The alpha for Call of Duty 2020 was accidentally discovered on the PSN database. This all started when PS4 Database, a site that catalogues PSN activity, created a new entry for a game called The Red Door. The name doesn’t immediately scream Call of Duty, but the Content ID is what gave it away. “EP0002-CUSA20074_00-COD2020INTALPHA1,” it reads, clearly indicating that we’re looking at the alpha build of this year’s Call of Duty. This was further confirmed by PS4 Patches, which discovered a number of massive patches the game has received over the past couple of months. It’s common for game developers to privately share development builds over partner networks like PSN, Xbox Live and Steam. With everyone working from home this year, this trend no doubt continued. The ID details don’t tell us much about the game, other than it’ll - unsurprisingly - support PS4 Pro, and that it has the highest age rating, which indicates a Mature rating. Usually, this would be all there is to it, but some managed to datamine some interesting information from what’s available at these links.
Some claim to have uncovered the game’s keyart, but it doesn’t have the full name. This year’s game is reportedly named Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, with the Cold War subtitle specifically missing. Activision could have dropped Cold War from the name, though that’s anyone’s guess at this stage. More intriguing than the cover art is the discovery that the game will be bringing back Zombies mode, and may even add zombies to Warzone. According to Modern Warzone, the files include acronyms for campaign (CP), multiplayer (MP), Zombies (ZM), Warzone (WZ), and what could be Warzone Zombies (WZZM). Activision previously said that Warzone will live alongside future premium Call of Duty games, so it’s not a stretch to imagine Treyarch will be putting its own spin on Warzone following the launch of its new game. This week’s PS5 event may bring us a first look at this year’s Call of Duty, given the timing. We’ll keep you updated.
