Battlefield will dominate next-gen as Call of Duty hits its peak, says Pachter

Battlefield will topple the Call of Duty franchise going into the next generation of consoles, according to Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter.

Speaking in the current issue of OXM, Pachter said, "The CoD franchise is at or near its peak annual sales potential, and we'll likely see sales stabilise. Battlefield 4's launching next autumn and new consoles are coming out, so this is likely to affect sales.

"It's unlikely CoD will drop back to Earth in the next few years, as the online multiplayer audience and community is so strong. Activision could always make a mistake, but the franchise is so important to it that a serious error is unlikely. The biggest risk is consumer fatigue - but a few years ago CoD was a WWII shooter, and it morphed into Modern Warfare, then Black Ops. They will work hard to keep it fresh."

EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich told the site earlier, "While momentum is on CoD's side, the opportunity to dethrone a market leader is highest as consumers transition cycles. We have faith CoD can hold its market dominance, but EA will push to solidify Battlefield as the premiere shooter franchise as we transition to new consoles.

It comes as Battlefield 4 has been shown to retailers behind closed doors.