Activision, the publisher of the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare series, says a countdown website hinting at the announcement of a Modern Warfare sequel next week is a hoax, a company representative says. Activision has nothing to do with it or the mailing of novelty dogtags to the speciality press today, viral promotions that both reference characters from the series.


"There seems to be a great deal of speculation about the next Call of Duty project. Let me be clear that we are not revealing yet," a spokesperson told Kotaku. "Anything indicating otherwise is a hoax."


That would include anything next week. The website FindMakarov.com - which invokes the name of a character tied to Modern Warfare 2's infamous "No Russian" mission - has a countdown timer set to expire at 10 a.m. EST on Wednesday. The Game Developers Conference is next week in San Francisco; Electronic Arts will be showcasing Modern Warfare competitor Battlefield 3 there at that time.

In the realm of military shooters, Activision and Electronic Arts have a plainly antagonistic rivalry. Their Battlefield and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare series are direct competitors. Further, the founders of Call of Duty's original studio, fired by Activision last year, went on to form Respawn Entertainment, a studio now allied with Electronic Arts.

The countdown site incorporates green text on a black background - evocative of Modern Warfare's own viral marketing in the past - and apparently uses the same typeface associated with the game.

The Activision representative declined to comment on the use of character names from the Modern Warfare series or the apparently deliberate attempt to mimic its marketing.


Kotaku contacted an Electronic Arts representative for comment. Any reply from the publisher will be updated here.