The Call of Duty brand is massive. It’s bigger than anything else I can think of in terms of recognition and sales, and there can’t be a publisher out there that didn’t wish they had the games to themselves. Over the years they’ve seemingly only got bigger, and the Modern Warfare titles are the most popular first person shooters around.
Black Ops? Not quite as big, but still verging on behemoth.
There’s a Vita Black Ops game coming at some point soon. Last year’s E3 gave us a title – Declassified – and this year’s E3 gave us a logo, a box-art and the first glimpses of information. It’s going to be a special ops style affair, with individual levels designed to fit the Vita’s mobile, short-burst ethos. It’ll also have a multiplayer portion, as expected. A bit like Unit 13, in first person.
What we didn’t get from that Walmart leak though, is the developer. And here’s where it gets odd: Activision are publishing the game, but Treyarch, one of the brand’s long running associates, doesn’t know who’s making it. Assuming the company’s spokesperson is telling the truth, we can perhaps then assume it’s not one of Activision’s studios.
[videoyoutube]Given that it’s a Sony platform exclusive, is there a chance that it’s one of Sony’s own studios that have taken the license and come up with their own game? Or at least helped?The description certainly suggests that it might not be canon (the word “universe” could pertain to a side story) so it wouldn’t be that important to ensure parity with the other Black Ops games.
But who?
Bend? Their last game was Uncharted on the Vita, and it’s clear from that game that a) they can take an existing brand and run with it, and b) they’ve got the technical grunt to make something spectacular.
And their PSP title Resistance: Retribution showed that they could make a shooter, albeit one hamstrung by the PSP’s lack of dual analog sticks.
The other studio that springs to mind is Nihilistic. Again, whilst the latest Resistance wasn’t exactly a smash hit they worked with the license with great effect and there’s a solid base there for something else, and we don’t know what Nihilistic are working on at the moment.
It’s unlikely to be Cambridge (they’re working on Killzone for Vita), Media Molecule are working on a new IP, which rules them out. Guerrilla? Chances are they’re already working on next-gen, with a PlayStation 4 Killzone 4. Probably.
Of course, it might not be a Sony studio at all. Activision have worked with many over the years – Raven, for example, have worked on plenty of CoD DLC. N-Space? They’ve said they’re not working on a FPS just now. Neversoft? That could be amazing, and they’ve said they’re doing something in the Call of Duty franchise.
Activision Leeds? Well, that was a possibility, but they’re working on Pitfall.
At E3 this year it was reiterated that Declassified would be out this “holiday season”. gamescom seems like an ideal place to push the first real news of this after the Vita’s no-show in Los Angeles, so let’s hope that when we do find out who’s behind it it’s accompanied with some gameplay footage that’ll rest any concerns we might have had from all the silence since last year.
All eyes on gamescom, then.
sionllj
Knowing Sony and how they like to keep their cards close to their chest regarding the Vita, we won’t find out the developers until we look at the box on launch day.
KeRaSh
What they want is not always what they get. Remember the PSPgo? I can’t remember the last time Sony actually surprised me with something. There is always a leak that ruins the actual announcement. Considering the developer of Declassified is still unknown I’d actually rule out any studio that has anything to do with Sony. :P
Blayney
As much as many hardcore gamers would probably hate this statement. I believe that BlOps Declassified could be the game to ensure the Vitas future. If it can have only a fifth of the success of BlackOps…
It’s hard to find definitive numbers but I’ve seen mentions of ~10million copies of BlackOps on PS3. So 1/5th of that puts it at 2million BlackOps Vita sales.
Again I can’t find solid numbers, the latest figures I could find were end of financial year at 1.8million. Let’s say it’s at 2.5million now?
What do we think? Half of the people who currently have a Vita will want BlOps? So an install base of 1.75million people with 2million games to sell? That’s 250,000 extra units shifted by 1 game?
Of course I am probably entirely wrong and someone much smarter will be a long to show me how wrong I am, but it is very interesting to think about how important this game could be.
There’s a lot to be said for CoD – whilst it may be ruining the shooting genre it is definitely widening the install base of each console it exists on – which gives publishers more people to try and sell the really innovative games. Would we have seen any of the new IPs this year if CoD hadn’t shifted so many consoles to put the games on? Maybe, maybe not.
Very interesting.
Blayney
poor man maths, half of 2.5 million is not 1.75million it’s 1.25million. meaning an extra 750,000 units shifted. Even more considerable and adds the extra variation in my numbers to still make sense that I felt I was missing.
bunimomike
Crazy maths!
If Black Ops sold that many keep in mind the install base of the PS3 (currently at 64 million… ish!) and that the Vita is a fraction of that. 1/32 if it’s 2 million. So divide 10 million by 32 and we’re looking at sales of over 300,000.
I love your optimism. Truly I do! I want the Vita to sell ever-so well.
Blayney
A better way of looking at it. Still, I think CoD could be a big system shifter.
Joshua Hood
If it IS a Sony studio, Cambridge could make sense – we haven’t seen anything (except that it exists) from it since the original NGP announcement video. Maybe they were moved off temporarily to do CoD?
Facelord
I’m pretty sure Cambridge is working on the upcoming Killzone titles as a supplementary studio. There’s no way Activision would want any outside developer to work on their franchise, that means less money for them. They’d much rather put one of their lesser studios to work on the title and make most of the money on the game’s sales.
I’m honestly stunned that anyone would expect a studio not owned by Activision to make the Vita CoD title. Sure, it’d rock if a totally separate studio worked on a title in the series(maybe it’d decrease the stale, crustiness of the franchise) but it’s just so very unlikely I consider an absurd notion.
colmshan1990
A good old puzzle to work out, but I don’t have a clue.
One thing though- Resistance Retribution was a third-person shooter, not FPS.
Sony Bend could definitely manage it though, they’re probably one of Sony’s top studios (Syphon Filter series, Resistance Retribution, Uncharted Golden Abyss).
It’s strange they’ve never developed for the PS3.
Awayze
Blops and Treyarch fucking suck! However Blops D will no doubt increase Vita sales as little kids will want a Vita 3G at Xmas and to take it to school. As long as its multiplayer is exactly like the consoles version, it’ll be better than the current shooters.
YOURMUMANDME
Where’s Kovacs when you need him?! ; )
Kovacs
*whistles innocently*
;)
Forrest_01
What about Sledgehammer?