Black Ops 6 tops the UK charts but physical sales are down 10%, likely due to Game Pass

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has topped the UK physical sales charts, despite a year-on-year drop in sales.

As noted on X by GamesIndustry.biz editor Chris Dring, physical launch weekend sales of Black Ops 6 are 10% lower than those of Modern Warfare 3 last year.

Dring notes that the drop in sales is “almost entirely due to a drop in sales on Xbox“, suggesting this “was inevitable with Game Pass”.

Black Ops 6 was the first Call of Duty game to be available on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate on the day of release, following Microsoft‘s acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

Dring also points out that “PS5 sales remain steady year-on-year” suggesting that, at least in terms of physical UK sales, the fact that Call of Duty is now an Xbox brand has had no apparent bearing on its popularity on PS5.

Digital data is still to come, which will shine more light on the situation and reveal just how much Xbox Game Pass has affected sales of the Xbox Series X/S version.

Elsewhere in this week’s charts, Sonic X Shadow Generations was the other highest new entry, entering the charts at third place behind EA Sports FC 25. Last week’s number 1 game, Super Mario Party Jamboree, drops down to fourth.

The only other new entry in the entire Top 40 was the physical release of Alan Wake 2, which entered at number 12.

This week’s top 10, via Nintendo Life, is as follows:

1. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (NEW)
2. EA Sports FC 25 (2)
3. Sonic X Shadow Generations (NEW)
4. Super Mario Party Jamboree (1)
5. Hogwarts Legacy (3)
6. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom (5)
7. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (7)
8. Nintendo Switch Sports (8)
9. Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate (10)
10. Minecraft (11)