Call of Duty Needs to Remove Skill-Based Matchmaking for it to be Successful Again

Key Points:

• New data from Circana indicates that despite positive reception, Modern Warfare 4 attracted fewer active players at launch compared to Black Ops 7, especially on consoles in the US, with declines from 23% to 19% on PlayStation 5 and 29% to 17% on Xbox.
• The Call of Duty franchise continues to experience player decline due to franchise fatigue, with Warzone's pandemic success unable to reverse a sustained year-on-year drop amid rising development costs and reliance on established sub-franchises.
• Industry insiders suggest that removing skill-based matchmaking (SBMM) and increasing transparency with the community could help revive player interest, citing Ubisoft’s XDefiant and Bulkhead’s WARDOGS as examples where honesty and no SBMM led to strong initial engagement.
• Calls for Sledgehammer Games, set to release a new premium Call of Duty title in 2027, to position themselves as a fresh and innovative team by eliminating SBMM and engaging transparently with players could potentially boost the franchise’s popularity.
• While SBMM may aid player retention, the current challenge is attracting new players, prompting debate on whether the system should be removed to reinvigorate the Call of Duty community and increase active player numbers.