Sign on Options
Theme:
To Dark

'2011 Call of Duty' not Sledgehammer action-adventure

Activision tells analysts a third title in development other than Treyarch's 2010 game and ex-EA devs' rumored third-person title; three COD games "possible" next year, including Asian MMOG.

Yesterday, Activision announced that it was launching an entire business unit dedicated to expanding the Call of Duty brand to new genres and business models. The news came one day after the CEO and president of the studio that created Call of Duty, Infinity Ward, appeared to have been fired and their former shop marginalized from the series. Activision now lists the Encino, California, developer as working only on the two downloadable expansions to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, due out later this year.

Three isn't a crowd for Activision.

Three isn't a crowd for Activision.

In its statement yesterday, Activision confirmed that COD: World at War studio Treyarch was working on this year's installment in the series. It also made the following statement:

"The company is also for the first time announcing that a new game in the Call of Duty series is expected to be released in 2011 and that Sledgehammer Games, a newly formed, wholly owned studio, is in development on a Call of Duty game that will extend the franchise into the action-adventure genre."

With Activision offering no further clarification to the press, many game-news outlets took the comment to mean that Sledgehammer Games was developing a possible third-person spin-off of the series for a 2011 release. The company, however, was much more forthcoming with Wall Street analysts, several of whom clarified in notes this morning that there are now at least three full-fledged Call of Duty titles in the pipeline.

"Activision also confirmed that a new Call of Duty title was in the works for 2011 (but notably did not attach Infinity Ward's name to it), and announced a new Call of Duty title in the action/adventure game to be designed by a newly formed studio, Sledgehammer Games, but would not confirm a 2011 release date for this new action title," said BroadPoint AmTech's Ben Schachter.

After also confirming a third COD, Signal Hill Capital Group's Todd Greenwald went even further. He thinks that Activision's massively multiplayer Call of Duty licensing negotiations could result in an Asian-produced title "featuring an entirely new business model driven by high-margin digital, online content and/or subscription fees." He believes that it's "possible" such a game could arrive as early as 2011, given enough development resources.

406 Comments

  • kwanzudood

    Posted Jun 9, 2011 10:21 pm GMT

    Treyarch's next game just needs to be Call of Duty: Undead Warfare, and make the whole campaign about the military battling a worldwide zombie outbreak.

  • LimitBreak_LVL4

    Posted Nov 15, 2010 6:34 pm GMT

    @DeathsHead419: Dude, there's no way. I could of sworn the sun rose in the afternoon! I don't think I can believe you on that one.

  • DeathsHead419

    Posted Nov 4, 2010 5:08 pm GMT

    Breaking news: New Call of Duty game in 2011. Sun rises in the morning. Drinking water is good for your health.

  • Yhua

    Posted Jun 5, 2010 8:01 pm GMT

    this has happened to infinity ward employees before being taken over by other big publishers but last time it happened with EA

  • 3574969

    Posted May 27, 2010 5:09 pm GMT

    dam Infinity ward come back

  • War_Chiefs

    Posted May 7, 2010 12:50 pm GMT

    be funny if they were class haha..we all give them abuse and then they just come back with an animal game..probably wont happen but would still be funny
    wonder what this action adventure thing could be all about..like a more actiony killing uncharted?

  • legioniers

    Posted Apr 14, 2010 11:59 am GMT

    Yes mw2 is getting kind of boring but making a new call of duty isn't going to make things any better for activision. Mw2 got old quick and just think how fast the next is going to be. Like give it a little more time, but in the mean time add some more stuff to mw2 like idk..goldden weapons, better killstreaks more weapons, harder challenges, (etc...).

  • King-Julian

    Posted Apr 12, 2010 7:25 pm GMT

    Activision is starting to milk the COD series like its guitar hero or something =P

  • King-Julian

    Posted Apr 12, 2010 7:21 pm GMT

    Seriously activision??? How can you want more money after mw2 just sold over 1 billion+ in sales and the map pack has already sold over 225 mil??? A little greedy here now arent we?

  • GBPackersrule

    Posted Apr 12, 2010 7:11 pm GMT

    *weeps in disgust*

  • MandoWolf

    Posted Apr 12, 2010 4:09 pm GMT

    Depending on how Treyarch handles the next CoD, i'm done with the CoD franchise.

  • Himura777

    Posted Apr 10, 2010 3:26 pm GMT

    I just hope that they can keep the intensity and level of addictivness of the previous games, but just make them longer for cryin out loud!!!!!! Then the games would be like perfect!

  • banana5

    Posted Apr 8, 2010 7:39 pm GMT

    i just want mw3

  • Fox603

    Posted Apr 2, 2010 6:02 am GMT

    carefull people !!! by the looks of it everybodys gonna hang-on the older games of call of duty ( 2,4,waw,mw2) cuz the new coming games seem not close 2 idea we have in mind and fear a surprise that isnt a happy one
    anyway the new game isnt far from coldwar vietnam

  • aaronfhff123

    Posted Mar 29, 2010 9:33 am GMT

    Modern Warfare 2 was boring it headfked me as to why it got such praise. Call of Duty World at war was epic. The campaign could of been a little longer but over all it was alot longer than the pathetic 3 act campaign of MW2 and YOU COULD ACTUALLY SEE HOLES IN THE HEADS OF PEOPLE YOU SHOT! AND EXPLOSIVES DID WHAT THEY ARE SUPPOSED TO DO!(Take of limbs). O yea and Nazi zombies is miles more fun than boring spec ops

  • zombieshot115

    Posted Mar 28, 2010 8:19 am GMT

    o yeah, and treyarch could even maybe make another world war 2 game later, WITH NAZI ZOMBIES OFCOURSE

  • zombieshot115

    Posted Mar 28, 2010 8:05 am GMT

    I think they should make cod7 this year WITH ZOMBIES then make mw3 ending the story and then move onto a different war or maybe even future warfare!!!! or a different past war that happened after world war 2 AND TREYARCH SHOULD HAV ZOMBIES IN ALL OF THEIR CALL OF DUTYS

  • FartMonkey65

    Posted Mar 27, 2010 2:17 pm GMT

    Well, thats another series down the tube due to money hungry executives. Say hi to Spyro for me.

  • daman246

    Posted Mar 18, 2010 6:53 pm GMT

    idk were there taking call of duty anymore if there gona release a game do it right from the start

  • anime_boi

    Posted Mar 15, 2010 4:52 am GMT

    Everything is in place- the death of a Canadian (Corey Haim), the supposed invasion of Georgia by the Russians, and now... this. Satan will have his way if Saddam doesn't bungle it up and if that DOES happen... dear God help us all if Kenny gets killed by lighting his fart on fire (again).

  • GamerLegend10

    Posted Mar 14, 2010 4:34 am GMT

    cant wait to see what there like (3 CODs)

    COD 7 - set in the cold war

  • shawnyboy95

    Posted Mar 13, 2010 6:09 pm GMT

    @Fogshie7277

    you can check out Tom Clancy's upcoming 'Ghost Recon: Future Soldier' if you're looking for 'futuristic shooters'..i dunno, it seems like what you invisioned...

    As for the article, darn Activision for letting go IW, they made the first Call of Duty, did they not? I think Activision should just give IW the COD series, they make them fun (although as in multiplayer, it can get pretty annoying). I'm not trying to say the Treyrach's work is bad, it's pretty fun, but I perfer IW's COD games, especially MW, which caught me off guard when I first played it...tsk, tsk Activision...tsk, tsk

  • Danagan

    Posted Mar 13, 2010 4:51 pm GMT

    Infinity ward should try seperate modern warfare from call of duty and then leave activision!!

  • solidstein

    Posted Mar 13, 2010 12:53 pm GMT

    one of the greatest corporate movesin gaming history would say ranks up ther wit the google/overtue move....koticks saying to himself what did i do i cant milk the franchise cuz i gave to much power to west and zampella i know what to do get rid of them let them sue but atleast i will keep control of the COD franchise well i hope it fails an west and zampella keep creative control of COD and refuse to sign off on all COD/MW games

  • rogue81

    Posted Mar 9, 2010 4:12 pm GMT

    @georgeorjose: I wasn't knocking Dead Space, I just couldn't remember the name of the studio that made it. As far as MW2: yeah, I enjoyed the campaign. I don't think it was $60 worth of enjoyment, though.

  • georgeorjose

    Posted Mar 9, 2010 7:22 am GMT

    @rogue81 hey man dead space is a pretty good game. at first i was like you, i thought guitar hero:beatles was not goin to be good, but i eventually played it and it was pretty fun, but like all those rock band and guitar hero games they get old real quick so i see what you mean by they are milking those games, they should be downloadable. But MW2 come on man you atleast have to admit the campaign was pretty cool. online on the other hand gets ruined by campers.

  • rogue81

    Posted Mar 7, 2010 9:17 pm GMT

    @georgeorjose: Currently, I have a PS3 and a 360, with a grand total of 12 games between them. I do not consider any of them "milked" games. However, that doesn't mean that I've never played milked games; everyone has. You can check out my game library in my profile. I've owned quite a few "milked" games. Just because I've played them in the past doesn't mean I'm going to waste my money on them in the future.

    Like I said before, I didn't need to wait for "Guitar Hero: Beatles" to be released to know that I didn't want to play another Guitar Hero game. There were eight Guitar Hero Games planned to release last year. Guitar Hero is over done... it's milked. Activision is planning downloadable content for MW2, another stand alone game from Treyarch and a Call of Duty MMO by the guys that did Dead Space. All of these are planned to release before 2012. Call of Duty is headed down the same path as Guitar Hero.

  • georgeorjose

    Posted Mar 7, 2010 3:45 pm GMT

    @rogue81
    so your saying you don't have any "milked" games? lol your a picky player. you must own a super nintendo or something since you dont like milked games

  • ObiWan86

    Posted Mar 7, 2010 2:48 am GMT

    Better IW or Treyarch move to sega or ea

    a cod is an action advanture? uh... third person shooter? gimme a break... just give the main character's face and voice at cut scene or given order or some sorta.. whatever! just see the face and voice.

  • REflexHalo3

    Posted Mar 7, 2010 1:54 am GMT

    Well done Activision, you just fired the heads of the company that created for you the one of greatest and highest-grossing franchises in gaming history. IW made CoD and only they deserve to continue making CoD games. I don't know about the rest of you but after this (and playing the failure that was World At War) I am never buying a Call of Duty game again, unless it has Infinity Ward as its developer.

  • AirborneCore

    Posted Mar 6, 2010 8:04 pm GMT

    I heard something about the Cold War but they turned it down for Vietnam. Does any one know?... Message my account if you know or have an idea.

  • Virtual_Price

    Posted Mar 6, 2010 11:21 am GMT

    @Fogshie7277: Yeah, maybe.

  • Fogshie7277

    Posted Mar 6, 2010 8:28 am GMT

    "Call Of Duty Futuristic Warfare" would be a better idea.

  • fhd_q19

    Posted Mar 6, 2010 5:39 am GMT

    Eagerly wait for the game

    Thanks
    ARABI: شكرا

  • dwd_27

    Posted Mar 6, 2010 3:53 am GMT

    Three cod games well i'm not sure ???

  • mightEone

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 10:51 pm GMT

    Ehh I'm kinda bored with COD now. I hate to say it but Halo: Reach is more appealing to me now.

  • guitarandbanjo

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 10:49 pm GMT

    Dear Activision, You suck.

    Thanks.

  • dsa0224

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 8:47 pm GMT

    all i got to say:Im done giving money to treyarch/ activision/ Infinity Ward..... IW can keep the $150.00 USD for my MW2 prestige edition.. savor it Fourtwozero( more like CraptwoZero) and Bobby Kotick.

  • MagicOneUp

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 8:32 pm GMT

    another year another CoD.... it has becoming a stale FIFA yearly releases

  • PeterTechGuy

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 8:02 pm GMT

    MMO COD = stupid
    3rd person COD = not original
    action/adventure COD = terrible idea

    Activision just worse than EA now.

  • PatchMaster

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 5:15 pm GMT

    One game every year was already milkage, but this is just plain embarassing. I hope a lot of the casuals smarten up and don't feed Activision their money. After their abuse of IW I know I'm done. MW2 & BFBC2 will keep me busy for quite some time anway.

  • Willceace

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 3:34 pm GMT

    "Yesterday, Activision announced that it was launching an entire business unit dedicated to expanding the Call of Duty brand to new genres and business models. "

    OH WOWWWW!!! I CANNOT WAIT FOR CALL OF DUTY: VAN HALEN!!!
    /Sarcasm

  • killing_spree20

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 1:11 pm GMT

    @nicktarist: Nevermind, it probably dosen't matter. All these games seem to be the same anyway. Hope MOH is really, really good. Allied Assault was amazing when it came out.

  • veggie530

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 10:42 am GMT

    Activision can have whatever COD games they make, because I sure as heck am not buying any of them without IW (or at least Treyarch) being attached to it. IW's title, IW's ideas, IW's game. Give them back!

  • Iranazi

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 10:18 am GMT

    wow...activision what the actual hell?? why, why, whats the point in firing the original cod creators, watch when you will go down and fail. biggest mistake you ever made seriously watch how any future cod games are gonna be crap

  • DillTurnips

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 10:14 am GMT

    @moonstrider101
    the next Treyarch developed game could be good, im going to give it a chance..but an Action/Adventure game...thats basically activisions way of saying "Goodbye to all your hopes and dreams"...an awful idea

  • moonstrider101

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 9:26 am GMT

    No Infinity Ward = No Call of Duty. How could Activision fire the developer company who created Call of Duty? That's like copyright claims violated to the max. No one preorder these upcoming COD games because, believe it or not, they will not reflect the Call of Duty you love.

  • amill68

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 8:02 am GMT

    a COD mmo would be awesome, but im not paying a subscription fee for it

  • nicktarist

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 5:48 am GMT

    @killing_spree20, is it? I always thought Ubi did the medal of honor games. Oh well, shows how much I know.

  • FurqanHBK

    Posted Mar 5, 2010 5:25 am GMT

    3 COD games 1 (FPS COD) 2 (3PS COD) 3 (MMO COD) all in 2011 COD,COD,COD that,s way too much COD games

Subscribe to GameSpot's YouTube Channel

Hot Stories

Newsmakers

Featured Stories

Submit News

Got tips? Send them in!

Related Game

Call of Duty: Black Ops

Call of Duty: Black Ops Boxshot
Follow:
  1. Not Following
    Xbox 360: Follow
  2. Not Following
    PC: Follow
  3. Not Following
    PlayStation 3: Follow
  4. Not Following
    Wii: Follow
  5. Not Following
    DS: Follow
Add to List
  1. Xbox 360
  2. PC
  3. PlayStation 3
  4. Wii
  5. DS

Follow for the latest news, videos, & tips from experts & insiders

GameSpot Fuse
    Platforms:

    Site Blogs