Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 Generates $550 Million in Three Days, Activision Claims

Call of Duty: Black Ops III generated more than $550 million in global revenue during its first three days, meaning the military shooter is now the "biggest entertainment launch of the year," Activision claimed in a press release today. The number include copies of the game sold, though it's unclear if hardware sales from the PlayStation 4 bundle were also tallied as part of this figure. By comparison, Microsoft's Halo 5: Guardians generated $400 million in sales after a week, a record for the Halo franchise overall.

By comparison, 2012's Call of Duty: Black Ops II generated $500 million in sales after just 24 hours.

During the three days after Black Ops III's launch on November 6, total worldwide sales for Black Ops III "rose significantly" over Advanced Warfare and Ghosts. Downloaded copies of the game for Xbox One and PS4 jumped by nearly 100 percent compared to comparable sales for Advanced Warfare.

Activision also said Black Ops III set a new all-time record for "engagement" per player, as Black Ops III owners are playing for more hours per player than any Call of Duty game before it. On top of that, Black Ops III players logged more than 75 million hours online from November 6-8, Activision said.

The publisher also boasted that Black Ops III's $550 million in revenue after just three days is "bigger than any game, any movie, or any entertainment launch this year." Comparing video games to other forms of media on a per-dollar basis is problematic, however, as the models are quite different.

In addition, on PS4 specifically--the "best place to play Call of Duty," according to Sony--Black Ops III reached a new record to become the best-selling digital full game by units sold in its first day in PS4 history.

GameStop merchandising director Bub Puzon added that Black Ops III is now the "most successful title launch so far this year" at the company. Meanwhile, Twitch reported that Black Ops III became the most-streamed game of any title that has launched in 2016.

For more on Black Ops III, check out GameSpot's review and what other critics are saying.