Activision-Blizzard has announced positive numbers for Destiny 2. The shooter is the largest console game of 2017 so far in the USA. The metrics are strong.
Activision-Blizzard announced its quarterly results on Thursday. They are excellent. An important contributor to the success of the gaming giant is Destiny 2.
Destiny 2: Largest Console Game of the Year
Activision announces the following data:
- Destiny 2 has been the best-selling console game in the USA 2017 so far.
- For Destiny 2 on PS4 and Xbox One, 50% of revenue has come from the digital sector – this is a new record for Activision.
- Moreover, Destiny 2 is significantly stronger than Destiny 1 in terms of the time each player has spent with the game – also, more people have already ordered the season pass than with Destiny 1.
- Now, with the launch on PC, Destiny 2 has also earned more money than the first installment.
- These comparative values seem to reflect the current state of Destiny 2 compared to Destiny 1 in the same period in 2014 – Activision Blizzard states “Destiny 2 is far ahead of Destiny 1”.
Surprising Turn – Record in Digital Share
The numbers are quite surprising. Analysts had considered the weak retail sales figures of Destiny 2 and concluded that Destiny 2 had sold about 40% worse than expected. But that was before the PC launch at the end of October.
Apparently, even more people ordered digitally than predicted. The PC release also seems to have worked.
What may be surprising for many Destiny 2 veterans is that Guardians “per head” are said to have spent more time with Destiny 2 than with the original game. Destiny 2 is criticized for being weak in the endgame. Many Guardians who spent 1000 hours on Destiny 1 complain that the successor loses its appeal after 100 hours.
Here, an influence might be what Game Director Luke Smith revealed: In Destiny 2, an extremely high number of Guardians reach the maximum level of 20 and complete the campaign. In Destiny 1, it was considered a problem that many players set the game aside before finishing the campaign.
In Destiny 2, this problem does not seem to exist: players reach the endgame. However, Bungie has already announced plans to revise this endgame. Bungie likely sees the problems when players have spent around 90 hours with Destiny 2.
These numbers from Activision-Blizzard contradict the “perceived perception” of hardcore players and will certainly provide food for thought.
