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No, it’s not a shocker: Activision has this evening confirmed that a new Call of Duty title will hit later this year.
The publisher didn’t confirm if the game is a sequel to Modern Warfare 2 or, most likely, one of the historical versions of the franchise that visits famous theatres of war.
But what it did say was that while it doesn’t necessarily expect the new game to be as big a hit as MW2, it expects further franchise growth in 2010.
The news came as part of an earnings call where Activision announced record 2009 revenues.
"We’ve consistently grown revenues for the franchise year over year and continue to do that this year," said Mike Griffiths, head of Activision Publishing.
"At the same time we recognise MW2 was unprecedented – we expect more difficult competitive environment in 2010."
He added that "we’re still bullish on this year’s title" although offered little other specifics for the game itself.
Elsewhere, Griffiths said the global Call of Duty fanbase will continue to grow via new installments at retail, strong hardware attach rates and DLC.
"The Call of Duty Brand has never been stronger – 2010 will be a big year for the franchise," he said.
He also said that "exceptional marketing programs" will ensure back catalogue sales remain strong – the first Modern Warfare to this day has pretty much held its RRP of around 40 here in the UK.
Griffith also said Activision Blizzard would grow Call of Duty beyond traditional console releases too, with "new geographies, genres and business models" all part of the franchise’s future.
