When is the next Call of Duty coming out?

It’s that time of year. The cycle continues to roll as the sun begins to pass over the midday mark on Black Ops 7, and attention turns to what the future holds, and the question on people’s lips is ‘When is the next Call of Duty coming out?’ But unlike other years, the next chapter of the franchise isn’t all black and white.

For two decades, Call of Duty has followed an annual release format. Flipping between Infinity Ward and its Modern Warfare series, Treyarch’s Black Ops plot, and ad-hoc instalments by Sledgehammer Games, such as Vanguard.

But, with franchise fatigue settling in, Treyarch was given a double header to combat two years of Black Ops action with the comfort blanket of the Xbox Game Pass to ensure an active player count was maintained. Love it or hate it, Black Ops 7’s tenure is now over halfway done, and what follows it is now being deliberated in the community.

So, when is the next Call of Duty coming out, and what will it be? We have answers.

What will be the Next Call of Duty? 

With Activision allowing its main sub-series to each have two years in the limelight, Sledgehammer Games having led the development of Modern Warfare III (year two of MW’s double header), and Black Ops 6 and 7. Having been enjoyed by Treyarch loyalists, it is now heavily expected that Infinity Ward is coming back to the plate.

With that, the next Call of Duty is likely to be Modern Warfare 4. 

That means a return for iconic characters like Captain Price. Who is reeling from his assassination of General Shepherd. And beloved mystique Simon “Ghost” Riley.

The studio has enjoyed varied success with its series reboot, with Modern Warfare 2019 being a massive title (despite its divisive nature), and MW2 being a true homage to its older community figures. But we’ve never seen an MW4 before, and Infinity Ward appears to be pushing the reboot further than the original series, which was originally eclipsed by Infinite Warfare.

Following on from Black Ops 7, Modern Warfare 4 will likely dial the clock back to the present day, with a heavy focus on gunplay over futuristic wall-jumping omnimovement and scorestreaks.

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When to expect the next Call of Duty

While Modern Warfare 4 has not been announced yet, it’s assumed that the franchise will not be breaking its 20-year annual release cycle and will be opting to launch the next Call of Duty in the fall.

Usually, the Call of Duty series drops its games in late October to early November. Typically, the release window is October 25-November 13. Most recently, the titles have been inching forward into October, due to an early access window for the campaign, and it’s likely we’ll get a similar process in 2026.

Infinity Ward’s last reintroduction as the main developer studio also saw its first game teaser arrive on May 24, meaning it might not be long before the Black Ops posters are torn down to make way for the next Call of Duty promotional campaigns.

Returning to a purchasing model, after being removed from the Xbox Game Pass, the franchise will be hoping Modern Warfare 4 is a huge hit.