Forget assault rifles and armoured cars – this year’s Call of Duty looks set to ditch modern warfare for full on sci-fi space combat.

For a series that started in the trenches of World War 2, Call of Duty has come a seriously long way.

Advanced Warfare and Black Ops III strayed into the near future, but according to a juicy internet rumour the next entry in the series will scrap all that and move head-first into science fiction.

This year’s Call of Duty game is in the hands of Infinity Ward, which was responsible for starting the franchise and catapulting it into the mainstream with 2007’s Modern Warfare. It could be a big departure for the team though.

We’re hearing that warring sci-fi groups will be clashing in the distant future, which could mean anything; lasers, zero gravity combat, jetpacks and railguns are all on the cards.

Industry insider Shinobi revealed the theme in a NeoGaf post, saying Infinity Ward were looking at the “very far future” and would be going “full on sci-fi”. Gaming outlet Eurogamer has since had independent reports confirming the same, so it’s looking fairly concrete.

If the rumours turn out to be true, it means 2016 could be the year of the space shooter – Titanfall 2 is set to land in Q3, and Mass Effect: Andromeda should warp in by the end of the year (or possibly early 2017, if EA gets is space coordinates out of whack).

Nothing has been officially confirmed yet, so this could still be a rumour that’s deader than an astronaut with a hole in his space suit, but Activision hasn’t denied it yet.

We’re expecting an official reveal in June to coincide with E3, with the game likely landing in November.