Call of Duty: Mobile Crosses 35 Million Downloads, Controller Support Removal Causes Outrage

Call of Duty: Mobile, the first-person shooter gamer developed by Tencent Games-owned TiMi Studios, has surpassed the mark of 35 million downloads on Android and iOS combined, publisher Activision has announced. The new downloads record follows the 20 million installs that were reported within two days of the launch of Call of Duty: Mobile that debuted at the beginning of October. The early achievements are quite enthralling for the mobile game that comes under Activision's popular Call of Duty series. However, its latest update has invoked criticism among gamers since it has disabled controller support.

Activision has touted that Call of Duty: Mobile is ranked as the number one on the App Store in more than 100 countries worldwide. The game supports both iPhone and iPad models -- alongside Android devices.

"The response from fans across both Android and iOS has been amazing," said Rob Kostich, President, Activision, in a statement. "This is an incredibly fun experience, and we're only getting started. Congratulations to the teams at Activision and at our partner Tencent's TiMi Studios for making such a great game for players. And special thanks to our fans for their continued support."

While Activision hasn't disclosed any details around the revenue it generated through the initial downloads of the game, Sensor Tower through a tweet earlier this week claimed that the title has helped the publisher racked up over $2 million (roughly Rs. 14.16 crores) with estimated 20 million installs within 2 days of launch.

Alongside classic locations from the earlier Call of Duty versions, Call of Duty: Mobile offers multiplayer modes and an all-new battle royale experience to attract mobile gamers globally. The game was released on Tuesday, October 1, and it received an update recently that removed support for controllers.

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The removal of controller support in the latest versions of Call of Duty: Mobile has raised the eyebrows of some gamers. Activision while responding to a gamer through its support account on Twitter confirmed the discontinuation of controllers support in a recent update.

"Disappointing," one of the protesting gamers wrote in a thread on Reddit. "With Apple Arcade and iOS providing PS4 and Xbox controller support, this seems like a backward move. Maybe[,] they are a little scared the free mobile game is more fun than this year's full-price release."

Having said that, it looks like support for controllers would soon be returned on Call of Duty: Mobile. Activision Mobile Vice President Chris Plummer in an interview with Hong Kong-based news site Hypebeast suggested the development. "In terms of peripherals, we are looking at the possibility and have already been testing controller support with a portion of our live audience," he said.