Call of Duty goes free-to-play with Tencent deal

Activision has signed a new deal with social games titan Tencent to bring Call of Duty Online to China.

The upcoming free-to-play Call of Duty Online, which has been in development for more than two years, will be exclusively operated by the web giant in the region.

Activision states the new gaming model featured in the title has been designed specifically to the Chinese market, and will allow players will be able to personalise their characters, weapons and equipment.

There will also be an in-game store tailored for Chinese users.

"We are very excited about our relationship with Tencent and the opportunities for gaming in China," said Activision CEO Bobby Kotick.

"We think China is one of the most exciting places in the world for us to grow our business and to develop innovative new games.

"Tencent is an ideal partner for Activision to bring Call of Duty Online to China. Tencent has a terrific track record of customer-focused innovation and deep market knowledge that will be invaluable to Activision as we build great games for China.

“We have worked closely with Tencent to create a game with broad appeal for the Chinese market. We look forward to laying the foundation for a long-standing relationship with Tencent and to launching a new and unique experience for fans."

As well as signing a deal with Activision, Tencent recently expanded its operations and influence into the US by acquiring a minority stake in Gears of War and Unreal Engine developer Epic Games.