Poor review score, multiple controversies, and… a spot on top of the sales charts? Despite it all, Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 was the best-selling game of November 2025.
That’s according to data from Circana’s Mat Piscatella, who shared the data on Bluesky. Piscatella noted that Black Ops 7 topping the charts marks the 18th year in a row a Call of Duty game “was the best-selling game of its release month.” Battlefield 6, the best-selling game of October 2025 (its release month), was the second best-selling game of November 2025. And three sports games rounded out the top five.
Black Ops 7, of course, has had a tumultuous release cycle since its Nov. 14 launch. Reviewers, including gamexplore’s, slammed its campaign, calling it a notable step down from the high-water mark of 2024’s Black Ops 6. And while the multiplayer mode is solid as ever, fans, including gamexplore’s reviewer, said it didn’t do enough to distinguish itself from the previous entry. It has also been marred by spirited debate among players about its skill-based matchmaking framework.
One potential draw was the endgame mode, which set players on a battle royale-esque map with roguelike elements. At launch, it was effectively the final campaign mission, meaning it required players to go through the (again: poorly received) campaign to reach it. Developer Treyarch reversed that creative decision days after release. And in early December, Treyarch released Season 1 update for Black Ops 7 — what publisher Activision said is the biggest Black Ops season ever.
But the message was received loud and clear. Last week, Activision said it will no longer pursue subsequent releases in Call of Duty subseries like Black Ops or Modern Warfare, meaning it’ll be at least 23 months before Black Ops 8 tops the sales charts.
