Call of Duty – World War II

Taking things back to the time of World War 2, COD is all set to generate a new platform for strategy game lovers. This is where COD built its reputation, and fans have been clamouring for a return to WW2 for years. Ironic, considering there was WW2 fatigue only a few years ago. Since Battlefield 1 proved that going backwards (in time) can take shooters forward (in quality), this could be a real landmark in the COD franchise. Sledgehammer, the developer, is promising realism and a proper buddies of war story in single player, similar to the amazing TV show Band of Brothers. The game will hit all the biggest WW2 battles too, taking players all over Europe and through a big chunk of time, across multiple character perspectives. Multiplayer is going WW2 too, and there will be a new zombies mode to blast through that promises to be darker and more terrifying than ever before.

Call of Duty WW2 release date: 3 November, 2017

Formats: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC

Developer: Sledgehammer

‘Call of Duty in November release window shock,’ said no one ever. It could potentially slip but Activision usually lock this stuff down firmly. Disasters not withstanding, expect to be playing on that date. Forget robo-legs and jet packs, this is ‘boots on the ground,’ old school COD. From the classic ping of the M1-Garand, to Grease Guns and trenches. So far we’ve seen the Normandy beach landings and an assault through Hürtgen Forest. The 1943-44 window seems to focus on the European Assault with mention of Paris and Aachen in Germany. It sounds a lot like this Call of Duty will be about ending the war.

The campaign mainly follows the 1st Airborne Infantry, in particular two soldiers called Red Daniels and Zussman, from the D-day landings, through France and all the way into Germany. One other playable character, a French Resistance woman called Rousseau, has also been named. However, the emphasis seems to about sticking with Daniels and Zussman, and using other characters for occasional pacing. There will also be some prominant non-playable characters too with concept art showing an SS officer, a child, and mention from Sledgehammer of “a German family and two sisters, Crowley, a British officer, and an African-American officer from another regiment.” Sledgehammer’s Michael Condrey also mentioned a few gameplay changes. For example, there won’t be unlimited sprint this time, which makes sense from a Second World War perspective. It’s also confirmed that you’ll get things like health and ammo thrown to you from squad mates – no hiding behind a wall to heal this time. Big changes are obviously on the way for Call of Duty WW2 as it leaves behind space war for muddy trenches. Don’t expect any boost jumps or tech this time, instead the phrase Sledgehammer keep repeating is ‘boots on the ground’.

Instead of the gadgets there’s talk of “strategic, grounded fast action” and “really unique map designs”. There are some classic gun names being thrown around as well too, like the Garand, SMG-44, Thompson and ‘Grease Gun,’ as well as mention of shotguns and LMGs. There’s also a new mode called War, which is promising an asymmetric, narrative-based multiplayer mode built around different scenarios. Sledgehammer is describing those as “a series of objective-driven conflicts” and overall it sounds a lot like Battlefield 1’s Operations and Frontlines modes.There’s also the reveal that create-a-class is no more. Instead we’ll be getting ‘Divisions’ a more class based approach to character creation. According to Sledgehammer’s Michael Condrey, the options will be drawn from “five iconic World War 2 divisions each with specific basic combat training, division training and weapon skills.