Despite releasing a new game every year since 2005, the Call of Duty series is showing no signs of slowing down. Leaks are already appearing online about 2022's next entry in the series, reportedly set to be a follow-up to 2019's Modern Warfare reboot. More information appears to have come out about the game, teasing players as to what the next Call of Duty's campaign will have in store.
According to Video Games Chronicle, alleged insiders at Activision said 2022's Call of Duty will center on a covert war being waged by US special forces against a dangerous Colombian drug cartel. The game's codename, Project Cortez, is an alleged reference to the 1994 Harrison Ford film Clear and Present Danger where Ford's Jack Ryan is tasked with stopping a Colombian drug cartel led by Colonel Felix Cortez. No other information about the game has been shared online.
The reported plot leak follows a day of leaks about 2022's Call of Duty and various other games from the Nvidia GeForce Now leak by a programmer going by Ighor July. July's leak included a massive list of games supposedly set to release through Nvidia's streaming platform, though they cautioned readers by saying many of the games could have been cancelled or used for research purposes. Some of the games July shared included Gears of War 6, multiple Final Fantasy remasters/remakes, Kingdom Hearts 4, and a brand new Bioshock game.
As for the Call of Duty leaks, the timeline makes sense for the reported 2022 entry. The series has been in a three-developer cycle for years between Infinity Ward, Treyarch, and Sledgehammer Games. Given 2020's Black Ops: Cold War and 2021's Vanguard are from Treyarch and Sledgehammer, respectively, it means Infinity Ward's game would be next on the release cycle.
It also wouldn't be surprising for Infinity Ward's next game to be a follow-up to 2019's Modern Warfare reboot. The game was well received at the time of release, especially for the game's campaign which was praised as one of the best campaigns in the series. It included updates to many events and characters from the original series, including Captain Price teasing the reboot's version of Task Force 141 first introduced in 2009's Modern Warfare 2.
The leak could also tease the overall direction of the rebooted Modern Warfare series going forward and how Infinity Ward looks to set it apart from the original. The original games centered on the outbreak of World War 3 thanks, in part, to a Russian ultranationalist group Task Force 141 is tasked with stopping. While many of the characters, including fan favorites like Ghost, have been teased, it would be a welcome change of pace to keep the conflict on a smaller scale to fit with the current state of the world.
A Call of Duty: Modern Warfare sequel is rumored to be in development.
Source: Video Games Chronicle