14 DAY TRIAL // Activision has just detailed what role its newest studio, Beachhead, will play in the future of its massively successful Call of Duty franchise.
Activision surprised a lot of people last week when it announced that it had established a brand new studio, called Beachhead, which will oversee the online future of the Call of Duty series.
This led to some massive speculations about the company preparing an online-only multiplayer Call of Duty with a subscription-based model, like World of Warcraft.
In order to clear things up, Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg detailed the role of Beachhead.
"Today, we're pleased to announce our new wholly-owned development studio, Beachhead, which will lead the creation of our all-new digital platform for the Call of Duty franchise."
"Beachhead will create a best-in-class online community, exclusive content and a suite of services for our Call of Duty fans to supercharge the online gaming experience like never before."
"The platform will support in-game integration and bring online experiences and console play together for the first time. The platform has been in development for over a year, and we're very excited about the increased value we can bring to the community. We look forward to sharing more specifics on this exciting new endeavor with you in the near future," Hirshberg added.
Activision Blizzard CFO Thomas Tippl joined in, saying that while the company isn't ready to talk about the concrete details of Beachhead's online endeavors, the actual content developed will be revealed in the near future.
Last but not least, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick chimed in, saying that the Call of Duty experience needs to be expanded using methods pioneered by Blizzard.
"We've always said that the big are getting bigger but not only are the big getting bigger in retail, as players gravitate to the best experiences and we push the limits on our best-in-class execution, we have also leveraged our internal platforms to offer audiences choice and convenience through the provision of direct distribution of Blizzard games. We expect to enhance the Call of Duty experience in similar ways with our new digital platform from Beachhead."
The addition of Beachhead to the Call of Duty franchise takes the studio count up to around four, but, according to the details above, the new company will have the biggest impact in the future of the series.