Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith today confirmed that Call of Duty creator Infinity Ward, which most recently handled Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, will return to the franchise next year with Call of Duty 6.

"In 2009, we expect Infinity Ward to deliver another [entry of] ground-breaking quality, Call of Duty 6," Griffith stated at today's Activision Blizzard Analyst Day. Earlier this year, the CEO revealed that a new Call of Duty game would arrive in 2009, but did not offer any other details at the time.

Confusingly, Griffith's presentation today seemed to date CoD 6 for 2010 as well. After discussing Treyarch's Call of Duty: World at War, which he referred to as Call of Duty 5, the CEO said that "for calendar year 2010, Infinity Ward is already at work on the next installment in the franchise."

Following publisher Activision's "leapfrog strategy" of alternating developers, Infinity Ward's Call of Duty 6 will follow up Treyarch's Call of Duty: World at War, which launches on November 5 for PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PS2, and Wii. Treyarch had also developed Call of Duty 3 as a part of that strategy.