Activision Confirms New Call of Duty Subfranchise in Development

Are you ready for a Call of Duty that isn't Black Ops or Modern Warfare? Well, it might be coming sooner than you think.

Activision has confirmed that a brand new Call of Duty subfranchise is in the works. In an interview with The Game Business, Activision's Chief Marketing Officer Tyler Bahl revealed that one of its studios is developing the new project. He didn't say which studio or when it would launch, but many believe it's Sledgehammer Games' next title, possibly arriving next year.

Bahl also mentioned that Modern Warfare 4 will wrap up the story Infinity Ward has been telling since 2019, though that universe could continue with certain characters in the future. But according to Bahl, the future of Call of Duty isn't about leaning on legacy franchises and familiar faces—it's about innovation. "Where we go with future games, we have to innovate," he said. "What we heard from the audience is they want new or better or different. The landscape is changing right under our feet. You're seeing new games being built overnight, and you're seeing tastes change and how people want to play."

So what could this new subfranchise look like? A 2025 rumor from Call of Duty leaker TheGhostofHope suggests Sledgehammer's next game might focus on martial arts, with karate kicks and chops. That could mean leaning into John Wick-style gun-fu combat—mixing satisfying gunplay with fluid, flashy close-quarters action. It sounds cool, but pulling that off in a fast-paced first-person competitive shooter is tricky. A third-person game with heavy animation focus might handle it better.

Interestingly, Sledgehammer has a history of trying to innovate. The studio was originally built to make a third-person Call of Duty set in the Vietnam War, leveraging its experience on games like Dead Space. That project was eventually killed when Sledgehammer was pulled in to help with the original Modern Warfare 3 after Infinity Ward imploded. Later, Sledgehammer tried again with Advanced Warfare, introducing exosuits that let players jump, dash, and slide. It was a radical leap, but fans largely rejected the futuristic direction.

Since then, Sledgehammer has played it safe with two World War 2 games and a different game also titled Modern Warfare 3. Whether the studio can excite fans again remains to be seen, but it'll be nice to have a non-MW or Black Ops game for the first time in over five years.

What do you think? Are you ready for a fresh take on Call of Duty, or should they stick to what works? Let us know in the comments!