New details have emerged about the next Call Of Duty game. I know, folks are still playing Modern Warfare III right now, but according to reporting from Windows Central, next year’s entry in Activision’s long-running FPS franchise will be a new Black Ops title led by developer Treyarch that revolves around the early-1990s Gulf War.
According to Windows Central’s reporting, “multiple sources familiar with Activision’s plans” indicate that the Call of Duty publisher is bringing Black Ops back for the franchise’s 2024 entry. It’s been a minute since we’ve seen this subtitle tacked onto a Call of Duty name, with the last Black Ops game being 2020’s Cold War. While that one was set during the early ‘80s, this supposed upcoming Black Ops game will reportedly jump us up a decade to depict the war between Iraq and a U.S.-led coalition of 42 countries.
The next Black Ops will tell a ‘nuanced narrative’ of the war
Windows Central noted that next year’s Call of Duty game, currently referred to as “Black Ops 6″ and codenamed “Cerberus” internally, will lean into more traditional military combat gadgets and tech seen in older Black Ops games instead of the more modern and futuristic guns in recent Call of Duty titles. Furthermore, the publication’s sources said that this upcoming game will seek to tell a “nuanced narrative of the Gulf War” that focuses on the different factions involved in the conflict, though it’s unclear which perspectives will get centered.
As Insider Gaming reported on October 13, Black Ops: Gulf War—or whatever Activision and Treyarch decide to call it in the end—will feature maps from prior Black Ops games, including Black Ops’ WMD and Black Ops II’s Grind. Windows Central notes that, according to leaked game files that popped up online in early October, the game may also come with a round-based Zombies mode. Windows Central also has reason to believe Activision is planning a “large pre-order early access bonus” for the game’s launch, which could let players willing to pay extra play the game before others. This part seems the most plausible of everything, considering Activision regularly does this for Call of Duty games, and just did so for the release of Modern Warfare III.
None of this has been confirmed by Activision or Treyarch yet, but it appears that the next Call of Duty game is targeting a late fall/early winter release in 2024.
Kotaku reached out to Activision for comment.
Activision faces an uphill battle with Call of Duty in the wake of Modern Warfare III. Not only does the campaign mostly suck, becoming the worst-reviewed Call of Duty game in history, players are chafing against its multiplayer because of busted skins, unfortunate death pits, and frustrating matchmaking. As we’ve come to find out, developers worked nights and weekends to rush Modern Warfare III to release. Hopefully, with the next Call of Duty game reportedly landing next year, the same thing won’t happen again.
