Weeks before the long-awaited return of one of gaming’s most popular industry events, (E3 2019), Activision and Infinity Ward decided to surprise fans by announcing the next great chapter in the epic Call of Duty Franchise, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. This game is set to bring fans of the series back to the game’s roots while exploring modern day warfare in all its gritty realism.
With the reveal trailer having been released, fans are clamoring to see what the new game is going to bring. Here are 10 things we learned from the new epic video game trailer.
10 10. It’s A Reboot
One of the first things we learned from this trailer was that instead of being a direct remake of the original Modern Warfare or a continuation of the series somehow, the new Modern Warfare is actually going to be a soft reboot of the franchise.
From the game trailer, we see elements of the original franchise, but a completely new and upgraded sense of realism that the creators are eager to bring to the franchise. It seems the creators are banking on the fans love of the original franchise and the new realism based direction they are taking the game.
9 9. Captain Price Is Back
One of the original series' most popular characters has to be Captain Price. A commanding officer who has sacrificed himself countless times to get the mission completed, he has faced imprisonment at the hands of a known terrorist, been betrayed by a commanding officer, labeled a traitor, and lost friends and longtime allies in the franchise.
Having appeared in the first three games in the series, Captain Price is shown to be making a comeback in the new game, albeit within a new timeline and played by actor Barry Sloane, who brings a new take to the rogue style soldier.
8 8. No Zombie Mode
One of the Call of Duty games' most popular game modes (apart from the single player and multiplayer modes) has to be zombie mode. In this part of the franchise, new stories set against the supernatural backdrop of a zombie invasion has slowly become a staple of the franchise.
From zombies in space or amusement parks, to zombie outbreaks in WWII era Europe, the zombies have become synonymous with COD. Yet in the new Modern Warfare, the creators have opted to forgo the zombie mode, instead playing into the realism they are trying to maintain as part of the game.
7 7. Sgt. McTavish Is Back
While not officially confirmed yet, reports from Polygon are indicating that Sgt. John “Soap” McTavish will officially be making a comeback alongside his old pal Captain Price after all.
While the report from Polygon doesn’t go into detail, the report is from an in-depth interview and on-site reveal the team did at Infinity Ward, indicating that the character’s return is all but confirmed. Fans will remember Soap as a longtime playable and non-playable character in the franchise. He made an appearance in all three of the original Modern Warfare games, playing an integral role to the plot.
6 6. Shocking Moment Featuring Child Soldier
One of the more shocking, and sadly realistic, parts of the trailer and on-site demo some experienced of the game thus far was the revelation that part of the game would come from the perspective of a female freedom fighter/rebel.
While that in itself is a fresh new take in the series, what’s shocking about it is the fact that the game takes gamers into this woman’s struggle by starting it in her childhood. Players must traverse a war-torn city as this child and her brother try to escape from soldiers attacking innocent civilians in the streets.
5 5. Game Will Feature Cross-Play
One of the more shocking revelations from the trailer reveal and subsequent interviews has to be the revelation that the game will feature cross-play among the various game consoles.
This is not only a major milestone for the franchise as a whole, but for mainstream games overall as cross-play has mainly been a staple of games like Rocket League, Fortnite and Dauntless. Being able to keep track of stats and playing across PC and console games is sure to give the Call of Duty franchise a massive leg up on other console game franchises in the game industry.
4 4. Multiplayer Takes Place Within Main Game’s Narrative
One of the key takeaways from the trailer was the revelation of new and old features to the multiplayer aspect of the game. Multiplayer has always been a staple of the franchise, and this game is no different.
One of the first changes that gamers may notice is how their progress in the single-player campaign carries over into the multiplayer side of things, so that their streaks and abilities are always evolving between both game modes. This indicates the multiplayer part of the game will tie significantly into the narrative of the single-player campaign for Call of Duty.
3 3. Return Of Classic Multiplayer Playground
While not much is none on specifics for the multiplayer mode of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, there is an indication based on the game trailer that large open playground maps are making a return to the franchise.
Although it has been revealed that the game will not have a season pass filled with additional maps at the game’s launch, creators have said through interviews and the trailer that they will find a replacement of sorts for the lack of a season pass. No word yet on how they plan to accomplish this has been announced, but fans will see.
2 2. Features Squad And Co-Op Based Elite Operations
One thing that the developers at Infinity Ward have indicated that the trailer seems to hint at as well is the fact that the single-player campaign will feed into the Co-Op mode of the game seamlessly.
This means that anyone playing the single player campaign should be able to carry over the stats they’ve earned and the story should be relevant to the Co-Op mode of the game overall. This seems to showcase a lack of wave based Co-Op mode, which in previous games saw waves of enemies attacking you and a partner in the game.
1 1. Releases On…
…October 25, 2019. That’s right, the epic game reveal also let fans know that the game would be released towards the end of October, about six days before Halloween. With so much time between now and then, new details are sure to emerge, especially with the highly anticipated event E3 2019 waiting on the horizon.
Whatever story or multiplayer details emerge from the event, fans can rest assured that no matter what happens at E3, they will be able to play the reimagining of the classic COD franchise before the year is out, right before the holiday season kicks off.