Wall Street Journal reports Activision is planning to launch subscription service alongside Modern Warfare 3; will feature extra maps, free Facebook-like social network.
The Wall Street Journal has confirmed speculation that the online service Activision is planning for the Call of Duty franchise will indeed be called Call of Duty: Elite. Speculation about the name surfaced earlier this month when a logo for Elite surfaced online. The service is being developed by a recently formed internal studio, Beachhead.
As suspected, COD: Elite will be a premium service offering extra content for a monthly fee, not an attempt to charge for multiplayer gameplay. In fact, some of the content offered on Elite, such as a Facebook-like social networking aspect, will be completely free.
“COD ELITE is free, for all players, some paid aspects TBD. Absolutely NO fee to play #MW3 multiplayer. Detailed reveal coming tomorrow AM,” tweeted Infinity Ward creative consultant Robert Bowling Monday night. ” #MW3 multiplayer is free to play as it always is.”
According to the Journal, Activision executives expect the monthly cost for COD: Elite to be less than that of Netflix’s lowest-level service, which costs $8/month. In exchange for that fee, subscribers will get access to more map packs and analytical tools that will allow players to gauge their in-game performance according to kills by weapon type and other factors.
Speaking with the Journal, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick said the service is intended to supplement the Call of Duty experience, and emphasized that the multiplayer aspect of Modern Warfare 3 will remain free. He also said that customer service for Elite is so extensive, that the service couldn’t be supported for free.
For a detailed examination of Call of Duty: Elite, check back tomorrow morning for GameSpot’s preview of the service.
Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot
