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Activision Blizzard announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2022 on Monday. Total sales declined from $2.28 billion in the first quarter of 2021 to $1.77 billion, and operating income fell from $795 million to $479 million, according to the report.
The Activision business division saw the biggest loss, with revenues falling by 49 percent to $453 million from $891 million in the same period last year. Meanwhile, Blizzard’s sales fell by 43% to $274 million from $483 million.
In terms of player numbers, overall monthly active users fell from 435 million to 372 million compared to the same period in the previous year. MAUs for Activision were down 33% to 100 million, while MAUs for Blizzard were down nearly 19% to 22 million.
The corporation stated that the quarterly results were lower because Call of Duty: Vanguard and Call of Duty: Warzone both performed below expectations. One of the reasons given is Blizzard’s release schedule, which did not contain significant games.
Candy Crush Saga stands tall
However, not all of the company’s decisions resulted in significant losses. The King division, which is responsible for mobile casual games, limited the damage somewhat with another strong sector.
The company’s quarterly revenues increased by 12% year-on-year to $682 million, and net bookings increased by 8%. Candy Crush Saga, King’s largest franchise, was the top-grossing gaming franchise on US app stores for the 19th quarter in a row.
What’s next for Activision Blizzard?
Blizzard’s 43% revenue decline in the first quarter hinged heavily on “product cycle timing for the Warcraft franchise”. Speaking on what could possibly play a huge role in seeing its revenue rise, the brand discussed the release of Warcraft’s first mobile product.
While Diablo Immortal is pegged for a June 2 release internationally, Warcraft’s first mobile product is scheduled to be released in a few weeks. The company also highlighted that there will be a PC version for Diablo Immortals with cross-play to be launched on the same day in beta.
In the future, Activision Blizzard plans to produce a sequel to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, which is described as the “most successful” edition in the franchise to date, as well as a “new free-to-play Warzone experience” that will be released alongside the premium Modern Warfare title.
In a statement, the company has promised to deliver more compelling content as it expands its Call of Duty resources.
”Activision continued to rapidly expand its Call of Duty development resources in the first quarter. Its expanding staff are focused on providing the community with ever more appealing content on PC and console, as well as expanding Warzone to the mobile platform,” the company added.
In regards to the partnership between Activision Blizzard and Microsoft, the corporation affirmed that everything is going according to plan. The transaction has been approved by both boards of directors and is expected to be finalized by June 30, 2023.
