A newCall of Dutyleak reveals that the 2023 installment of the best-selling shooter franchise will be namedModern Warfare 3and will feature a newWarzonemap as part of its first season after launch. TheCall of Dutymachine has continued to churn out content for players as a live service platform since 2019’sModern Warfarereboot, and it’s looking like the third installment of the reboot trilogy is on its way sooner than anticipated.
2023 was rumored to be the first year without a new majorCall of Dutyrelease since 2004. With the majority of Activision’s studios supporting the franchise for years on end, this gap year would’ve meant a refresh for some of the teams working onCall of Dutyas well as for some fans who’ve been feeling burnt out with the high frequency of annual releases. It was later claimed that “premium” DLC for themost recent titleModern Warfare 2would take the place of a full game release in Fall 2023, holding over fans who still enjoy the annual output of gaming’s most popular FPS franchise. With the mysterious DLC having recently evolved into a fully fledged standalone game during development, new details have emerged about the game’s title, maps, modes, and more.
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Insider Gaming has reported that this year’s installment of theCall of Dutyfranchise will be calledModern Warfare 3,launching just one year after the release of 2022’sModern Warfare 2. Since Infinity Ward has had its hands full withMW2and providing seasonal content in the months after its release, Sledgehammer Games, thestudio behindCall of Duty: Advanced Warfare, WW2,andVanguard,has been developing the DLC, which has now turned intoModern Warfare 3.
The upcoming iteration ofModern Warfare 3will reportedly feature the typical three-pillared offering with a story campaign, multiplayer, and a co-op experience. WhereasModern Warfaretitles have always been the home of Spec-Ops as the co-op mode,Modern Warfare 3is rumored to instead feature Zombiesas a first for the modern military subseries. Insider Gaming adds that Activision is on the fence about whether to break the Zombies mode off as a separate free-to-play title. Additionally, an expanded version of Las Almas, a location featured inModern Warfare 2’s campaign and multiplayer, will serve as the newWarzonemap for the game’s first season which will reportedly begin on December 5.
With two major installments of the sameCall of Dutysubseries releasing in back-to-back years, fans are justified in feeling worried about just how iterative this sequel will turn out to be, especially since it started as DLC. While Sledgehammer Games is a slightly fresher studio, a year and a half removed from the2021 launch ofCall of Duty: Vanguard, it will be interesting to see if it can deliver something special.Modern Warfare 3is rumored to launch on November 10, and fans may learn more about it next month at Summer Game Fest.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3is rumored to be in development for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
