At the start of the year, had you asked me if the new Battlefield or new Black Ops would be the better-received shooter of the year, I probably would've bet on Call of Duty. Black Ops 6 was one of the series' best games in years, and Battlefield had been struggling for over a decade. It was Activision's fight to lose, and somehow, it seems like it's doing just that.

So far, fan reception to the latest Battlefield has been much warmer than that of the new Call of Duty. Personally, I also like Battlefield 6 a lot more than I enjoy Black Ops 7. If the power dynamic between Call of Duty and Battlefield has truly shifted like this, it's worth it for Call of Duty fans to take a step back and wonder what this means for the future of both franchises.

Call of Duty has been winning the war

But Battlefield 6 definitely won this battle

Historically, Call of Duty has consistently outperformed Battlefield. Except for some outlier years with Rockstar Games titles (and Hogwarts Legacy), Call of Duty games are typically the best-selling of the year they release in. Black Ops 7 has, unfortunately, had one of the weaker starts in recent memory. It was released amongst steep competition like Battlefield 6 and Arc Raiders, and has disappointed in comparison to both of them.

As a caveat to this argument, I do need to point out that we haven't received official sales data for Black Ops 7. That said, some early signs, like a lackluster concurrent player count on Steam, poor physical sales in the UK, and the fact that Activision's congratulatory message about its launch didn't mention copies sold or players engaging, suggest it might be disappointing.

On top of that, it's at least clear that Black Ops 7 lost the cultural and reputation battle this year. Outside of a couple of launch day snags, Battlefield 6 has mostly been controversy-free and beloved by its players. In comparison, Black Ops 7 has drawn ire for its changes to the campaign and overuse of generative AI. Simply put, the vibes are great for the latest Battlefield and bad for the latest Call of Duty.

I've previously written about the fact that Battlefield 6, Black Ops 7, and Arc Raiders can all coexist, and I do truly believe that. Still, when the power dynamics between franchises shift like this, it's worth wondering what the impact will be going forward. All eyes are on what both Battlefield and Call of Duty do next.

The Battlefield vs. Call of Duty continues

And now both series are on more equal footing

When looking to the future for both franchises, it's best to look at both individually. Regarding Battlefield, reports suggest that EA wants Battlefield 6 to attract 100 million players and for the franchise to become annualized again. All of this is also happening as EA itself is in the process of going private, having been bought by several investors, including Saudi Arabia's PIF. Despite those concerns, the future for Battlefield does look bright right now.

EA has won back its fans' goodwill by making a game they want to play. We'll be getting more of this series, more frequently. There's a very good chance that Battlefield 6 has kicked off a renaissance for the franchise, allowing it to more directly compete with Call of Duty, as it did in the early 2010s. It remains to be seen whether the acquisition ultimately has a negative impact on the series, as it could lose its scrappy edge. But for now, EA can ride this wave of Battlefield success and love for the next couple of years.

Meanwhile, Call of Duty is in a much trickier spot. Sentiment for the series is not in a good place right now, even if it has the inherent advantage of being an eternally popular top dog for the video game industry. Next year, the new Call of Duty game is rumored to be yet another Modern Warfare title. If it repeats Black Ops 7's generative AI and other mistakes, it could continue the downward trend the series is on and feel like yet another rehash of a known Call of Duty series.

There's a good chance next year's Call of Duty will be outsold by Grand Theft Auto VI, which makes Black Ops 7's underperformance all the more worrying for Microsoft. If the franchise underperforms in two of the three full years Activision has been under Xbox's control, that won't reflect well on the acquisition or Xbox's leadership. If next year's Modern Warfare doesn't immediately turn things around for the franchise, we could be seeing the Call of Duty series entertaining one of its roughest eras yet.

Things are looking up for Battlefield and down for Call of Duty

But this can change year-to-year

The video game industry is fickle, so what's popular one year might not be as relevant the next. Call of Duty slipping like this is rare and somewhat unexpected, but this needs to happen a couple of years in a row before a trend can be declared. The same goes for Battlefield's success. That said, it's easy to identify that the vibes around Battlefield 6 feel great right now, while the ones around Black Ops 7 are putrid.

We're at a very important moment in the history of these two rival franchises. As more sales data comes out toward the end of the year, that rivalry is only going to heat up. The era of Call of Duty definitely isn't over yet, but if the acquisition of EA doesn't mess things up, Battlefield may become too big of a force for Activision to underestimate. There has never been a more intriguing time to be a fan of either series.