How many active players are on cod Vanguard in 2024?
According to recent data from PlayerCounter and other leading player population trackers, Call of Duty: Vanguard currently has between 12,000 to 15,000 players actively online at peak times across all platforms.
To put this figure in perspective, at its peak in November 2021 shortly following launch, Vanguard hit a concurrent player count high of over 300,000 players on PlayStation alone according to PlayStationGameSize.
Today‘s 12-15K range pales in comparison to newer entries like 2022‘s Modern Warfare II, which has maintained over 50,000 concurrent players on Steam alone post-launch. Or the continued juggernaut that is Warzone, with over 100,000 players daily.
Vanguard Player Count and Retention vs. Other Call of Duty Titles
Below is a comparison of monthly active Vanguard players vs. previous Call of Duty titles in the year following launch:
| Game | Peak Concurrent Players | Monthly Active 1 Year Post-Launch |
| Call of Duty: Vanguard | 300,000 | 15,000 |
| Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War | 500,000 | 45,000 |
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2019 | 450,000 | 90,000 |
As shown above, Vanguard‘s player dropoff has been exceptionally steep. One year later, the active playerbase sits at around 5-10% of peak post-launch numbers.
Modern Warfare and Black Ops Cold War managed to retain a much larger portion of players invested long-term. This speaks to Vanguard‘s issues holding player interest.
Why Did So Many Players Stop Playing Vanguard?
Based on expert analysis and community sentiment, a few key factors led players to quit Vanguard shortly after picking it up:
- No new post-launch content: Treyarch ended support for new seasonal content after Season 5 launched in November 2022, leaving nothing new for retained players.
- Franchise fatigue: Some players were simply bored of repeatedly grinding new WWII-based Call of Duty titles yearly.
- Issues at launch: Technical bugs, weapon balancing problems, and unpopular maps plagued Vanguard‘s first few months.
Gaming industry analyst group NewZoo also cited the lackluster early reception from fans and critics as a core reason driving disappointing sales and poor retention compared to 2019‘s Modern Warfare.
What Does the Future Hold for Vanguard‘s Playerbase?
The pool of dedicated remaining players will likely persist as a niche community. But most industry watchers do not expect major investments from Activision to reinvigorate the player population.
That said, Vanguard could benefit indirectly later this year if the rumored Warzone 2 integrated both Vanguard and 2022‘s Modern Warfare II together. Allowing weapons, Operators, and other content to be used across both titles could entice Warzone 2 newcomers to give Vanguard multiplayer a try.
Playing into the rumors, Activision has confirmed "an all-new playspace" coming to Warzone by the end of 2023. So the door remains open for Vanguard to latch on as a satellite component to whatever the new battle royale extension becomes.
For now, expect the current 12-15K daily player range to hold steady among the small but loyal fan base still actively grinding Vanguard TDM, Domination, and Search and Destroy matches in 2024.
