"Call of Duty" has been one of most popular FPS titles in the history of the genre, and now it seems as if that momentum will continue to roll for a few more years to come. Per reports, Activision's upcoming "Call of Duty" title "Call of Duty: Black Ops 2" has broken the pre-order records for retail giant GameStop.
According to GameStop president Tony Bartel, the upcoming game has already shattered the pre-order records for the mega store. Bartel stated that consumer anticipation for "Call of Duty: Black Ops 2" is tremendous, and that the retail store is currently seeing the highest pre-orders in history.
"With its current pace, this Call of Duty is on track to break records and is likely to be our biggest game launch of all time," stated Bartel.
This trend has been the pattern with every "Call of Duty" game that was released after the arrival of "Call of Duty: World at War" in 2008. Last year's game, "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" recorded "the biggest entertainment launch ever" with a projected sell-through of more than $400 million, and more than 6.5 million units in the U.S. and the UK alone in its first 24 hours of availability, according to publisher Activision.
Bartel's revelation, however, came on the same day when Activision announced that it has revised its Call of Duty Elite service, which will no longer feature separate premium and free tiers. Activision, only recently, removed the DLC offers within its Call of Duty Elite service and will now be offering the online game platform for free.
A host of additional game content will now be available via a Black Ops 2 DLC 'season pass'. The season pass, priced at 4000 Microsoft Points (nearly $50), will offer up to four map packs featuring fresh multiplayer and Zombies content.
The free online services available in Call of Duty Elite include the Player HQ, Clan HQ, Zombies Support, and Call of Duty Elite TV.
The Player HQ: This will provide game statistics including improved match information such as heat maps and recent match data. Players can now alter their classes using Treyarch's new 'Pick 10 Create-a-Class' system.
Clan HQ: Players can now join an existing clan or start their own. The option to invite friends and take part in "Call of Duty: Black Ops 2" clan competitions also exists.
Zombies Support: It will now be possible to track Zombie statistics and also compare it with other players' around the world.
Call of Duty Elite TV: The new Call of Duty Elite TV will bring an improved community focus featuring developer tips and strategy programming, custom class overviews, and more. Tablet support for the game will also be available now.
"Call of Duty: Black Ops 2" is planned for a Nov. 13 release for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows, and later on Nov. 18 in the U.S., and Nov. 30 for Europe for Wii U.
