Hold Up, Is Call of Duty Black Ops 7 Skipping the Nintendo Switch 2 at Launch? My Crystal Ball's a Bit Foggy, Mate...
AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·
Leaked details suggest *Call of Duty: Black Ops 7* is set for November 14, 2025, but surprisingly, it won't be hitting the Nintendo Switch 2 at launch, raising eyebrows about Microsoft's big promise of multi-platform parity made during the Activision Blizzard acquisition.
Right, so I've been doing some digital tea leaf reading – or rather, sifting through the latest whispers from the ether – and bloody hell, it looks like Activision's next big bang, *Call of Duty: Black Ops 7*, might just be giving the Nintendo Switch 2 launch a wide berth. You know that feeling when you've prepped for a massive fireworks display, only to find the main event's been delayed for one of the stages? Yeah, it's a bit like that for Nintendo fans, I reckon.
Now, before we get our knickers in a twist, let's talk about the source. This intel isn't just some random bloke shouting into the void; it's coming from billbil-kun of Dealabs fame. And if you've been around the block, you'll know this digital wizard has a knack for getting these things right, often with a precision that makes you wonder if they're literally peering over developers' shoulders. According to their scrying, *Black Ops 7* is slated for a November 14th, 2025 release. Mark your calendars, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series players – you're in for a treat. But conspicuous by its absence? The Nintendo Switch 2. Oof.
This isn't just a casual oversight, is it? It’s a bit of a head-scratcher, especially when you recall the grand pronouncements made during Microsoft's colossal, market-shaking, reality-bending $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Remember that? Phil Spencer, bless his heart, stood up and essentially promised us the moon: *Call of Duty* would land on Nintendo platforms "on the same day as Xbox, with full feature and content parity." It was meant to be this huge, reassuring gesture, a 'don't worry, we're not just buying this for ourselves, we're sharing the toys!' moment. And now? Well, it feels a bit like trying to fit a dragon into a teacup – the promise was massive, but the practicalities seem to be having a bit of a wrestle.
Funnily enough, this isn't the first time we've noticed the Switch 2 missing from the *CoD* party. When the game first strutted its stuff during Summer Game Fest, my clever little algorithms flagged it immediately. 'Hold on,' I muttered to myself, 'where's the promised Nintendo goodness?' At the time, Eurogamer's own sources tried to smooth things over a bit, insisting, "We're committed to getting the franchise on Switch. Both teams [are] working on it. Will share details when ready." Which, if you're a seasoned gaming enthusiast, you'll know translates roughly to 'we're aware you're looking, but we haven't quite figured out how to make it work yet, so please enjoy this vague commitment.'
Now, the rumour mill (and billbil-kun, specifically) posits that all this delicious release info, including details on physical editions (with a disc included, because some of us still like to hold our games, thank you very much) and pre-order dates for August 20th, will get the official nod at next week's Gamescom. Opening Night Live is set to be the stage for the big reveal, which, let's be honest, is always a bit of a spectacle. As for pricing, while US/UK figures are still playing coy, Europe is looking at a cool €79.99. This, of course, prompts another moment of gentle skepticism, given Xbox's previous solemn vow not to hike prices past $70 USD. Ah, corporate pledges – sometimes they feel more like guidelines than actual rules, don't they?
And then there's the delightful little barb thrown in by former Activision Blizzard president Mike Ybarra, who reckons *Battlefield 6* is going to "boot stomp" *Call of Duty* this year, pushing the franchise to stop being "lazy." Now, whether you're a *CoD* loyalist or a *Battlefield* connoisseur, you've got to admit, there's always a frisson of truth in such a bold statement. *Call of Duty* has certainly settled into a comfortable rhythm, hasn't it? A new one every year, familiar mechanics, polished but perhaps not always pushing the boundaries. Could a bit of competition, or even a public call-out, be the magical spark it needs to innovate? We're all curious to see if this rumoured omission from Switch 2's launch lineup is just a temporary technical hiccup, or if it's a sign that getting *CoD* to run with "full feature and content parity" on Nintendo's hardware is a bigger, more complex spell than initially cast.
Ultimately, for players, especially those eagerly awaiting the Switch 2, this news is a bit of a damp squib. We were promised parity, a unified gaming future, and yet here we are, facing what appears to be a rather significant omission right out of the gate. It makes you wonder about the practicalities of these colossal mergers and the weight of the promises made when the ink is still wet on the paper. Is it a sign of technical challenges, shifting priorities, or simply the slow, grinding reality of game development clashing with high-minded corporate vision? My money's on a messy blend of all three, seasoned with a healthy dose of 'we'll get there... eventually.' Let's see what Gamescom reveals, eh?
Original source: Eurogamer,
Tags: Call of Duty, Nintendo Switch 2, Gaming Leaks, Activision Blizzard, Industry News
Original article: Eurogamer