UPDATE: Bungie: Call of Duty Conversation “Might Come Up”

At the moment, Bungie’s partnership with Activision is solely focused on its own universe and titles – but the Halo maker won’t rule out potentially working on Activision’s own series on the side.

When it was announced yesterday that Halo developer Bungie had signed on a partnership with Activision, many assumed that the studio was Activision’s new FPS ace in the whole to replace the crumbling Infinity Ward. Despite fans worried that their favorite studio had sold out to the devil, Bungie employees took pains to assure them that the developers were still independent and retained full control over their properties.

While the partnership is primarily based around Bungie’s new game universe, and Bungie’s main focus right now is completing Halo: Reach, Bungie’s community manager Brian Jarrard told UGO to never say never regarding Activision’s other properties. Theoretically, Bungie could potentially opt to work on other titles originating from Activision brands like Call of Duty.

“It’s a discussion that might come up, but they partnered with us specifically based on the vision that we have, and the universe and games that we want to bring to the world in the next decade,” said Jarrard. “Who’s to know if there are other discussions where we have chances to work together in other areas, but that wasn’t one of the core talking points in making this deal.”

I don’t doubt Jarrard’s word that it wasn’t really a part of the negotiations between Bungie and Activision thus far: One party is focused on making its next game and the planning for its new “universe,” and the other is trying to keep its previously prized studio from falling apart.

But I’ll eat my hat if people – on both sides of the conversation – haven’t at least thought about it. “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 – now from the makers of Halo!” Would that sell like crazy or what?

Or what about Guitar Halo, eh? Eh??

Update: Jarrard has clarified his comments to VideoGamer, saying that Bungie is not thinking about doing Call of Duty “at all.”

“But it’s definitely not something we’re interested in at all, and there have been no discussions around that. This partnership and every discussion over the last nine months has been solely based on Bungie bringing its own original IP and its next universe to life … It’s possible that I said, like I wouldn’t say that we would never have that discussion. But I should definitely clarify that a hundred per cent our focus going forward is on our own IP.

“We are definitely inspired and excited to work on our own original IP. Working on somebody else’s intellectual property does not excite us at all.”