CoD 2025 reportedly still has no lead developer

Less than two years from its scheduled release, CoD 2025 is reportedly still without a leading developer.

Based on leaks and rumors, fans have a good idea of what to expect from the next few years of Call of Duty. CoD 204 is rumored to be another Treyarch Black Ops game set in the Gulf War, featuring controversial open-world campaign missions, the return of round-based Zombies, and classic multiplayer maps.

Then, all signs point toward Infinity Ward taking the helm for CoD 2026 and Sledgehammer Games retaking control in 2027. However, there is a gap in the timeline for 2025 as to who will be in charge.

Sledgehammer Games and High Moon Studios reportedly out of the race for CoD 2025

“Call of Duty 2025 (20 months from release) does not have an assigned main developer,” Insider Gaming reporter Tom Henderson claimed today. “It’s my understanding that it was meant to be SHG, but following on from the 16-month development cycle of MW3, they basically refused and didn’t want to become a ‘year 2 support studio.'”

With the clock ticking on a potential November 2025 release date, CoD 2025 is on track for another historically short development time, similar to what happened for MW3.

As previously reported, Sledgehammer Games was allegedly forced to complete the Modern Warfare 3 campaign in around 16 months, the shortest development for a CoD game in years. The devs denied those claims the game was rushed, but community members slammed MW3’s short campaign for falling short of expectations.

Henderson added that High Moon Studios was also in the running at one point to become the fourth-ever studio to develop a CoD game, but it’s unclear if that is still in the works. “I believe that it’s likely going to fall to Treyarch Games in the end,” Henderson said.

20 months is still far off, but short development windows haven’t bode well for CoD in the past.