Name of Responsibility writer Activision has issued a uncommon, if temporary, remark to seemingly deny a declare it deliberate to launch a standalone Zombies recreation.
Earlier this week, Name of Responsibility leaker TheGhostofHope said on social media that Activision was prepping two separate Name of Responsibility video games for the launch of Microsoft’s next-gen Xbox console (at the moment anticipated to launch in 2027 on the earliest).
The declare described these two launches as “a standard Name of Responsibility multiplayer and a standalone Zombies title presumably developed by Treyarch,” and likened their launch to when “Infinite Warfare and Fashionable Warfare Remastered the place [sic] each launched collectively.”
That leak was then picked up by gaming weblog Dexerto, to which Activision has now responded utilizing its official Name of Responsibility social media account: “The rumor manufacturing facility working time beyond regulation,” Activision wrote. “This ain’t it.”
Activision usually doesn’t reply to rumors or hypothesis, making this intervention notable. That stated, the obscure nature of the denial makes it unclear precisely which elements of the unique declare Activision is now saying are unfaithful, or whether or not some ingredient of this declare was true till plans in the end modified.
On social media, Name of Responsibility’s response comes particularly in reply to a thread of tweets discussing the standalone Zombies title, and the declare it was being prepped as a launch title for Microsoft’s subsequent console.
The unique rumor advised that Microsoft’s shifting launch plans for its subsequent Xbox {hardware} had meant that Name of Responsibility: Fashionable Warfare 4, the franchise’s most anticipated upcoming launch, would now not be a launch title for the next-gen Xbox, as apparently had been deliberate. Whereas not but formally confirmed, Fashionable Warfare 4 is anticipated by followers to be this 12 months’s Name of Responsibility entry — however there’s completely no suggestion that Microsoft is planning to launch new consoles this 12 months.
Nonetheless, some type of shakeup to Name of Responsibility’s forthcoming launch schedule is anticipated, following Activision’s current pledge to make important modifications to the franchise following the underperformance of Black Ops 7. The writer has stated it would by no means launch again to again video games in the identical sub-brand (Fashionable Warfare, Black Ops) once more, which means it would probably have to provide you with different choices if it continues with an annual launch schedule.
As for Microsoft’s plans for brand new consoles, the corporate has confirmed it has recent {hardware} within the works on a number of occaisons. In 2024, former Xbox president Sarah Bond stated Microsoft was “transferring full velocity forward on our subsequent era {hardware}, centered on delivering the most important technological leap ever in a era.” A 12 months later, the corporate publicly confirmed its partnership with AMD on its next-generation Xbox challenge. However a current report advised that 2027 was now a conservative estimate for the corporate’s new {hardware} — which as a substitute might now arrive later.
Sony can also be reportedly contemplating delaying the launch of PlayStation 6 to 2028, or probably even later, because of the ongoing AI-fueled chip disaster.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s Information Editor. You may attain Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or discover him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
