The consoles might not be selling but the games are (Microsoft)The success of Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 made Microsoft the biggest game publisher in the world last month, according to the latest data.Microsofts acquisition of Activision Blizzard has given a major boost to Xboxs financials over the past year, but at that point its multiformat ambitious were less clear than they are now.According to data firm Ampere, $465 million (374.1m) was spent on Microsoft games in December 2024, making the company the worlds biggest publisher across PC, PlayStation, and Xbox.This was largely driven by sales of Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6, which attracted 38 million monthly users worldwide in November 2024. According to Circana data, Black Ops 6 was the best-selling game in the US in December based on dollar sales, as it became one of the best-selling entries ever in the franchise.Microsoft also launched Indiana Jones And The Great Circle last month, which made it to number 14 on the best-selling games list of December 2024 in the US, which isnt bad for an Xbox console exclusive.As reported by VGC, 64% of consumer spending on Microsoft titles in December was on PlayStation formats, primarily driven by Call Of Duty.Its important to note Call Of Duty has always been multiformat, and Black Ops 6s success wouldve happened without Microsoft buying Activision, as traditionally the biggest publisher in the US is either them or EA although it does vary depending on the amount of first party releases from Sony and Nintendo.Nevertheless, a successful multiformat policy is what Microsoft has been working towards for at least the last year, when at one point Microsoft had more games in the PlayStation Store top 20 than Sony. Black Ops 6 is a big comeback for Call Of Duty (Picture: Activision)This multiformat push looks set to continue in 2025, with Indiana Jones And The Great Circle coming to PlayStation 5 and Microsofts confirmed support for the Nintendo Switch 2. A bunch of other ports, including Halo: The Master Chief Collection, are also rumoured for various platforms.According to analyst group Ampere, Microsofts earnings last month put the company ahead of Electronic Arts as the biggest publisher in the world, generating $366 million in December. This was mostly driven by EA Sports FC 25, whose sales were notably lower than the previous years entry.Microsofts biggest rival for the top spot though is not an American company but Chinese conglomerate Tencent, who own the likes of Riot Games and Sumo Group. Its influence, and that of other Chinese companies such as NetEase, are only set to grow in the future, with the company currently in negotiations over a potential buyout of Ubisoft.The big question for Microsoft is whether its claim on the top spot will hold in the months ahead, before the next Call Of Duty inevitably spikes its financials again. The company has a solid slate of games on the horizon, between Avowed, South Of Midnight, and Doom: The Dark Ages, with the latter also set to launch on PlayStation 5.More TrendingWhile none of these are in any way comparable to Call Of Duty, from a sales perspective, the franchises consistent success should, in theory, give Microsoft the capacity to continue to invest in more experimental titles, like South Of Midnight, without impacting the companys bottom line. South Of Midnight is a niche title for Xbox (Picture: Microsoft)Emailgamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below,follow us on Twitter, andsign-up to our newsletter.To submit Inbox letters and Readers Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use ourSubmit Stuff page here.For more stories like this,check our Gaming page.GameCentralSign up for exclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content.This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy