Call of Duty is Ending Its Back-to-Back Modern Warfare, Black Ops Releases

Between an all-time terrible campaign and massively reduced sales for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, Activision has announced the end of back-to-back releases for the series (and Modern Warfare).

“Call of Duty has enjoyed long-standing success because of all of you, a passionate community that demands excellence and deserves nothing less,” it said in a recent blog post. “We also know that for some of you, the franchise has not met your expectations fully. To be very clear, we know what you expect and rest assured we will deliver, and overdeliver, on those expectations as we move forward.”

For Black Ops 7, the goal was for “a spiritual successor to Black Ops 2, and the studios have poured their passion into making a great game that all of us are very proud of.” Of course, the results left much to be desired, and Activision is seemingly aware. “It’s one thing for us to say it; more importantly, it’s up to you to try it and judge for yourselves.”

As a result, you’ll no longer see back-to-back sequels for Modern Warfare (which suffered similar criticism with 2023’s Modern Warfare 3). The reasons for this move are “many, but the main one is to ensure we provide an absolutely unique experience each and every year.”

“We will drive innovation that is meaningful, not incremental. While we aren’t sharing those plans today, we look forward to doing so when the time is right.”

It went on to state that the “best days are ahead of us, given the depth and talent of our development teams” and that it’s been building the “next era of Call of Duty.” “It will deliver precisely on what you want, along with some surprises that push the franchise and the genre forward. We look forward to welcoming you in, listening to you, and moving forward together.”

As for the not-so-distant future, there will be a free trial for multiplayer and Zombies, where Activision would appreciate it if you “experience the game firsthand and decide for yourselves.” Not the campaign, though, which it probably wants you to pretend doesn’t exist, please, and thank you.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is available on Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5, and PC. Check out our review for more details on why it’s one of the worst entries in the series (so far).