As the new year begins, many Call of Duty fans have set their eyes on 2022's Modern Warfare 2. The rumors of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 continue to come forth, and the most recent example of this happens to linked to Call of Duty: Vanguard. The Sledgehammer Games title appears to be a step-back in the eyes of publisher Activision. And because of that, changes may be on the way.

According to rumors, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will release sooner than expected thanks to the issues of Vanguard. Activision is thinking already of washing its hands of Call of Duty: Vanguard and focusing on the sequel to the extremely successful Modern Warfare (2019). This is also the title that helped launch Call of Duty: Warzone, the massively popular battle royale. Although Call of Duty as a whole may not be in tip-top form at the moment, things may soon turn around thanks to the Modern Warfare subseries.

RELATED: Call of Duty: Vanguard Players Demand Changes to 'Unbalanced' Incendiary Grenades

The Failures of Call of Duty: Vanguard

call of duty vanguard remake mw3 map dome

Call of Duty: Vanguard is one of the lowest selling games in the shooter series. In fact, Vanguard posted the worst franchise launch since 2007 in some regions. The series had been on an upwards trajectory with the huge release of 2019's Modern Warfare, followed by the battle royale Warzone. However, Vanguard appears to have not "clicked" in terms of sales compared to other recent launches. Recent rumors point to that being the reason Activision already wants to start pushing Modern Warfare 2.

While no game is perfect, Call of Duty: Vanguard has been an often-complained about bug-filled mess. And Vanguard's Twitch viewership numbers have been dropping rapidly, which is a good way to analyze fan interest in a game. Fall of 2021 was set up to be a heavyweight fight between Vanguard, Battlefield 2042, and Halo Infinite. That battle is one that the original Modern Warfare series is used to taking on, but by most accounts Halo Infinite took the crown in 2021. With that in mind, the Modern Warfare subseries looks to get back into the ring.

MORE: Modern Warfare Still Has The Best Multiplayer In Call of Duty

The Good News for Modern Warfare 2

modern warfare 2 remastered ghost

The issues of Call of Duty: Vanguard may be good for Modern Warfare 2. Recent rumors say that Activision and Infinity Ward may showcase Modern Warfare 2 sooner rather than later, meaning sometime in early summer. Call of Duty games used to be first shown off in late Spring, so it could be that a focus will be put on trying to get back to that. Meanwhile, the game may be released in October this year, as opposed to the late release of November for Vanguard. All of this is because Activision wants to focus on the more popular game as soon as possible, which is good for fans.

It is also important to realize that Infinity Ward is learning what not to do for its next shooter. The developer likely has an eye on Vanguard, and it will hopefully lean towards what is working/has worked in the past, which happens to be a multiplayer experience that many believe to be the best in the series. Both Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and Call of Duty: Vanguard also had glitch-filled and imperfect implantation periods with Call of Duty: Warzone. Meanwhile, the battle royale was initially launched with Modern Warfare (2019) in mind, so it could be that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will have a smoother integration with the popular battle royale.

What is next for Sledgehammer Games

sledgehammer games logo

If it is true that Activision is making release date changes and shifting its marketing plan for what will likely be Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2—all because Call of Duty: Vanguard, was a disappointment—Sledgehammer Games could be in some trouble. The developer has created multiple Call of Duty titles, including Advanced Warfare and World War 2. However, there have been rumors of massive turmoil inside Sledgehammer Games, and one could wonder how Vanguard will impact the developer.

Call of Duty: Vanguard was originally set to release in 2020. However, thanks to development issues, Activision placed Treyarch in charge of that year's title. Apparently the fear was that Vanguard simply would not be ready in time, and therefore the team was given an additional year to create the game, which was about four years in total. That meant that Treyarch's Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War was fast forwarded, meaning that team had to launch the game a whole year earlier than expected. Sledgehammer Games' founder Glenn Schofield moved on to his new studio Striking Distance Studios, and Sledgehammer's first title without Schofield seems to have fallen short. One can wonder if this will be the last major effort allowed by the developer, and it could be that Sledgehammer is utilized as more of a Call of Duty support team exclusively moving forward, similar to Raven Software's role.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is rumored to be in development.

MORE: All the Attack on Titan Content Coming to Call of Duty