Call of Duty 2018 release date, news and rumors

Call of Duty is one of those franchises that you can count on. Like FIFA, it doesn’t miss its yearly slot on the release calendar and, to be frank, we like that kind of stability in our gaming lives. 

Even though it hasn’t been confirmed by Activision just yet, we feel quite comfortable in saying that there’ll be a Call of Duty game released in 2018. Last year's Call of Duty WW2 was largely well-received and there was an uptick in the sales figures, so there isn’t really any reason to cut the series off here. 

What’s less clear is where the franchise will go next. Activision went back to the series’ roots with Call of Duty WW2 so there’s plenty of room for experimentation going forward. 

Given it’s been nearly three years since we saw a Black Ops title, however, we’re willing to put our money on that particular move.  

Cut to the chase

• What is it? The 2018 installment of the Call of Duty franchise 
• When can I play it? Rumors say late 2018 
• What can I play it on? It’s usually Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC, but if rumors are correct you’ll also it on Nintendo Switch too

News and rumors

Let’s face it, even if Activision hasn’t confirmed there’s going to be a Call of Duty game in 2018, we can be fairly confident there’s going to be one, particularly after Call of Duty WW2’s uptick in sales. What we’re less confident in, however, is what form this new game is going to take.

Tweets and the Eurogamer report

The prevailing rumor at the moment is that the next call of duty game will be Call of Duty Black Ops 4. The initial rumor was started by a self-styled industry insider known as Marcus Sellars who took to Twitter to announce some information on the game.

According to Sellars, Call of Duty Black Ops 4 will be set in the modern day, taking a more ‘boots on the ground’ approach in line with the recent Call of Duty WW2 release. The game would, he states, be released on PC, Xbox One and PS4 as you’d expect but he added that a Nintendo Switch port is also in the works. 

This tweet was then followed up by a report from Eurogamer, which stated that multiple sources have confirmed Call of Duty Black Ops 4 is indeed in the works at Treyarch studios, with an aim for a late 2018 release. 

Given Treyarch has been the studio behind the last three Black Ops titles, it’s safe to say the game will be in safe hands.  

Eurogamer’s report also stated that the game would be set in the modern day due to the negativity around Infinite Warfare’s futuristic setting, however it didn’t corroborate Sellars’ claim that there would be a Switch port. 

Returning to the Black Ops arm of the franchise doesn’t seem like a far-fetched move for Activision – the last time we saw a Black Ops title was 2015 with Black Ops 3. Overall, Black Ops 3 was a well-received title from fans and critics alike, with large amounts of praise being directed towards the game’s multiplayer mode in particular.

What we'd like to see

A Switch version

At the moment, it kind of feels like Switch port rumors float around every single game before the developers have to come out and say ‘yes’ or ‘no’. Given Activision hasn’t done this yet for Call of Duty 2018, we feel like we can say we’d really quite like to see a Switch port.

There hasn’t been a Call of Duty game on a Nintendo console since Call of Duty: Ghosts hit the Wii U in 2013. That’s a big gap and though the Switch is nowhere near as powerful as the latest consoles, we’re sure it could handle a new Call of Duty game in some form or another. 

A good campaign mode

Though Black Ops 3 had a fantastic multiplayer mode, its main campaign left something to be desired. We’d love to see Black Ops 4 remedy that with an engaging story and an interesting cast of characters.

We know it can be done – Black Ops 2 had a perfectly enjoyable campaign with really interesting multiple endings. We don’t need to see Black Ops 4 go for a carbon copy approach, but we wouldn’t object to an emotionally engaging single-play story mode.

Zombies

Zombies mode is pretty much a staple of the Call of Duty franchise at this point and naturally we’d love to see it return. It’s a mode that’s only really improved over the years and Black Ops 3 totally nailed it but we’d like Black Ops 4 to do even better.

A little innovation certainly doesn’t hurt and we definitely wouldn’t object to some new features in a formula that’s tried, tested and beginning to tire. 

• Want to know what else is coming this year? These are the best new games coming in 2018

February 06, 2018 at 11:54PM
Emma Boyle