Date: January 16, 2024
By Hanna Rose
We were on the brink of achieving greatness. We were just a hair’s breadth away.
For years, Call of Duty enthusiasts have been eagerly anticipating a standalone Zombies game, but their wishes remained unfulfilled. An interesting revelation from former Raven Software lead designer Michael Gummelt’s LinkedIn profile sheds light on a missed opportunity over a decade ago.
As MP1ST reported, Gummelt worked on an “Unreleased Call of Duty: Zombies live-service game” from 2011 to 2012. Unfortunately, the project was canceled when the Activision studio overseeing that segment of the Call of Duty intellectual property decided to reclaim control. Although the studio is not explicitly named, it is likely Treyarch, as they introduced Zombies in World at War and have continued to develop it as a prominent feature in subsequent Black Ops titles.
The standalone Zombies game faced its demise in 2012, coinciding with the release of Black Ops 2, where Treyarch further expanded the Zombies experience. Despite the existence of the project a decade ago, Activision has not pursued a standalone Zombies spin-off, instead integrating the mode into various Call of Duty titles beyond Treyarch’s realm.
Gummelt’s profile reveals another intriguing detail – his role as lead designer on an “Unreleased sequel to a classic Raven IP.” Regrettably, this project met a similar fate as it was scrapped with the success of Call of Duty Warzone’s launch. While details are scant, speculation points to the classic Raven IP being Hexen/Heretic, a medieval fantasy Doom-like series that gained a cult following. Fans have longed for a revival of the series, and there is a possibility that the unreleased sequel mentioned on Gummelt’s LinkedIn page could be related.
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The hope for a Hexen revival and a standalone Zombies game may persist, but Gummelt has since moved on from Raven Software. Currently serving as an experience director at ZeniMax Online Studios, the team behind The Elder Scrolls Online, Gummelt concluded his 23-year career at Raven Software in 2021, contributing to projects like Black Ops Cold War and Warzone. The future of these potential game developments remains uncertain, leaving fans to speculate about what could have been.
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