Rumoured Call Of Duty: Vanguard 'Won't Be Released In 2021'
Don't put your money on jumping into the muddy trenches of World War II with Call of Duty: Vanguard in 2021. Much like the months before Treyarch officially announced Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, the internet is awash with rumours and theories about what Sledgehammer Games is cooking up in the lab. Since Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's release in 2011, Sledgehammer has developed or collaborated on some major CoD games. Even last year, Sledgehammer assisted Treyarch and Raven Software on Cold War.
Although we know Sledgehammer is hard at work on Call of Duty 2021 (or maybe 2022), the rest is up for interpretation. The latest round of rumours claim the next game will be set in World War II and once again take the popular shooter series back to its roots. The title Vanguard has been thrown around, while there are also reports the game will be set in a fictional reality where WWII never ended. We're expecting the usual fanciful idea of the marmite Advanced Warfare to return, however, rumours claim Vanguard might not release in 2021.
Will Call of Duty: Vanguard release in 2021?
Posting on Twitter, reliable leaker TheMW2Ghost says they've been given the "green light" to share the news that Vanguard might not release in 2021. It's important to note they wrote, "It is *possible* that we won’t see Vanguard this year", which official word from up high. Then again, the cryptic way they said they were allowed to share the news suggests there's something more to it. The idea of a delayed CoD comes off the back of industry inside Tom Henderson saying, "Vanguard... To put it simply, is a f*****g disaster".
Henderson is adamant Vanguard will be "held back to badly" by current-gen hardware. Keen to cash in on the biggest CoD fanbase possible, Activision is apparently planning on releasing the next two games on current and next-gen consoles. While this means PlayStation 4 and Xbox One owners won't be left in the dust as the franchise moved forward, trying to juggle four console versions is a lot for anyone to tackle.
What happens if Call of Duty: Vanguard doesn't release in 2021?
It makes sense that Vanguard will release on current and next-gen, but as the industry moves into a new era, how much longer can Activision cling onto the PS4 and Xbox One? Releasing on current-gen for Call of Duty 2021 was always going to happen, but if Vanguard is pushed in 2022, then surely the game after would then move to 2023? By this point, the PS5 and Xbox Series will be well into their life cycles as current-gen consoles start to wind down.
Interestingly, the latest leaks directly contradict a recent interview with Activision. Speaking to VentureBeat, Activision President of Publishing Rob Kostich said the company is shifting toward later announcements for games. When pressed on why the company has gone quiet about what comes after Cold War, Kostich explained, "Most of the reason is — you’ve seen what we have in Season 3 this week. We have so much to talk about and so much going on that’s happening this week. We want to focus on that with the community, focus on the journey with them". He also said Activision is changing the way it markets its titles.
Ultimately, no one's quite sure what's going on with Call of Duty: Vanguard and whether we'll even see it in 2021. If Vanguard is pushed back, it will be the first time since 2004 we haven't had a new CoD game. Here's hoping Sledgehammer and Activision get all their ducks in a row and the next chapter can deliver on its potential to be a suitable sequel to the blockbusting Black Ops Cold War.
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