Black Ops 2 Increases Monthly Users to 12 Million;Players Lapping Up DLC, Microtransactions & Passes

Activision has today held its latest quarterly investor relations call. During the call the company the company revealed that Call of Duty’s sales have been exceptionally good for the company and that DLC, Season Passes and micro-transactions have all been well received by gamers as plenty of cash has been siphoned from the wallets of gamers.

[DarkOcelet]

", Season Passes and micro-transactions have all been well received by gamers as plenty of cash has been siphoned from the wallets of gamers. "

This is just disgusting, and to think this kind of thing well received boggles my mind. No wonder these companies are putting microtransactions because there will always be idiots who will buy it.

[FunkyGoron]

Why is bad that people want to spend their money on things you don't?

Cosmetic items and DLC do not affect your "main" experience in a COD game. Zombies, 5-10 hr campaign, and multiplayer with 12+ maps and gamemodes? That's a pretty good deal.

You don't "need" the DLC to finish the story, experience zombies, or play online. Why does it bother you so much?

Mass Effect 3 "different" ending DLC... that's another issue, but this here, is just people buying what they want and I don't have a problem with companies offering things people buy.

[DarkOcelet]

You see, this will affect me, you an everyone in the future when they start cutting more of the game and selling it as dlc or offer it as microtransactions.

If we don't speak up about it, then it will get worse over time and still people will justify it somehow.

I will never approve microtransactons in my 60$ because it does not belong there. This crap is for free to play games or Mobile games.

And yes, cosmetics don't affect me but when its locked behind a paywall in a 60$ game then yes, it does affect me and bother me because this could have been given for free as unlockables.

[paul-p1988]

"You don't "need" the DLC to finish the story, experience zombies, or play online."

I had to buy the zombies pack for CoD: Advanced Warfare, they separated it to make even more money. AW was the first CoD game I bought, and will be my last purely for shady tactics like that!

It wouldn't surprise me if Activision moved CoD into MMO style subs but with an Acti twist, buy the game for $60, pay $10pm to actually play the game with additional costs for expansions. Even then the hardcore will still buy it saying it's value for money without realising they no longer have a house to live in thanks to CoD lol

[InTheLab]

It's bad because there was a time not long ago that these things were unlocked through gameplay were as now you're being extorted for more content.

These days they work on dlc the moment the game is conceived. In the case of Black Ops, they've gone the extra distance with the extortion by spreading out the zombies dlc with the mp which forces zombies players to download maps they might not use.

Speaking of maps, the trend for the last few CoDs have been to charge you for maps you already own via previous cods. So with each new season pass, 3 or 4 maps are remakes.

Lastly, it take very little effort to create maps and skins yet they charge you $3 for a weapon skin? $15 for maps? I've seen a single game create amazing maps in there spare time for free on pc or in Forge from Halo, or Far Cry. Yet Activision continues to hold content hostage while they nickel and dime you to death.

Seriously, I wish some of you younger gamers were around 10 years ago. We had crazy things like cheat codes and unlockables! It was insane!

[FunkyGoron]

@Inthelab

"younger gamers"? No need to lash out at things you don't agree with. To speak like you do doesn't show much maturity or age FYI. Assuming things of those you don't know, sad.

I agree with your point about zombies being coupled with MP maps, it'd be nice if you could buy just the zombie portion for $5 or something.

I don't think many of you all remember older games. I remember saving for months to buy one $80+ N64 game. I remember when Majora's Mask came out and I annoyed my parents to death to drive my teenage ass around looking for expansion packs.

I remember beating SNES games in 30 min to an hr that cost $65+.

Games are 100% cheaper. They have gone down in price as inflation has risen since the 90's. It's asinine almost to assume games have less value than they used to.

I remember games offering "hours of enjoyment" due to replayability, not because the games super long. Very few SNES/NES games were of any extraordinary length they were just great fun over and over, and they cost more than games do now and they couldn't be fixed when they had glitches.

[Paytaa]

I don't know why you're getting disagrees. Maybe it's the newer generation of gamers who succumb to this type of practice.

I don't care what anyone says, microtransactions are a plague among gaming. Years ago the things you're all paying $2.99 for were unlockables in game.

Our hobby is becoming a form of gambling and I'm honestly really sick and tired of it.

[DarkOcelet]

The latest offender Gold REQ pack from Halo 5.

I really found it disconcerting when i saw people on Youtube opening Req packs that are worth more than a 100$.

I cant believe 343i did that to Halo 5. The unlockables that took skills to unlock in the past games are now being bought for 3$.

It seems that many of our beloved franchises will be infected by those crap and still people will justify it.

Microtransctions being in games like Uncharted 4 and Halo 5, the top two franchises for both Sony and MS respectively is not a good sign. I really hope people wake up and realize the crap that they are supporting is destroying the industry.

I really hope Gears 4 does not have Microtransactions but seeing how Judgement did have it, i am pretty sure it will have it :(

[Paytaa]

@DarkOcelet Sure there are "reasons" why REQ packs cost money (HCS prize pool, free maps, etc.) but I don't agree with it and it has no place in Halo. Same with UC4.

Gears 4 most likely will since Gears 3 started the weapon skins microtransactions BS.

The new focus on the gaming industry is so trash that everything needs microtransactions, DLC, an open world that doesn't work or make every game MOBA-fied.

We need a change.

[DirtyLary]

The hypocrisy

[lelo2play]

I wish I had a lot of money, that way I could simply throw away some of it on microtransactions, passes, etc... or maybe even wipe my a** with 500€ bills.

Some people have way too much money...

[yankolo]

Wish this where backwards....a will play it better than aw

[jmc8888]

Can't wait for Call of Duty: Candy Crush Microtransaction version.

[FunkyGoron]

You all make it seem like "us", those who will buy 10+ new games or more in a year, are the ones spending all the money on DLC or micro-transactions.

It's people who only buy the mainstream sports/FPS games who might only own 3 games a year that are spending money on these games like this.

I have Rocket League and spent money on every piece of DLC. Could that content have been "free"? Couldn't Uncharted 4's DLC be "free"?

I can't think of one game that the "plague" of DLC and micro-transactions ruined my experience or enjoyment of. I've never really purchased micro items nor most DLC.

[FITgamer]

I was on over the weekend, there were nearly 200k players on PS3.