Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 will feature a 20v20 mode called Skirmish. That's according to a new Black Ops 7 leak that comes from Activision itself.
The 2025 installment in the Call of Duty franchise was officially announced in a "one more thing" moment at the end of the latest Xbox Games Showcase in early June. No specific release window was given, though historical precedent suggests Black Ops 7 is most likely to hit the market around October.
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PostsIn an unusual gaffe on June 26, the Xbox version of the Call of Duty HQ app appears to have leaked some loading screens from an internal Black Ops 7 playtest, which may or may not have already happened. The images currently circulating social media reveal several previously unreported tidbits about the upcoming title, including its supposed inclusion of a new game mode called Skirmish.
Black Ops 7 Skirmish Mode Promises Objective-Driven Gameplay on a Large Map
Skirmish is described as a multiplayer experience in which two teams of 20 players clash in an objective-driven gameplay loop "across a large map." Objectives include destroying payloads, transmitting valuable data, and capturing points of interest. One of the leaked loading screens explicitly mentions wingsuit use as part of the new Call of Duty mode, further emphasizing the open nature of the map—or maps—Skirmish takes place on.
CloseThe "closed internal playtest" (CIP) referenced in the leaked loading screens may not have taken place yet. One of the leaked assets states the CIP is scheduled for a Friday–Sunday window. While no specific dates are provided, this may refer to the forthcoming June 27–29 period. Activision has not acknowledged the leak in any form, nor has it (yet) issued copyright takedowns for the images circulating on social media—something that it's known to do. As is always the case with development initiatives of this sort, the sole fact that a new game mode has undergone a closed internal playtest (or is about to) does not guarantee it will appear in the finished product. Even if it does in this instance, the final Black Ops 7 version of Skirmish could differ significantly from the newly leaked CIP build.
Two teams of 20 fight to complete objectives across a large map. Capture points of interest, destroy payloads, and transmit valuable data to score. Use your wingsuit to flank and reach objectives before your enemy. The first team to reach the score limit wins.
Based on historical patterns, Activision is likely to share more details about Black Ops 7 by early August 2025, as the publisher has rarely waited more than eight weeks between announcing a new Call of Duty installment and providing a more detailed preview of it. Black Ops 7 is also rumored to be the first Call of Duty title in over a decade to launch on a Nintendo console, namely the Switch 2. That speculation stems in part from Microsoft’s 2022 agreement to bring a decade’s worth of (new) Call of Duty games to Nintendo platforms—an initiative that has yet to materialize. The last entry in the series to release on a Nintendo console was Infinity Ward’s Call of Duty: Ghosts, which debuted on the Wii U and other platforms in 2013.
