Treyarch’s 2018 battle royale could be making a comeback as Blackout is reportedly set to return alongside the 2020 Call of Duty release.
Despite the success of Infinity Ward’s take on the battle royale genre with the record-breaking Warzone, Call of Duty’s first battle royale mode could soon be re-introduced. While Treyarch’s release came out of the gates hot in 2018, it slowly tapered off throughout the following months.
Playing second fiddle to the wildly popular Warzone ever since, Blackout is now rumored to be accompanying 2020’s CoD release and making a grand return.
“Blackout is going to return in some form with Black Ops this year,” Venture Beat’s Jeff Grubb said in a June 9 tweet.
There’s no telling exactly what form this may take. It could be a refreshed version of the game or just the same as before. The map and all of its loot may remain identical, or it may be modified to fit the upcoming release.
A wide array of leaks have pointed at the 2020 entry being a reboot of the Black Ops franchise. While Blackout accompanied Black Ops 4 upon release, a few gameplay tweaks could see the 100-player mode return alongside the rumored reboot.
In other shocking news, Blackout is going to return in some form with Black Ops this year.
— Grubb (@JeffGrubb) June 10, 2020
Black Ops 4 released in 2018. Since then, Treyarch has been assigned the task of developing the next CoD in just two years, opposed to the traditional three-year cycle with Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games.
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Going back to their roots with classic maps and a returning battle royale could help pad the new release under such a strict development timeline.
Blackout was the very first attempt at a battle royale in the CoD franchise. However, Warzone soon trumped its success following its March 10, 2020 release.
Infinity Ward has previously revealed that they will still have plans for Warzone following the release of the next title, with intentions to continue the momentum it has built during its early stages.
As a result, it is also quite possible that Blackout and Warzone may even be integrated together at some point, with CoD fans calling for Verdansk and any future Warzone maps to be accessible in the rumored Black Ops release.
While nothing has been confirmed on how the two major modes will coexist down the line. Offering both options within the one game could prevent a major divide within the Call of Duty player base.
For the time being, Warzone still appears to be the top priority for Activision Blizzard. Season 4 is rapidly approaching with a plethora of leaked content finally set to make its mark.
With more and more information slipping through the cracks regarding the next big release, however, a full unveiling should be close by.
