Surprise, surprise, Sledgehammer Games is already working on a new Call of Duty game

The free-to-play live-service shooter has since become an integral part of the company's revenue stream and is set to play a much larger role with the release of Warzone Mobile and Warzone 2. However, it's hard not to think about how Activision Blizzard's plans are counterintuitive.

You'd assume that stepping away from releasing a new Call of Duty game every year would mean that the studios will support the current titles for a longer time. Not to mention, Henderson alleges that Activision Blizzard thinks that series fatigue is starting to kick in, which is why it's ending the cycle.

With multiple Call of Duty variants in the pipeline, players will actually start seeing more of the game and not less. Maybe we'll all get to cross that bridge once we get there, but for now, the more pressing matter is Sledgehammer Games' appointment. The team isn't without talent, but Vanguard isn't its first entry with mixed reception from critics and the fan base.

It wasn't so long ago that Sledgehammer had to take a year off after 2017's WWII as Treyarch worked on 2018's Black Ops 4 and 2020's Black Ops - Cold War. Although Vanguard still sold relatively well, the fact that Activision reportedly had to think twice about the series' future after Vanguard implies that the company is shifting its focus on the franchise's free-to-play and live-service variants with "lesser" studios working on the mainline installments.

If this is the case, fans of Call of Duty's single-player campaigns should worry. Most recent single-player campaigns are widely considered a strong return to form for Call of Duty. Making them less of a priority by giving the keys to Sledgehammer - the studio has the weakest track record compared to Treyarch and Infinity Ward - feels like a step in the wrong direction.

In other news, Activision is facing yet another sexual harassment lawsuit Also, a recent job listing sighting is also generating chatter that Call of Duty will get a subscription service with one leaker claiming that NFTs are headed to the best-seller franchise.