They retconed the villain into the past. He, and the other main character, saved the terrorist you shot in all Ghillied up.
It was a flashback, Forrest Gump like segment where they showed you that the new guy was apart of the series the entire time you just didn't know it.
Makarov and Yuri being there when Price sniped Zakhaev, when the nuke was set off in the middle east, and Yuri trying to stop you and Makarov in the Russian airport
I hated MW3's multiplayer, it was a piece of shit. The worst CoD multiplayer by far. But I liked the singleplayer and since Sledgehammer helped w/ it, I am optimistic.
Not the only reason this 'rumour' bit sounds dumb, but I would think Activision to be smarter to dodge any kind of trademark disputes (no matter how ridiculous) with Ubisoft (Rainbow 6: Patriots).