Santa Monica, U.S.A. — With little more than two weeks to go for one of the most anticipated entertainment launches in history, Activision Publishing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, kicks things into high gear with the release of the new Call of Duty: Black Ops II live-action trailer helmed by visionary director Guy Ritchie and featuring Robert Downey Jr. The explosive :60 second high-octane piece, titled “Surprise,” was unveiled on network television in the U.S. on Monday Night Football and will rollout worldwide across high-profile telecasts including elite European football matches.

Reflecting the global phenomenon that is Call of Duty, a franchise which appeals to both mass and enthusiast audiences, several additional celebrity cameos round out the cast. Omar Sy, one of France’s top comedic actors, and a huge Call of Duty fan in his own right, makes an appearance, and core gaming fans will recognize Internet phenoms FPSRussia as well as iJustine.

To support the launch blitz, Activision teamed up with Bad Robot Interactive to release a Call of Dutytakeover to Bad Robot’s mega-hit Action Movie FX app, which is a free download available now on iPhone and iPad. The app enables fans to film real world environments with their phones, only to bring mayhem to them using Call of Duty: Black Ops II near-future weaponry. Additionally, fans can use the scan function in the app, to unlock and unleash exclusive new weapons for use in the app from the upcoming game.

“With Call of Duty we are re-writing the rule-book of how games are marketed. This is more than a product launch, it’s become a cultural event. And, what Treyarch has created this year with Call of Duty: Black Ops II is nothing short of the most innovative Call of Duty title yet,” said Tim Ellis, CMO, Activision Publishing. “So our mission is to meet this creativity with the most dynamic and far-reaching launch campaign we’ve ever done. Everything we do is geared toward reaching our fans – the best community in the world – to celebrate with them the launch this November 13.”

This year, more than 15,000 retail outlets worldwide are scheduled to open their doors at midnight on Tuesday, November 13. Additionally, Activision will support the game through a global outdoor advertising campaign that will run in eight cities and across more than 450 media placements around the world with support from the media agencies OMD and MEC, respectively.

Promotional partners in North America include Xbox 360 and LG, as well as retail partners Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, Target and Wal-Mart. Throughout the campaign, Activision has worked with LA /Amsterdam based agency 72andSunny on overall creative direction and The Ant Farm on a series of heart-pounding gameplay trailers that have been viewed in the millions.

Call of Duty: Black Ops II launches worldwide on November 13, 2012, on the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation3 computer entertainment system, and Windows PC. The title is also expected to be released in North America on November 18, 2012, for the new Wii U game system from Nintendo.

Call of Duty: Black Ops II is rated “M” (Mature – Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs – content suitable for persons ages 18 and older) by the ESRB.

More information on Call of Duty: Black Ops II can be found at http://www.callofduty.com/blackops2 or on www.facebook.com/codblackops. Fans can also follow @Treyarch on Twitter.

Watch the official trailer below:

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Dallas, U.S.A — Sakar International, a manufacturer of tech, toy and consumer electronics products, announced on October 2, a licensing agreement with Activision Publishing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, to create a line of accessories that feature the newest heroes from Skylanders Giants. The accessories will hit the shelves of Toys “R” Us this fall in the United States and Canada.

Launching in October and one of this fall’s most hotly anticipated titles, Skylanders Giants is the sequel to Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure, the #1 Selling Console and Handheld Title Of 2012. Both titles merge the physical and virtual realms with innovative “smart” toys that kids can bring to life in the gaming adventure world of Skylands. Skylanders Giants introduces 16 new characters and a raft of technological and gameplay innovations that create even more opportunities for collaborative and competitive play.

“Activision’s  Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure and Skylanders Giants games are an innovation among video games that melds the online world with real toys that kids can touch and feel. It’s that unique experience that’s made Skylanders Spyro’s Adventure one of the most popular video game titles today, and we are thrilled to be a part of the phenomenon,” says Liza Abrams, VP Licensing,  Sakar. “Our accessories and electronics toys will give fans another opportunity to have fun with adventurous and mighty heroes in the world of Skylands.”

Sakar’s new line of Skylanders Giants products include a selection of cases for portable devices, an alarm clock radio with dock, molded earbuds and headphones, walkie talkies, night vision goggles and more.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Sakar and believe that their strength in the electronics and accessories product categories will be a perfect complement to the exciting world of Skylands,” saysAshley Maidy, head of Global Licensing & Partnerships at Activision Publishing.

According to NPD, GfK Chartrack, and Activision internal estimates, based on revenue, inclusive of accessory packs and figures, worldwide between January and June 30, 2012.

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London, UK –It’s time to take flight as Activision Publishing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, announced that the Angry Birds Trilogy video game is available from on September 28, at retail outlets nationwide.

Built from the ground up in stunning HD graphics, gamers can experience Angry Birds like never before with the ultimate collector’s edition, a compilation of three award-winning titles: Angry Birds,Angry Birds Seasons and Angry Birds Rio.

Angry Birds Trilogy is available now for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft with Kinect for Xbox 360 compatibility, the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system with full PlayStation Move support, and the Nintendo 3DS hand-held system.

With 150 hours of addictive gameplay, fans of all ages will fall in love with Angry Birds Trilogy. This grand combination has all-new animated cut scenes and interactive backgrounds – all tailor-made in 1080p HD graphics with surround sound support.

The new collection of bird biographies, concept art and character sketches, and extra bonus content reinforces the striking look and feel of the Angry Birds franchise and gives gamers additional challenges as they climb the high-score leaderboards.

Angry Birds Trilogy is a great new way to jump into awesome Angry Birdsaction. Easy-to-learn controls allow gamers of all ages to get together in the comfort of their living room and fling these birds into the air with the push of a button.

Kinect for Xbox 360 and PlayStation Move support offers an all-new experience as gamers launch these iconic characters with simple hand-waving gestures. Additionally, Angry Birds comes to life in Stereoscopic 3D and allows for on-the-go challenges in StreetPass mode on the Nintendo 3DS system.

Angry Birds Trilogy is now available for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 system and available for the Nintendo 3DS system and is rated PEGI 3+.

For more information, please visit www.activision.com.

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Here is the conclusion of our in-depth look at Diablo III!

Those who have been following the game for any length of time know that the art style has been the subject of unending controversy. The designers went for a ‘painterly’ style, and a vociferous group of fans claimed that it was too cartoony and colorful. While it is true that Diablo III looks different from its predecessors, the new style works. The scenery in this game is some of the best I have ever seen. It is true that there is a lot of color, but you need color to make the areas distinct and interesting. Wandering through four acts of darkness and gloom would get old very quickly. The autumnal areas of Act I and the luminous halls of Act IV deserve special mention for their superior execution.

Diablo III also features a stunning array of monsters. Each act has a diverse bestiary, with few overlaps. The monsters also deploy an equally diverse arsenal of attacks. The Dune Dervishes of Act II spin wildly, deflecting projectiles in the process, while the Morlu Casters of Act II can call down meteors from the sky to cause your character a world of pain. Champion and Elite monsters also receive special modifiers, such as ‘Vortex’ (which allows them to pull you into melee range) and ‘Waller’ (where they cause walls of stone to rise up and block your path). In Normal mode, Champions and Elites get one modifier, but in subsequent difficulty levels they get an additional one, which means they can have up to four in Inferno. Running into a pack of foes that are Wallers/Jailers/Arcane Enchanted/Invulnerable Minions is enough to give even the hardiest adventurer pause.

One area where the game fell flat was the story. For the past four years, the developers have been bragging that Diablo III would have the best story of all the games. But while it had some really cool moments, it also had some glaring plot holes. The random lore books that you find scattered throughout the world are really well done though. One also has to wonder why they felt the need to bring back no fewer than three minibosses from earlier games. Nostalgia is all well and good, but in this case it felt a bit forced. Blizzard also needs to realize that having villains explain their plans in a gloating fashion is the worst kind of cliché.

There are also times when the game feels… incomplete. Acts III and IV feel rushed, though the designers have maintained that this was a deliberate design decision to heighten the feeling of suspense by rushing the player toward the climax. But it is not just a question of pacing: those two acts seem to have fewer random areas and events than the two previous acts. It is also regrettable that the final act does not feature its own ‘town’ like the other three acts did. Given the final act’s spectacular setting, it would have been cool if we had had the chance to interact with more NPCs. In Act IV, you encounter a hostile NPC and it looks like you are going to have to fight him, but then he suddenly falls over (well, it is a bit more complicated than that, but I do not want to spoil it for those of you who have not seen it yet). It seems obvious that Blizzard had to cut the fight for some reason (perhaps to save it for an expansion pack?), but the change seems quite bizarre.

But do not let these quibbles dissuade you: Diablo III is still a fantastic game and a worthy addition to the series. It is every bit as addictive as its predecessors, and chances are you will find yourself staying up until all hours of the night as you try to clear out one more area or get one more skill. The little pockets of randomness that are sprinkled throughout the world make the game seem fresh, even on the tenth playthrough. All in all, it is an excellent piece of game design, and it is well worth the insanely long wait.

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After nearly twelve years of development, Diablo fans can finally return to Sanctuary to fight the forces of the Burning Hells once more. Diablo III hit store shelves with a great deal of fanfare, and it is scarcely an exaggeration to say that it was one of the most eagerly anticipated titles of the decade. But does the game live up to its hype? In a word: yes.

Diablo III follows the same basic formula as its predecessors. Players choose one of five classes (Barbarian, Witch Doctor, Monk, Demon Hunter, and Wizard), each of which has its own unique set of skills. You must then journey through four different acts, ridding the world of Sanctuary of monsters as you go. As you gain more experience, your character gains access to different abilities. He or she also finds progressively greater loot, and the hunt for better items can become a game-within-a-game. Although the default mode is single-player, fans can also team up with up to three other people to fight demons cooperatively. There are four difficulty levels, ranging from Normal to Inferno. Inferno is meant to be brutal, and only characters who have reached the highest level will have a chance of surviving. But it is also where the best loot will be found.

Each of the five classes plays very differently. As you might expect, the Barbarian is a tank who specializes in dealing (and taking) huge amounts of damage. The Wizard, on the other hand, has been described by the design team as a ‘glass cannon’ who can dish out quite a bit of punishment, but cannot take much in return. The Monk is a martial arts master who strikes quickly and deploys special auras to heal himself and his teammates. The Witch Doctor is the spiritual successor to Diablo II’s Necromancer, and he makes use of poison, curses, and pets to kill his foes. The Demon Hunter is a ranged class who plays like a cross between the Amazon and the Assassin from Diablo II. Her primary attacks use bows and crossbows, but she is also capable of laying down deadly traps.

The skill system has been one of the most controversial aspects of the game. In Diablo II, players had to invest skill points to access skills and improve their performance. Now, skills simply unlock based on character level, and players eventually have access to all of their characters’ skills. However, you can only have six skills active at any one time (by default, they are bound to the left and right mouse buttons and the 1-4 keys), and while you can switch skills at any time, there is a 15-second cooldown if you do so outside of town. Because a skill’s damage is now tied to the character’s weapon damage, there is no need to put points into a skill since skills now ‘level up’ as the character gains better gear. This also means that you can continue to use your first skill throughout the game, if you choose.

Skills are divided into categories, and each category is bound to a mouse button or key unless you go into the game options and enable Elective Mode, which gives you the freedom to bind your skills to whichever button/key you please. Unless you are brand new to the action-role-playing genre, you will probably want to go ahead and enable Elective Mode. The default settings are way too restrictive, and can actually make the game more difficult in higher levels.

Each skill also has five runes, which are also unlocked as you progress. Activating a rune modifies the skill in some way. Sometimes, it is as basic as adding more damage, but it can also change the nature of the skill entirely. For instance, the Sleet Storm rune changes the Wizard’s Ray of Frost skill from a beam of cold energy to a swirling vortex that freezes enemies in her vicinity. Runes are an exciting addition to the game, and they help keep the leveling process interesting after you reach level 30 and have unlocked all your basic skills.

Some fans have complained that the skill system does not allow for sufficient customization. They argue that, since everyone has access to everything, players will eventually resort to cookie cutter builds. In actuality, this does not seem to be the case. Because Blizzard has made a concerted effort to ensure that all skills remain viable to some extent throughout the entire game, players have a lot more freedom to tailor their builds to their own particular play style. In my own experience, my friends and I end up using completely different skills, yet our builds still manage to work. In Inferno difficulty, your skill choices become a bit more limited, but Blizzard has said that they plan on rectifying this in a forthcoming patch.

Combat also feels a lot more tactical. In Diablo II, players often focused on spamming a couple of high-level skills, but now you have to be much more careful when deploying your skills. Cooldowns and resource restrictions force you to deploy your skills carefully instead of just mashing buttons. You have to balance offense, defense, and ‘crowd control’ in a way that was largely absent from earlier games. Finding the right combination of skills to defeat a particularly difficult pack of elite monsters is much more rewarding than just blitzing them with one or two skills.

Followers have also received a big upgrade in Diablo III. You can choose either the Templar (a melee character), the Scoundrel (a ranged character), or the Enchantress (a mage). As in the previous game, you can give them weapons and armor, but now you can also choose the skills they use as they gain experience. For example, the Templar can heal you, while the Scoundrel can spray his foes with poisoned arrows. Followers also have distinct personalities, and they will converse with your character throughout the game. Some of their lines are quite amusing, though they can get repetitive after a while.

Stay tuned for part 2 of our in-depth look at Diablo III!

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Diablo fans around the world can finally rejoice! Blizzard Entertainment announced on March 15 that Diablo III will hit stores exactly two months later on May 15.

“After many years of hard work by our development team and months of beta testing by hundreds of thousands of dedicated players around the world, we’re now in the homestretch,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment, in a statement uploaded to the company’s website. “We look forward to putting the final polish on Diablo III over the next two months and delivering the ultimate action-RPG experience to gamers worldwide starting on May 15.”

Diablo III will be released for both Windows PCs and Macs. The standard edition will cost $59.99, while the collector’s edition will be $99.99. The collector’s edition includes a range of goodies, including the game’s soundtrack, an art book, a behind-the-scenes DVD/Blu-Ray two-disk set, and 4 GB flashdrive in the form of an in-game artifact called a soulstone. It will also feature bonus content for other Blizzard games, such as World of Warcraft and Starcraft II.

Diablo III’s development cycle has been unusually protracted, even by Blizzard’s notoriously slow standards. Although it was first revealed to the public at the Blizzard World Wide Invitational in Paris on June 28, 2008, most observers believe that the game had already been in development for eight years by that point.

Blizzard North, the division that produced the first two Diablo games, is said to have started on Diablo III shortly after the completion of Diablo II in 2000. But in May 2003, Blizzard North was rocked by the departure of four of its top executives, which set in train a chain of events that ultimately led to the division’s closure in 2005. Blizzard Irvine ultimately decided to scrap all of the previous work on Diablo III and start from scratch. For the next few years, there were occasional rumors about the game’s development. While Blizzard maintained that the Diablo franchise was not dead, it was not until 2008 that the game’s existence was publicly confirmed.

Back when the game was announced, few people expected that it would take four more years before it would hit store shelves. Almost from the get-go, the game was controversial. Everything from the art style to the in-game chat functions have been criticized by fans. Of course the seemingly glacial pace of the development process did not do much to calm fan anger, either. Through it all, Blizzard clung tenaciously to their vision for the game, promising fans that the finished product would be phenomenal. In two months, we shall see whether they are right.

Image Courtesy of  Blizzard

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Radical Entertainment and Best Buy have revealed Prototype 2′s exclusive pre-order bonus – Sgt. James Heller’s Hardened Steel Vehicle Armor.

Planned to launch April 24, 2012, from Activision Publishing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, North American fans who pre-order the game at Best Buy by April 23, 2012 will gain access to this unique upgrade as well as a limited edition Prototype 2 poster while supplies last.  Head over to the Prototype YouTube page to see Hardened Steel Vehicle Armor in action, and be sure to visit www.bestbuy.com/prototype2 for more information, as well as other soon to be revealed Prototype 2 Best Buy exclusives.

“Prototype 2′s Hardened Steel Vehicle Armor allows Sgt. James Heller to jump into any military vehicle and shrug off even the most devastating attacks,” said Ken Rosman, Studio Head, Radical Entertainment. “Whether fighting off individual soldiers, helicopters, tanks, and APCs or all the above at once, this upgrade provides Heller a defensive advantage as he goes head-to-head against everything the enemy Blackwatch forces throw at him.”

The sequel to Radical Entertainment’s best-selling open-world action game of 2009, Prototype 2 takes the unsurpassed carnage of the original Prototype and continues the experience of becoming the ultimate shape-shifting weapon.

As the game’s all-new infected protagonist, Sgt. James Heller, players will cut a bloody swathe through the wastelands of post-viral New York Zero with unparalleled locomotion, building up a vast genetic arsenal of deadly, biological weapons and abilities as they hunt, kill and consume their way toward the ultimate goal – to kill…Alex…Mercer!

To find out more about Prototype 2, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/radical_ent or check out www.prototypegame.com for the latest trailers, screenshots, special promotions and more! And for the truly dedicated, go to www.facebook.com/prototype and join the Prototype Army – a community of over 360,000 (and growing) fans that receive constant updates from the team at Radical, and early sneak peeks at new information and assets.

Prototype 2 is currently in development for Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and Windows PC. The game is rated “M” (Mature – Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language. Content suitable for persons ages 17 and older.) by the ESRB.

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Friday the 13th turned out to be Blizzard Entertainment’s lucky day. After a series of lengthy delays, the South Korean Game Rating Board has finally issued a classification for Diablo III. The game has received an “M-18″ rating, which means that its sale is restricted to those over the age of 18.

Normally, the board issues a rating within 15 days of a game’s submission. But in the case of Diablo III, board members were concerned about the proposed Real Money Auction House (RMAH). The RMAH would allow players to sell their in-game loot for cold, hard cash. This provision seemed to run afoul of South Korea’s strict restrictions on gambling.

Even before Diablo III was submitted, the Game Rating Board had issued a report arguing that selling randomly-dropped items for money was too similar to gambling, and so games incorporating that feature should be denied classification under Article 1 of the Gaming Industry Promotion Law. Since games must have a classification in order to be sold in South Korea, refusing to classify a game is essentially the same as banning it.

Despite intense media speculation that Diablo III would be denied a rating because of the RMAH, Blizzard went ahead and submitted the full game, including the RMAH feature. In a press conference held during Blizzcon 2011, Blizzard’s Chief Operating Officer, Paul Sams, denied that there would be a problem.

“Legally, we decided that there’s no issue. Therefore we plan to apply for rating including the full auction house. Of course this may change in the future, but we always want gamers around the world to play the same version of our games,” he said.

However, Blizzard’s optimism proved to be misplaced, and the Game Rating Board repeatedly delayed a final decision on Diablo III. Blizzard tried to placate the board by resubmitting the game with the ‘cashing out’ feature removed. This would have prevented players from converting the proceeds of their sales into real-world money, but the board was still uncomfortable with the game.

It wasn’t until Blizzard removed the RMAH entirely that the board finally handed down an M rating. It is possible that Blizzard may try to implement the RMAH at a later date since a different government agency would then be responsible for the decision.

There is still no official release date for Diablo III, leading some fans to wonder if the problems in South Korea weren’t delaying the game’s worldwide release. Blizzard officials have tried to nix those rumors, but their vague denials haven’t done much to dampen the speculation.

Image Courtesy of   http://eu.battle.net

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Modern Warfare 3 blazes into 2012 with the debut of all-new multiplayer maps Liberation and Piazza. The front line of the Modern Warfare 3 Content Season for Call of Duty Elite, nine consecutive months of epic downloadable content that commences January 24th for Xbox Live users.

Activision Publishing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, revealed recently that the content will be available first for Call of Duty Elite’s premium members on Xbox LIVE, followed by additional platforms at a later time. From January through September, Call of Duty Elite premium members on Xbox LIVE will receive regular updates of all new content totaling at least 20 content drops.

The Modern Warfare 3 Content Season for Call of Duty Elite will include a broader variety than ever, with brand new multiplayer maps, Special Ops Missions, new game modes and more. While Call of Duty Elite premium subscribers get the new content first, as promised, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 fans who want to buy the content a la carte as they have in the past, will be able to purchase the content via Modern Warfare 3 Content Collections.

“The mammoth launch of Modern Warfare 3 and the breakout success of Call of Duty Elite were just the beginning.  Call of Duty Elite provides an ‛always-on’ connection to our fanbase, and the MW3 Content Season is the ultimate way to demonstrate our ongoing commitment to the Call of Duty community and provide tremendous value to Call of Duty Elite premium members,” said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing.

“With the Call of Duty: MW3 Content Season for Call of Duty Elite we are delivering on our promise of more new content, more often, and with more variety than ever. With three studios collaborating on the first season, the breadth and depth of material on tap is truly extraordinary. It’s rare you can successfully execute both quantity and quality, but thanks to the expertise of our developers, the reach of Call of Duty Elite and the passion of our fans, we intend to deliver.”

All content drops for Call of Duty Elite premium members will occur once a month, starting in January for Xbox Live users and will continue through the year, ending in September. During the first three months of 2012, Activision will release five different content drops on three occasions in January, February and March, first on Xbox Live, followed by additional platforms at a later time.

The first two Content Drops will be multiplayer maps—also playable in Modern Warfare 3 Survival Mode—that throw combatants into a war-torn Central Park and an Italian seaside village. Liberation is a vast, militarized landscape, ripe for long-range sniper and LMG fire, with mounted turrets on either end that lend power to anyone brave enough to expose themselves in exchange for deadly firepower. Piazza is the idyllic Italian getaway that is anything but, where tight corners and branching pathways pose great risk at every turn. Close-range combat dominates in Piazza, where attacks from behind, above and below are an ever-constant threat.

The third Content Drop will be available for download in mid-February and two additional Content Drops will go live in March, as premium Call of Duty Elite members will receive new content once a month through September. Also in March, the first Modern Warfare 3 Content Collection will be available for purchase by the entire Call of Duty: MW3 player community on Xbox Live.

To celebrate the launch of each new content drop, Call of Duty Elite will run specialized events for real-world prizes throughout the nine-month Season. Additional details about the Modern Warfare 3 Content Season for Call of Duty Elite and Collection series will be announced throughout the year.

Published by Activision and developed by Beachhead Studio, Call of Duty Elite is a comprehensive social gaming network offering a deep and innovative service for all registered Call of Duty players. Call of Duty Elite provides “always-on,” universal communication between the platform and the game. Players can access Call of Duty Elite via web or console—to connect with friends, plan multiplayer matches with their Clan or social Group, configure load-outs, access comprehensive stats and interactive heat maps, and much more.

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Activision Publishing, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, announced recently that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 crossed the $1 billion mark in sales since its launch on November 8, 2011, according to Charttrack and retail customer sell-through information.

Highlighting the trend of interactive entertainment gaining a greater hold of audiences worldwide, the game achieved this milestone in just 16 days, eclipsing the record set in 2009 by the feature film “Avatar,” which reached the $1 billion milestone in 17 days.

While 2011 box office revenue is on the decline – down 4 percent this year at $9.4 billion, compared with $9.8 billion in 2010 — the number of people purchasing and participating in gaming is on the rise, with no sign of slowing_. With more than 30 million gamers, the Call of Duty community now exceeds the combined populations of the cities of New York, London, Tokyo, Paris and Madrid.

“Engagement of our Call of Duty audience continues to rise around the world” said Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard. ”Call of Duty as an entertainment franchise has made an indelible mark on popular culture and its broad and continued success is further validation that audiences increasingly value interactive experiences over passive experiences.”

Call of Duty is now amongst that rarified group of sustained franchises like “Star Wars”, “Harry Potter”, “Lord of the Rings” and the National Football League (NFL) that attract or engage tens of millions of people every year or every new release.

Our Call of Duty Elite is one of the fastest growing online services ever with more than six million players registered since its launch November 8, 2011 and over one million premium subscriptions sold to date. By comparison, the premium subscription services of Netflix, Hulu Plus, Sirius XM and Xbox LIVE, did not reach one million paid subscribers until almost one year after launch.

“Call of Duty has become that rare entertainment franchise that transcends its own genre. Core gamers love it, as our stellar reviews show. But every year, new people are drawn into Call of Duty,” said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing. ”And while the franchise continues to set records, our fans still seem to want more, demonstrated by our record setting start on Call of Duty Elite.

We are committed to helping everyone connect, compete and improve their game, Call of Duty style.”

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