Prior to 2020, theCall of Dutyfranchise had an obvious format for its reveals. However,Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warchanged that, straying from the series’ path in a noticeable way. Though the effects of COVID-19 were clearly felt during the game’s development, as it certainly may have played a role in the change, there are likely other reasons for the late release. As such, the most recentCall of Dutygame’s release format might just be the new standard as opposed to a one-off change.
Though this is purely speculation and not confirmed, it is entirely possible thatCall of Duty2021 is revealed later in the year as opposed to sooner. WithCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warbecoming one of thehighest selling games evermade, Activision may want to mimic as much of the game’s marketing as possible. With the latest reveal setup helping the series’ fans in a few major ways as well, those interested in 2021’sCall of Dutyrelease may want to adjust their expectations accordingly.
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How Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Broke The Pattern
Prior toCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Activision had a clear format for the major releases intheCall of Dutyseries. Between 2007’s originalModern Warfaregame and the 2019 reboot of the same subseries, every game in the series was revealed between the months of March and June. Their reveal and release dates can be seen below.
WhileCall of Duty: Warzonetechnically broke the tradition first, it is a bit of a special case due to its free-to-play nature and its function as an “extra” entry in the series. Instead,Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warcan be looked at as the game that truly brought this release trend to an end. While it kept the common release month of November, it dropped the spring reveal — being the first game in over a decade to do so. Instead of a proper reveal event or a sudden trailer drop,a lengthy ARGbegan in August.
Comprised of YouTubers opening crates with projectors, players solving puzzles inCall of Duty: Black Ops 4, videos being watched on the Pawn Takes Pawn website, and secret areas being explored inCall of Duty: Warzone, the event was long and complex. Once the ARG was complete, players were shown a teaser trailer. A separate puzzle took placeforCall of DutyZombies, while an in-gameCall of Duty: Warzoneevent saw players meeting with Frank Woods and watching the first gameplay trailer. While future reveal events may not be this lengthy or require as much puzzle-solving, as it seems more fitting of theBlack Opsstyle only, fans should not be surprised if late reveal dates are more commonplace going forward.
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Why More Call of Duty Reveals May Happen Later
Call of Dutyreveals taking place later in the year makes sense for several reasons. One big benefit of revealing the game closer to release is that players get to ride the hype wave directly to release, getting access to an Alpha or Beta almost immediately after the reveal. With more of the game finished, these trial periods can include more content, and the game’s developer can show more of the game off in trailers. Shortly after the betas finish, the game will launch, meaning that there is no downtime of several months whereCall of Dutyfansneed to wait for fresh information.
Another big factor is that delayed reveals allow players to fully invest their time, money, and attention into the currentCall of Dutygame. If players begin to think that there is anotherCall of Dutygame right around the corner, they may be less inclined to spend time playing the current game — avoiding new Battle Passes and post-launch content. With a delayed reveal, however, players can focus all their energy on enjoying the activeCall of Dutygame. WithCall of Dutyfans frustrated with Activisionfor pushing them away fromCall of Duty: Modern Warfare, giving players as much time as possible to enjoy each game makes sense.
With late-year reveals allowing for an increase in player excitement as well as a longer life cycle for everyCall of Dutygame, it makes sense that Activision will move forward withCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s setup in mind. Leakers have already suggested that anotherAugust reveal forCall of Dutyis likely, as well as aCall of Duty: Warzonereveal event. With fans being able to partake in the reveal making things a whole lot more interesting, players should expect history to repeat itself later this year. Further, if Activision finds success with this format once again, the publisher might use it for all future releases as well.
Call of Duty2021 is in development.
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