Despite the best efforts of Xbox and Activision to keep details about future updates and projects under wraps, previously unknown Call of Duty information leaks from time to time. One well-known insider and dataminer, TheGhostOfHope, recently claimed the idea of a standalone Call of Duty Zombies game has been considered by Microsoft.
Reportedly, it would presumably be developed by Treyarch and released alongside the next mainline Call of Duty game — believed by many to be Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 from Infinity Ward — next year with the next Xbox that's rumored to come in 2027. However, Call of Duty has come out to publicly and sharply deny the existence of said standalone Zombies game.
"The rumor factory working overtime. This ain't it," said the Call of Duty team on the franchise's main account on X (Twitter). Notably, this denial comes just a single day after the rumors of a Zombies-only release began to spread, which is quite a speedy response from the developers.
Soon after the denial was posted, TheGhostOfHope shared a response, criticizing how quickly Call of Duty shut down the rumors and ultimately standing by their original report, asserting that "everybody will forget about them lying in a few years when this stuff comes true."
"Whoever at COD PR came up with denying almost any rumor put out by anybody besides datamined stuff is a genius," they wrote. "Makes leakers look like fools & everybody will forget about them lying in a few years when this stuff comes true LOL. They know what they’re doing I’ll give them that."
The rumor factory working overtime. This ain't it.February 23, 2026
It's worth noting that TheGhostOfHope is considered a credible source of accurate information by many, though some of what they've leaked and reported in the past hasn't ended up coming to fruition. Regardless, it's their word against Call of Duty's and only time will tell which is correct.
A standalone Zombies game would be quite a departure from the norm for Call of Duty, as the PvE co-op horde mode has always been offered as part of the FPS series' complete content suite in past entries.
Personally, while I think Zombies is a lot of fun and has a large fanbase, I do think an entire game of just Zombies would need far more substantial content than what the mode currently has. Without tons of maps, a ton of different weapons, a very diverse array of zombie types, and perhaps some alternative modes, I'm not sure it would sell well.
Then again, the replies to Call of Duty's denial post are full of people telling its developers that they're "out of touch" and that they'd love a standalone Zombies game, so maybe I'm wrong. And maybe TheGhostOfHope is right, and we really will get one alongside the next Xbox console.
Whether we're getting a Zombies-only title alongside a traditional Call of Duty game or just one release, you'll be able to play what's next from the juggernaut shooter franchise with Xbox Game Pass, and PC Game Pass or Xbox Game Pass Ultimate specifically.
Would you like a standalone Zombies game?
Call of Duty says a standalone Zombies game isn't on the way, but do you believe there's secretly one in development? Would you like to play one, even if one isn't actually coming out? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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