games and our…— Sledgehammer Games (@SHGames) November 9, 2023
