After a few months of rumors that sounded increasingly likely, Activision confirmed today in its quarterly earnings report that the next Call of Duty is being developed by Sledgehammer Games. In addition to providing support on Black Ops – Cold War, the studio's last major project was 2017's Call of Duty: WWII.
"We are very excited for this year's premium Call of Duty release," Activision president and COO Dan Alegre said. "Development is being led by Sledgehammer Games. The game is looking great and on track for its Fall [2021] release."
Alegre also mentioned that the new game is built to "integrate with and enhance" Call of Duty: Warzone. He didn't get into details, but we can likely expect an integration similar to Cold War's in December. Currently, Warzone and Cold War share a single ecosystem of weapons and battle pass unlocks.
The new Sledgehammer CoD will, naturally, include singleplayer, multiplayer, and some sort of co-op mode. Activision didn't comment on the setting of the new game, which is rumored to be codenamed 'Vanguard' and might be another return to World War 2.
Sledgehammer itself seems to be relieved that the news has finally been confirmed, if this cheeky tweet is any indication.
pic.twitter.com/CPkGyz1Y5JMay 4, 2021
