Call of Duty Vanguard has been officially confirmed as the 2021 installment of the annual first-person shooter franchise. While the name and some details were leaked weeks ago, this is the first time that publisher Activision has officially shown off this year’s game.
The latest entry in the wildly popular series was announced on Monday, when the official Call of Duty Twitter account posted a short trailer. Running barely two minutes long, this is definitely a teaser trailer, but it finally confirms what online leaks have suggested for a while now: the game will be titled Call of Duty Vanguard and will seemingly be set during World War II.
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The live-action trailer gives very little away beyond that. However, it does show off four unique locations, which gives us a potential hint at the various settings in which the game will take place. Each one also features a face hidden in the background; these could be the members of the titular Vanguard.
Join the #BattleofVerdansk and experience the worldwide reveal of Call of Duty: Vanguard📅 - 8/19🕥 - 10:30am PT📍 - Verdansk pic.twitter.com/N0efSm5nOAAugust 16, 2021
Key art for the game was also revealed, focusing on four soldiers in the heat of battle. It seems likely that these mystery characters will have an important role to play in Call of Duty Vanguard. Perhaps they'll be unique character classes in multiplayer, or they might feature prominently in the game's single-player campaign (if it has one).
Call of Duty: #VanguardWorldwide Reveal on August 19 in #Warzone pic.twitter.com/DQTqaaLsF8August 16, 2021
A worldwide reveal for Call of Duty Vanguard is set to take place on August 19 at 1:30 p.m. ET (10:30 a.m. PT / 6:30 p.m. BST) during a special event within Call of Duty Warzone, the hugely popular free-to-play online battle royale game. Last year’s Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War had its grand unveiling within Warzone, too.
It’s also been confirmed that as per previous rumors, Call of Duty Vanguard is being developed by Sledgehammer Games. The developer previously took the lead on 2015’s Call of Duty Advanced Warfare and 2017’s Call of Duty WWII. The latter was the last time the Call of Duty franchise featured a World War II setting. The most recent games in the series have all been set during the Cold War, the present day, or the near future.
No release date or platform information has been revealed as of yet. However, based on the annualized nature of the Call of Duty franchise, we can assume the game will launch in either October or November of this year. As for platforms, it’ll almost certainly be available on PS5, Xbox Series X and PC, with PS4 and Xbox One versions likely as well.
Call of Duty Vanguard will face stiff competition for the attention of online shooter players this fall, as both Battlefield 2042 and Halo Infinite are scheduled to release before the year is out. Though perhaps the game’s historical setting will help it stand out compared with its more futuristic contemporaries.
