It seems like labeling Call of Duty: Warzone developer Raven Software as a support studio is no longer accurate. Based on recent hires, the studio that is currently working on Call of Duty: Warzone is comprised of roughly 350 developers.
This is a noticeable change, as Raven has never been as large as Treyarch, Infinity Ward, or Call of Duty 2021 developer Sledgehammer Games. Raven has instead assisted with development on numerous Call of Duty titles, with one of the most prominent examples of this being seen with Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. Raven was responsible for the campaign in the 2020 game, a story mode that was fairly well received by fans. Beyond that, Raven made Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered a few years back.
While Raven also made its own games like Singularity in the past, its focus is now entirely on Call of Duty: Warzone. Given the success of the battle royale genre and Call of Duty: Warzone specifically, this is understandable. However, Raven becoming the lead developer on Call of Duty: Warzone ensured that it needed to become just as large as the other Call of Duty studios. According to VGC, the studio has more than doubled, as only about 150 people were working at Raven back in 2015.
Of major note is the fact that a hundred people have joined Raven Software in the past twelve months alone, showing an impressive level of growth for the studio. Given that only 250 developers were listed in the credits that played after the Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War campaign, the number becomes even more impressive. Intriguingly, there are still 41 open positions listed on Raven’s website, so the studio could end up hitting 400 developers in the near future. As for who specifically was hired, there have been a few big names picked up by Raven.
Respawn’s lead animator Manuel Torres Pineda was picked up by the developer, as was Far Cry 6 game director Ted Timmins. Finally, Fortnite senior producer William Fine has also joined Raven, likely bringing his expertise on making a successful battle royale over to the studio. Overall, these hires make sense, as Activision is focusing heavily on Call of Duty at the moment. Call of Duty: Warzone is specifically important to the publisher, though with every Activision-owned studio supposedly working on the franchise, there should be all kinds of Call of Duty content on the way.
With Call of Duty: Warzone’s new map supposedly in the works, and cheating more prevalent than ever, the studio’s many new hires will have plenty to work on. For fans of the battle royale game, hopefully Raven continuing to expand will result in a better experience.
Call of Duty: Warzone is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
Source: VGC