Developer of Last Year’s Low-Rated Call of Duty Unveils Fresh Direction After Moving On from Black Ops 7

Treyarch is wrapping up its work on Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, and it appears the studio may be stepping away from the Black Ops sub-franchise altogether, as hinted in a recent developer video shared on their official YouTube channel. This shift isn’t too surprising, especially given the lukewarm reception of BLOPS 7 last year, which even prompted an apology from Activision.

On September 16, Treyarch released a “Dev Talk” video, marking it as the final one focused on Black Ops 7. While the video primarily discussed the upcoming sixth season of the online shooter, it also featured insights from Treyarch team members about moving on from two years of Black Ops development. The studio led the charge on both 2024’s Black Ops 6 and last year’s Black Ops 7.

“This is a bittersweet goodbye,” stated Kevin Drew, Treyarch’s design director. “Over the last two years, we’ve learned a lot and experimented with various ideas. Now, we’re eager to create something new and unique. In the meantime, I look forward to seeing everyone in Season 6 on September 17th.”

Yale Miller, co-studio head at Treyarch, concluded the video by expressing the team’s pride in their work, noting that they set “new benchmarks with Black Ops 6” and delivered the “biggest Black Ops game ever” with BLOPS 7.

It certainly feels like the team is ready to move forward, but the direction remains uncertain. Activision confirmed late last year that they would no longer release consecutive Black Ops and Modern Warfare titles after BLOPS 7 became the worst-selling Call of Duty since 2008. Both critics and fans were underwhelmed by the futuristic setting and the unconventional open-world campaign featuring zombies and giant carnivorous plants.

The big question now is what Treyarch’s next Call of Duty installment will entail. It seems likely that their upcoming entry will not be tied to the Black Ops franchise. Fans are hopeful that the team will take a bold step in a new direction.

Meanwhile, the next major Call of Duty title, Modern Warfare 4, is set to launch in October across PS5, Xbox, Switch 2, and PC.