For what feels like generations at this point, Activision’s Call of Duty brand has been synonymous with Xbox platforms; a symbiotic relationship that has not only allows Microsoft to retain a firm grip of the IP’s mindshare, but also ensures that DLC and additional content enjoys a one-month period of exclusivity across Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Could that be about to change ahead of the release of this year’s Call of Duty: Black Ops III though? Twitter user Tom V certainly thinks so.
Upon browsing Microsoft’s digital storefront, the user noted that Black Ops III doesn’t carry the ‘Content First’ tag that usually accompanies third-party games privy to DLC before other platforms. Whereas the likes of Ubisoft’s The Division brandishes the sticker in question, Treyarch’s upcoming installment in the Call of Duty franchise does not. Granted, it could simply be meaningless, or that Microsoft has been tethered to CoD for so long at this point that it no longer requires a reminder. Still, it’s notable nonetheless.
In years past, the Redmond-based hardware giant would traditionally open its yearly E3 presser with the gameplay reveal of the latest Call of Duty, before ensuring that all marketing for the shooter is tethered with Microsoft’s own branding. Seeing as early access to content and map packs is a considerable factor among the series’ ardent fanbase, could this be a sign that the pendulum is swinging towards PlayStation or, hopefully, an egalitarian outcome where all of Call of Duty: Black Ops III‘s DLC will release simultaneously, regardless of platform? We can only hope.
Such a changeover isn’t likely to be announced by Microsoft on gaming’s biggest stage, though it’ll be interesting to see how Call of Duty: Black Ops III is advertised across E3 2015 in a couple of weeks’ time.