Santa Monica, CA- March 20, 2012 – Hailed as “exhilarating” and a “standout” upon their debut days ago to Call of Duty® Elite Premium members, the new Special Ops Missions “Black Ice” and “Negotiator” are now poised for play for all Call of Duty® fans on Xbox LIVE® everywhere as they lead the biggest and deepest content offering in Call of Duty history with today’s release of the Modern Warfare® 3 Collection Content #1. The content rich collection features the two new epic Special Ops missions and four new, adrenaline-fueled multiplayer maps, including “Black Box,” already heralded in the media as “ingenious” and “awesome.”
Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI), announced today the availability of Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 Content Collection #1, the largest and most eagerly anticipated DLC release in franchise history. Fans of the world’s most popular FPS were promised a wider variety of content at last fall’s inaugural Call of Duty® XP fan celebration, and Content Collection #1 delivers. For the first time ever, two intense Special Ops missions, “Black Ice” and “Negotiator,” are riding shotgun alongside four new multiplayer maps-Liberation, Piazza, Overwatch and Black Box. Collection #1 is available first on Xbox LIVE Marketplace for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft for 1,200 Microsoft Points, or $14.99. The Collection is open to all; a premium Call of Duty® Elite membership is not required. The DLC pack will be rolled out to other platforms at a later date.
“Call of Duty® MW3 Content Collection #1 is the biggest DLC pack ever for Call of Duty,” said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing. “We’re serious about delivering the best value to our fans and just as we promised last year, it’s not just maps anymore. With six pieces of playable content, that’s more content and bigger variety than we’ve ever been able to include before in a Call of Duty DLC for the same price.”
Content Collection #1 sets the bar for variety, value and fan-service in the FPS DLC marketplace, featuring six fully-fledged Call of Duty experiences. The full loadout includes:
Black Ice: This Special Ops mission plunges combatants deep into a frozen diamond mine via snowmobile in order to infiltrate a secret weapons plant and initiate the self-destruct sequence to take the facility offline for good.
Negotiator: India is the backdrop for a Special Ops hostage extraction, where gamers must execute flawless breach-and-clears and negotiate a maze of surface streets to ensure the safety of rescued civilians.
Liberation: Players take up positions in a militarized Central Park in the heart of NYC, a sprawling deathscape ripe for long-range sniper and LMG kills.
Piazza: An idyllic seaside village, an Italian getaway gone rogue, where blind corners and a complex warren of branching pathways pose danger at every turn.
Overwatch: A compact, sky-high battle arena set in a construction site atop a New York City office tower.
Black Box: Players seek tactical advantage in multi-level hillside homes overlooking a downed Air Force One, as a luxe SoCal neighborhood turns into a warzone.
To celebrate the launch of Content Collection #1, Activision will be pitting football superstars Ahmad Bradshaw of the World Champion New York Giants and Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots against each other in a Grudge Match for ultimate bragging rights. Bradshaw and Gronkowski will captain teams featuring development studio members, online personalities and Modern Warfare 3 fans in an intense head-to-head battle. Gamers can review Grudge Match highlights on the Modern Warfare 3 Facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/MW3.
Modern Warfare 3 Content Collection #1 is published by Activision and co-developed by Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games and Raven Software. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is rated “M” (Mature) by the ESRB for Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence and Strong Language. For more information on the Call of Duty: MW3 content drops, season of content, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and Call of Duty Elite visit http://www.callofduty.com/mw3 and www.callofduty.com/elite.