Regardless of the hype for games like Fallout 4 and Star Wars Battlefront, it appears Call of Duty will once again reign supreme this holiday season. That is, if a survey from Nielson Game Rank detailing the anticipation levels of this year's holiday titles holds true.
According to the survey, conducted between August 24 and September 9 with info gathered from over 4,800 gamers ranging from age 7 to 54, Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 has a 98% anticipation level — the highest among multiplatform games releasing this holiday season. Comparatively, Fallout 4, the long-awaited follow-up to Bethesda's hit post-apocalyptic RPG franchise, and Assassin's Creed: Syndicate, this year's installment from Ubisoft's action-adventure series, both come in at 95%. Surprisingly, Star Wars Battlefront only has an 88% anticipation level.
Taking exclusives into account, Halo 5: Guardians is actually the most anticipated game of the year with a perfect 100% anticipation level. Of course, Halo 5 is only coming to Xbox One. Meanwhile, Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, Sony's big PlayStation 4 exclusive for the holiday season (releasing this month), only has a 79% anticipation level. Yoshi's Woolly World (91%) and StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void (91%) lead the Wii U and PC, respectively.
Nielsen Game Rank notes that the results are based on a combination of "several key measures," including awareness, purchase interest, consumer rating, and more. The percent value reflects "how strong the overall anticipation level is for the title, relative to the pre-release anticipation levels of all previous titles that released on the platform(s)."
While Call of Duty has, for a while now, been the leader in holiday sales, I at least thought Star Wars Battlefront would prove formidable competition. I'm actually a bit surprised to see its anticipation level only at 88%. Granted, that's still "very strong anticipation," according to Nielson Game Rank; but, I figured with The Force Awakens releasing this December and the weight of the Star Wars franchise, it would sell on name alone. Of course, things could change drastically in the coming weeks as these games near release. Heck, feelings could change as soon as this week when Star Wars Battlefront's open beta kicks off.
Until then, though, it looks like Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 will be the game to beat this year.
What game are you most anticipating this holiday season?
[Nielsen]
