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Infinity Ward aims to turn Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare into a new sub series

Infinite Warfare will likely have multiple sequels, like Modern Warfare and Black Ops.

David Craddock

August 19, 2016 2:05 PM

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If Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare director Taylor Kurosaki has his way, Infinite Warfare will be the opening salvo in a mini series of Infinite Warfare-branded titles.

"We want to establish our own new subfranchise," Kurosaki told Polygon in an interview. "Our own new branch of the Call of Duty tree. What we are developing here could certainly support multiple games. We’re trying to develop a very rich world that we’re not even close to exhausting."

Infinite Warfare is no reboot. "It’s a loaded term. I wouldn’t use that term," Kurosaki said. I would look at it... How would you define what Modern Warfare was, or Black Ops? What would you call those games to the franchise? That is how I would refer to this."

Kurosaki joined Infinity Ward in 2014 after leaving The Last of Us studio Naughty Dog. He felt no connection to Call of Duty: Ghosts, and although he wouldn't say why, it's not hard to guess. Even to long-time fans, Ghosts felt like a stopgap: it was the first CoD on Xbox One and PS4, and didn't have much of a hook beyond your canine companion.

In comparison, Modern Warfare and Black Ops have been around for long enough to have deep histories in and of themselves in addition to being parts of the larger Call of Duty universe. That's what Kurosaki wants for Infinite Warfare: a major shift, and the beginning of a franchise-within-a-franchise that has legs.

"I'm sure that the Infinity Ward team felt the same kind of tremendous burden when they went from World War II to modern warfare. It's an entire world with new weapons, vehicles, AI, under-the-hood stuff. We're doing the exact same stuff here. This is as much of a sea change."

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare blasts off for Xbox One, PS4, and PC on November 4. It stars Game of Thrones actor Kit Harrington as the villain, and despite starting a new branch on the CoD tree, contains fan-favorite trappings like a zombie mode... IN SPACE.

David Craddock

Long Reads Editor

David L. Craddock writes fiction, nonfiction, and grocery lists. He is the author of the Stay Awhile and Listen series, and the Gairden Chronicles series of fantasy novels for young adults. Outside of writing, he enjoys playing Mario, Zelda, and Dark Souls games, and will be happy to discuss at length the myriad reasons why Dark Souls 2 is the best in the series. Follow him online at davidlcraddock.com and @davidlcraddock.