All articles tagged with #sledgehammer games
A new report claims Sledgehammer Games was asked to develop a Halo multiplayer prototype, but the early build was canceled. Microsoft is reportedly still weighing Halo collaborations with Activision Blizzard as Xbox revisits its strategy amid ongoing industry realignments.
Rumors from RebsGaming claim Halo Studios outsourced Campaign Evolved to 15 studios and plan to rely more on external development, while Microsoft reportedly weighs Activision's Sledgehammer Games to help build future Halo titles; a prototype for an Activision Halo pitch was canceled, and no official confirmation has been given. The report highlights potential benefits of faster content creation but raises concerns about pipeline oversight and consistency across partners.
Glen Schofield, founder of Sledgehammer Games and creator of Dead Space, announced his retirement in a four-minute LinkedIn video, reflecting on a 35-year career across Visceral, Sledgehammer, and Striking Distance, noting Dead Space 4 attempts that never came to fruition, and urging the next generation to explore ideas in an industry he calls amazing and bright for the future.
A LinkedIn profile from Ben Wanat, a former Sledgehammer Games executive who is now Creative Director and co-founder of Lurker Entertainment, suggests the studio is developing an unannounced action RPG with a large world and deep lore—hinting at a potential new IP beyond Call of Duty. Wanat’s listed responsibilities point to world-building, cultures and languages, signaling a mechanics-rich RPG. The claim is unconfirmed, and while Sledgehammer’s recent work has centered on Call of Duty titles and Switch ports, there is no official confirmation of such an RPG project.
Insider Jez Cordon suggests that the first Call of Duty game for Nintendo Switch is nearly complete and could launch in a few months, signaling a return of the franchise to Nintendo platforms after a period of silence following Microsoft's acquisition of Activision.
Treyarch has confirmed that it has moved on from developing Modern Warfare Zombies, with Sledgehammer Games taking over the remaining story and content. The shift in focus is likely in preparation for the upcoming Call of Duty game, Black Ops Gulf War, which is expected to launch with its own Zombies mode. This move follows a lack of content updates for Modern Warfare Zombies, leading fans to declare the mode "dead" just three months after the release of Modern Warfare 3.
MW3 players are demanding nerfs to the Longbow sniper rifle, citing its dominance in multiplayer lobbies as unfair and frustrating. The semi-auto sniper's incredible fire rate and one-shot potential have led to widespread criticism and calls for balancing changes, with players expressing frustration and suggesting potential solutions such as removing the ability to change sights on the gun. Sledgehammer Games may address these concerns in future updates.
Modern Warfare 3 players are expressing dissatisfaction with the performance of MW2 weapons in the game, attributing it to design differences and calling for balancing changes. Sledgehammer Games has made some adjustments, but players are hoping for more significant improvements to make MW2's arsenal more competitive with MW3's weaponry. Suggestions include using MW3 attachments and addressing visual recoil issues, although the feasibility of completely reworking older guns remains uncertain.
MW3's Ranked Play mode is facing criticism as low-ranked players are being matched against significantly higher-ranked opponents, with one instance seeing a full bronze team pitted against top 250 players. The matchmaking system has been described as "horrible" and unbalanced, with concerns raised about its reliance on public match performance and the potential for reverse boosting. Despite the lack of updates from Sledgehammer Games, players are hopeful that the upcoming second season may bring necessary changes to the matchmaking system.
Layoffs at Toys for Bob and Sledgehammer Games, reportedly affecting around 40% and 30% of their staff respectively, are part of Microsoft's decision to lay off 1900 employees across its video game teams following its acquisition of Activision Blizzard and Zenimax. The layoffs have caused concern across the industry, with multiple other companies also announcing layoffs this month, and a recent report revealing that 35% of game developers had been impacted by layoffs in the last 12 months.
Despite facing backlash and review bombing, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has broken records for player engagement and hours played. The game has the highest player engagement rate among the three entries in the rebooted Modern Warfare trilogy and has seen more hours per player overall. The new zombies mode in Modern Warfare 3 has also become the most engaging third mode in Modern Warfare history. Activision plans to celebrate with a 'triple feed' of double XP during the holiday weekend.
Sledgehammer Games, the developer of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, held a Reddit AMA to address questions about the game's multiplayer but remained silent on the controversial issue of Skill-Based Matchmaking (SBMM). While SBMM has been a major concern for players, the developers did discuss other topics such as weapon balancing, operator skins, and potential gameplay changes. They also mentioned plans for fixes and adjustments to various aspects of the game based on player feedback. However, the lack of response regarding SBMM left many players disappointed.
Sledgehammer Games is working on a fix for the Gaia Operator outfit, also known as the "Groot" skin, in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. The skin has been criticized for being harder to spot during battles due to its torso's many holes. Sledgehammer plans to disable the skin until adjustments can be made and released to all players in a future game update. The launch of Modern Warfare 3 has also faced other issues, including spawn problems with certain maps.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 players are expressing frustration over the game's aggressive skill-based matchmaking system, which they claim makes matches overly competitive and less enjoyable. Despite seeking clarification and expressing their concerns, the developers, Sledgehammer Games, remained silent on the matter during a recent AMA on Reddit. The community is outraged by the lack of response and the ongoing silence from the developers, who have been advised to avoid addressing skill-based matchmaking. However, the developers did mention plans to test non-disbanding lobbies in a future update, but it remains to be seen if this will satisfy the players' demands for change.
Sledgehammer Games, the developer of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, has announced that they will temporarily remove the controversial "Groot" skin following community backlash. Players expressed frustration over the skin's visual issues, as it made the operator Nila "Nova" Brown nearly invisible in matches. The studio plans to rework the skin in a future update to make it more visible and address the concerns of the community.