Call of Duty 2021 is being ‘built for a next-generation experience’

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Sledgehammer Games is taking the reins

call of duty black ops cold war warzone season 3
(Image credit: Activision)

Call of Duty 2021 will be developed by Sledgehammer Games, Activision has confirmed, and it seems like this year’s release will focus on getting the most out of PS5 and Xbox Series X consoles. 

Activision announced the news during its Q1 earnings call (thanks, GamesRadar), and finally put the rumors to rest that – unsurprisingly – a new Call of Duty game will release this year. The publisher also confirmed that Sledgehammer Games will take the reins this year, who were responsible for Call of Duty: WW2.

“We are excited for this year’s premium Call of Duty release,” Activision president Dan Alegre said. “Development is being led by Sledgehammer Games. The game is looking great and on track for its Fall [2021] release.” (That’s between September and December).

PS5 and Xbox Series X owners will be delighted to hear that Call of Duty 2021 is “built for [a] next-generation experience”, according to Alegre, and that it will “integrate with and enhance the existing COD ecosystem.” Expect Call of Duty: Warzone, the series’ free-to-play battle royale mode, to be updated as a result.

Now that the cat’s out of the bag, Sledgehammer Games has since shared the news that the team is working on the next Call of Duty, and that the studio can’t wait to share more.

Call of Duty 2021 is likely to build upon some of the next-gen features that were included in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. The game supported 120fps for those with 120Hz displays, ray-tracing and extra functionality for the PS5 DualSense controller, so we’d at least expect to see these return. 

Call of Duty 2021 is tipped to return to a more “traditional” World War 2 setting, but other rumors have suggested the next CoD will be set in an “alternative timeline”. The game will apparently be developed on the same ‘IW8’ engine which powers Warzone and Modern Warfare (2019).

We expect to find out more about the next Call of Duty in the coming months, as the marketing campaign for Activision’s blockbuster title begins in earnest.

Adam Vjestica
Adam Vjestica

Adam was formerly TRG's Hardware Editor. A law graduate with an exceptional track record in content creation and online engagement, Adam has penned scintillating copy for various technology sites and also established his very own award-nominated video games website. He’s previously worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor and once played Halo 5: Guardians for over 51 hours for charity. He is now an editor at The Shortcut.