November will undoubtedly bring the most anticipated moment piece of media of all time in Grand Theft Auto VIbut that of October Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 the release on Xbox and PC was not an independent release. The last Cod The game will also serve as an unofficial ambassador of Xbox’s new division, XP, to the broader entertainment ecosystem.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 was released on October 23 – it was well reviewed and monetized well. As of this writing, Metacritic has aggregated the critics’ reviews at a Metascore of 86, which is quite strong; IGN gave it a 7 (out of 10) and Game Informer gave it an 85 (out of 100). Modern Warfare 4 quickly pushed the Cod franchise past the $40 billion mark in lifetime revenue, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma revealed Monday. (As of our last update in 2025, the games had totaled $35 billion in sales.)
Global, Call of Duty the games surpassed half a billion units sold two years ago, when the series became the best-selling first-person shooter franchise of all time. We are well beyond that today. (Mobile gaming alone, which is exactly what no one thinks of when talking Codhas been downloaded over a billion times.)
That’s music to Sharma’s ears and catnip to Kayleen Walters, the president of XP.
XP is the new division dedicated to pairing Xbox IP properties with Hollywood producers to adapt popular video games and franchises for film, television and beyond. (Theme parks, experiences, events, etc.) Massively crossing the thresholds in 2028 will be a Call of Duty: Modern Warfare feature film by Peter Berg and Taylor Sheridan (the Yellow stone universe).
“The greatest video game franchises are so much more than stories. They are worlds that people belong to, that they help shape, and that they carry with them. The connection between players and these expansive worlds is like nothing else in entertainment,” Walters said. The Hollywood Reporter. “With XP, our ambition is to honor what makes these worlds extraordinary and work with the best creative partners to bring their magic to life in new ways, for the communities who love them today and the audiences who will discover them next. »
Given the Call of Duty the regular rotation rate of the games, Modern Warfare 4 is expected to be the last major game in the universe before the film’s release. So there was extra pressure here to get it right.
“You kind of have your heart in your throat and you’re just waiting for the movie to air,” Jack O’Hara, co-head of Call of Duty video game studio Infinity Ward, said THR. When it finally happened, it was “surreal.” Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 had been in development for four years.
O’Hara said he had a “feeling” the game would be well received. Now, it’s his work that keeps the good times going.
Today, the main AAA video game releases are living organisms. When he first worked with Call of Duty team in 2009 (joining them full-time three years later), the life cycle of video games was very different. For starters, they generally remained just video games. Once development was complete and all tests passed, you would “print a disc” and “everyone would go on vacation,” O’Hara said.
This is no longer the case – there are almost no records. These days, the “feeling of relief” of releasing a game finally lingers for “about eight hours,” O’Hara said. O’Hara and his team will update and support live Modern Warfare 4 for next year.
It “can be exhausting,” he says.
Just wait for the film to go into production. O’Hara says he won’t be personally involved in the blockbuster film, a collaboration between Activision (the Microsoft subsidiary that directly owns Infinity Ward) and Paramount Pictures – but he’s there if you need him.
It is “important” for the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare The film “has to stand on its own,” O’Hara said, and it’s just as crucial “that the people who own a creative project own it.”
For Xbox, it is important to find new audiences and new sources of revenue. The company recently laid off thousands of employees and consolidated or completely closed numerous development banners. Console sales are down, profit margins are on GLP-1s and subscriptions are carrying the world on their shoulders. It’s a war zone out there. Sharma says Xbox is expected to return to growth “by the end of 2027.”
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4
Courtesy of Infinity War
The call of duty The film is just one part of Xbox’s plan to take over Hollywood. The deployment of intellectual property predates the creation of XP. This even predates Sharma’s succession of Phil Spencer.
Last year’s biggest film in terms of box office ($960 million worldwide) was A Minecraft moviea feature film from Microsoft and Warner Bros. A sequel, A Minecraft movie: Squared was thoughtfully commissioned and will be released next year. Although it already has a studio (WB, now owned by Skydance, will remain the label), XP will lead the franchise’s expansion into theme parks and an upcoming Netflix animated series.
To a lesser, but not negligible, extent, To fall (Xbox-owned Bethesda Studios, in collaboration with Amazon MGM Studios) has seen success in television form on Amazon’s Prime Video platform. Then, to try the jump, there are the extensions of War equipment (as a Netflix movie), Wolfenstein (a TV series on Amazon) and Diablo (a Netflix animated series). A little later, there is a collaboration with Kojima Productions on PHYSINT And DOtwo new game projects with Hideo Kojima (Kojima owns the intellectual property) that also include film and television rights, and at least half a dozen unannounced Xbox game adaptations in the works, THR is said. Other popular Xbox franchises include Warcraft, Candy Crush, Forza, The Elder Scrolls, Halo And Spyro.
Haloit should be noted, has already been tried and (for the most part) failed as a television show. The Showtime-turned-Paramount+ series, a joint effort that also included Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television, was plagued by jump-related issues. After 10 years(!) of development, Halo found itself with a first-time showrunner and not enough in common with the popular game. Season two would bring a new showrunner and a disappointing ending to the series. Halo was not a bad show in oneself – Rotten Tomatoes And Metacritic both have more positive than negative reviews – but its lack of authenticity to the world the games had created turned off established fans.
To fall learned from his cousin’s sins.
Todd Howard’s approach to adaptation To fall was “total authenticity – treat it the same as any major game,” said the head of Bethesda Game Studios and executive producer of the TV show. THR. “Finding a creative partner to do this is the key element, and we found it in Jonathan Nolan (Western world) and a team who did an absolutely breathtaking job.
To fall has been renewed for a third season and features a companion unscripted competition series set to premiere on January 13.
Obviously, good games can make good movies and TV shows. There are also reciprocal returns. During the first season of To fall on Prime Video, hours played on To fall titles on Xbox Game Pass have increased 5x, according to Xbox, and next A Minecraft movieTHE Minecraft Gaming saw a 75% year-over-year increase in weekly active users.
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