If Call of Duty: Vanguard is anything like World at War, I'm excited

Date:
Wed, 18 Aug 2021 16:39:30 +0000

Description:
Ahead of Call of Duty: Vanguards full reveal, one writer argues that Activision should look to past games for inspiration.

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Its official: the next Call of Duty game is called Vanguard, and will see players whisked back to the battlegrounds of World War II. Activision
Blizzard lawsuit

Publisher Activision Blizzard, responsible for the game this article refers to, is currently embroiled in ongoing litigation in regards to claims reporting a workplace culture that allegedly enabled acts of sexual harassment, abuse and discrimination. Read our Activision Blizzard lawsuit timeline of events for ongoing coverage of the events.

While we were all-but certain of both those facts in the run-up to the games official reveal, a teaser trailer shared to Call of Dutys official social channels confirmed a little more of what to expect when Vanguard releases
and I, for one, am excited.

But that excitement doesnt come from what Vanguard might introduce into the storied franchise by way of new features. Instead, Im keen to see just how much the game harks back to the gritty realism of fan-favorite entry Call of Duty: World at War, released by developer Treyarch some 13 years ago. Check out our review of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Call of Duty: Mobile zombies is returning, but not as you remember it Everything we know about Battlefield 2042

Its worth noting that I am no huge Call of Duty fan. Im much more of a story-driven gamer, with less of an interest in massive multiplayer modes
like Warzone and more time for immersive narrative experiences la Red Dead Redemption or The Last of Us.

And thats why Call of Duty: World at War sticks in the mind. For all of Activisions success in milking the first-person multiplayer machine over the last decade, 2008s entry delivered what is still, for my money, the best Call of Duty campaign of them all, and the most accomplished realisation of WWII and its horrors ever seen in a video game. Its both hilarious and sad that
COD WaW is still the best AAA WW2 shooter ever made and that game came out in 2008 lol. August 13, 2021 See more

Vanguard, then, would do well to lean on the successes of its forefather in terms of authenticity, especially, but also in the way it conveys that authenticity into the games inevitably more popular multiplayer components.

Its likely well hear more about Vanguards premise during the games more substantial release on August 19, but for now, heres why Sledgehammer should take inspiration from World at War with its next shoot-em-up. Pacific
promises

There is, of course, an elephant in the room. Since World at War, theres already been a newer Call of Duty game set during World War II the imaginatively-named Call of Duty: WW2 .

Also developed by Sledgehammer games, WW2 was, in fairness, an authentic and visceral experience that placed story at the forefront of its single-player campaign. But its decision to focus entirely on the European theater of war, taking players through wintery forests and bombed-out cities, meant WW2 never boasted the scope of World at War, nor its sense of variety.

Some of the best campaign missions in Call of Duty history took place in
World at Wars chaotic Pacific battlegrounds. Little Resistance, Burn 'em Out and Breaking Point saw players traverse the beaches and palm trees of Peleliu and Okinawa with frightening realism. Kiefer Sutherlands Sergeant Roebuck barked orders as Japanese soldiers descended from above and behind, while an unconventional soundtrack scored the mayhem to provide an altogether
different experience to the games equally-good European missions. (Image credit: Treyarch / Activision)

How many times are we going to play through an increasingly-pretty version of the D-Day landings? As mentioned, Call of Duty: WW2 delivered a competent campaign awash with camaraderie and typically-bombastic Hollywood set-pieces, but it all felt a little, well, samey.

That sense of monotony seeped into the games multiplayer, too. WW2s maps were either plucked straight from its Europe-based campaign or were re-hashed versions of modern sandboxes (an ever-so-slightly-changed version of Gibraltar, for instance, seems to appear in every Call of Duty game), which resulted in a complete absence of the open beaches and makeshift tunnel systems that World at Wars multiplayer, in comparison, so expertly adapted from its single-player.

Thankfully, judging by Vanguards first teaser trailer, proceedings are once again set to switch between hemispheres in the upcoming game, with some all-new desert combat also thrown in for good measure. Join the #BattleofVerdansk and experience the worldwide reveal of Call of Duty: Vanguard - 8/19 - 10:30am PT - Verdansk pic.twitter.com/N0efSm5nOA August 16, 2021 See more

With any luck, Sledgehammer will also opt for World at Wars split-narrative approach to the games campaign, rather than having us fill the boots of a single soldier unrealistically globe-trotting their way through the Second World War's very different conflicts.

If they could bring Kiefer Sutherland back, too, thatd be great. True grit

Another feather in World at Wars cap and a surprising one, given its lack of graphical fidelity was its reluctance to shy away from the horrors of war.

Again, Call of Duty: WW2 wasnt exactly lacking in the violence department,
but it never quite captured the sense of terror experienced by soldiers on
the ground in the same way as its 2008 counterpart.

Of course, the question of whether that level of realism belongs in a video game is altogether larger, but World at Wars campaign is remembered for its shock value and commitment to faithfully portraying the bullet-laden chaos. (Image credit: Treyarch / Activision)

Who could forget that Stalingrad mission, for instance? Or storming the Reichstag with an expletive-toting Gary Oldman (Viktor Reznov) at your side?

Call of Duty: Vanguard, especially, can utilize the power of the PS5 and Xbox Series X to create a truly visceral battlefield experience and judging by
the rumors weve heard so far surrounding the game's graphics, it looks primed to deliver just that. I've just watched a campaign mission of #Vanguard on
the PS5 - And it's probably one of the best-looking games on current-gen consoles.It's a bold statement to make, but it looks beautiful. August 18, 2021 See more A forgotten hero

To be completely honest, Im just bummed out that World at War didnt get the next-gen (or old-gen, now) remaster it deserved, especially after the special treatment received by the entries either side of it (both Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2 have been remastered in recent years).

Whether thats because Activision considers World at War a black sheep of the franchise or because it doubts the games enduring commercial appeal, well never know, but the studio now has a chance to make Call of Duty: Vanguard a worthy successor to one of the best first-person-shooters of the noughties.

Just no jetpacks, please... New Battlefield 2042 mode lets you bring defibrillators to a knife fight



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/if-call-of-duty-vanguard-is-anything-like-world -at-war-im-excited/


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