It wasn’t beyond the realms of possibility for Black Ops 7 to struggle in 2025. The shooter market is fierce, and the impact of rival franchises seems to have hit Black Ops 7 hard, as it’s recorded the worst Japanese retail launch sales ever in the series.
The poor reception to Modern Warfare 3 didn’t stop Black Ops 6 from bringing the franchise back with a bang. It was a tough task for Black Ops 7 to repeat this success, and early gameplay footage and trailers didn’t do much for the game’s hopes. The realisation hit home hard when it was reported that Black Ops 7 sales were down 50% in Europe.
Japan’s Black Ops 7 sales have hit a new low.
Lowest Call of Duty Retail Sales In Japanese History For Black Ops 7
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7’s first week retail launch sales (shown by @Zuby_Tech) were 12,311—with the PS4 version reportedly adding to this by allegedly selling under 1,800 copies.
According to a graphic, this is lower than 2007’s Call of Duty 3, which registered 14,117 retail launch units. It doesn’t include the first two Call of Duty titles, but there’s every chance that the result would be the same.
The Japanese market certainly isn’t one of the most popular for Call of Duty games. However, when we’re looking at overall data—factoring in Europe sales again—patterns are emerging across the board. Black Ops 7 isn’t being well-received.
It would be interesting to see how Black Ops 7 would have done without competition, but the fact is that Battlefield 6 and ARC Raiders are both doing exceptionally well with sales and player count numbers. The Battlefield 6 versus Black Ops 7 player count debate was over in one week.
Interest in Call of Duty is currently as low as it’s been for years. Head to the Insider Gaming Discord Server and share your thoughts on whether this is a wake-up call for Activision or not. What does the company need to do for Call of Duty 2026 to rectify the situation?
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