Battlefield 6 Sold More Copies as Black Ops 7 Sales Drop in Europe

• Black Ops 7 sales drop sharply in Europe, trailing behind Battlefield 6.
• Battlefield 6 sold more copies, widening the performance gap.
• Sales figures for Black Ops 7 and Battlefield 6 reflect shifting player interest.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 shows substantially weaker launch results in Europe than what was predicted earlier. GSD, which monitors digital and physical game sales in major European markets such as the U.K., Germany, and France, says its first-week sales were 63% lower than Battlefield 6 and more than 50% lower than Black Ops 6. This has sparked early discussions around Black Ops 7 sales and questions like how the title is going to perform in the coming days, and whether it will live up to expectations or not.

Additionally, other industry data reports that its U.K. physical launch sales dropped by 61% as compared to Black Ops 6, gaining only a fraction of the peak achieved by Battlefield 6. On Steam, the 24-hour launch peak for Black Ops 7 reportedly reached only ~86,600 concurrent players, unlike Battlefield 6’s ~747,000 high. These data highlight the continued interest in Battlefield 6 sales patterns and general traction.

Black Ops 7 vs. Battlefield 6: What More Does GSD Data Say?

Black Ops 7 is available via Game Pass, while Battlefield 6 is not, making GSD's figures less complete because they exclude subscription downloads. Therefore, the real player count may be larger than the indicated sales statistics. Despite this, current data places Black Ops 7 in Europe behind recent competitor launches.

Shifting player behavior could be a contributing factor to Black Ops 7's woes. According to Ampere data, more than 25% of Call of Duty players who purchased Battlefield 6 in September did so again in October. Furthermore, Black Ops 7 has received relatively low user ratings, raising questions about Battlefield 6's copies sold compared to its competitors.

However, not all is bad for AAA games, as Ubisoft's strategy game Anno 117: Pax Romana posted a strong European launch with over 50,000 peak concurrent players on Steam. Its first week sales were double the peak of Anno 1800 (2019). Ubisoft claims it’s the fastest-selling entry in the Anno franchise’s 25-year history. This is because, in terms of revenue and unit sales for the week ending November 16, the game debuted in second position in Europe.

Sega's Football Manager 26, which topped the charts last week, slipped to number eleven. However, EA Sports FC 26 remained at No. 3, while Battlefield 6 fell to No. 4, with Pokémon Legends: Z-A rounding out the top five.

Black Ops 7's weak start reflects shifting playing behavior and growing competition in Europe. Nevertheless, Anno 117's well-heeled launch results indicate that AAA games can still have a huge impact with well-timed releases with clear value propositions, signaling a market shift rather than a decline.