Destiny 2's Launch And Blizzard Games Propelled Activision To New Heights

Activision Blizzard has announced the results of its most recent fiscal quarter, which ended on September 30, 2017. It was a period that saw record revenue for the company during a third quarter, and that was thanks in large part to the launch of Destiny 2, growth from Blizzard games, and Call of Duty trucking along.

Exact sales for Destiny 2 remain unknown, but according to Activision, more than 50% of copies sold were digital, which marks a record for the publisher. It also reiterated that, as we already learned, it's the best-selling console game in the US this year. Furthemore, Destiny 2 is "well ahead" of Destiny 1 in terms of "time spent per player" and attach rate for the DLC season pass. And, with October's launch of the PC version, the broad "consumer spend" figure for the game has eclipsed that of Destiny 1.

Also setting records were Call of Duty and Blizzard. The CoD franchise had more monthly active users in the period than any previous Q3. Similarly, Blizzard also saw a Q3 record with 42 million monthly active users. It marks the fourth consecutive quarter where it's seen growth in that category, which publishers have increasingly cited in favor of unit sales. Overwatch has now attracted more than 35 million players (which, mind you, doesn't equate to copies sold), and both that and Hearthstone saw more MAUs than during the same period last year.

Net revenue for the quarter was $1.62 billion, a Q3 record for the publisher and up from $1.57 billion a year ago. Digital net revenue was also a record at $1.35 billion. Activision is currently holding a conference call with investors shortly to discuss the results of its quarter and provide a look at the future. We'll report back with anything interesting it has to share.