Despite the anticipation surrounding the release of World of Warcraft Legion, Activision Blizzard Inc. announced in its latest earnings report the number of World of Warcraft subscribers has fallen to 5.5 million, down 100,000 from just three months ago.
Moving forward, Activision Blizzard will not report Warcraft's subscription numbers but instead focus on other metrics, although it did not specify what these metrics will be. Still, the report states that World of Warcraft remains the number one subscription-based MMORPG in the world.
World of Warcraft Legion, the sixth expansion in the series, is expected to be released in the near future, although the exact date is still not known. However, its video game convention called BlizzCon will be held later this week, so fans can expect to learn more about the MMORPG.
The latest title will include new features such as the new Demon Hunter hero class, customizable Artifact weapons, class order halls, and new raids and dungeons.
Even if WoW subscribers are down, other titles still remain popular among gamers including Diablo III, which passed the 2 million mark in China, while Destiny has gained another 5 million players in three months, and Call of Duty: Black Ops II grew to nearly 12 million, as gamers prepare for the Nov. 6 release of Black Ops III.
Activision Blizzard also annnounced in the report the acquisition of Candy Crush Saga maker King Digital Entertainment for $5.9 billion.
While many wonder if Candy Crush was a one-hit wonder after King has struggled to release successful follow-up games, Activision Blizzard says it will use its talents to develop new series in the world of mobile gaming.
Source: Activision Blizzard
