Should Sledgehammer bring WWII back to Call of Duty?
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What's next?
Call of Duty has a new full-fledged developer. Sledgehammer Games is now part of a trinity of game developers that will be creating an annual Call of Duty title, freeing up more time each game maker has to create its respective sequel. Right now, Infinity Ward has the Ghosts series set in the near future; Treyarch could conceivably continue the Black Ops series (which is also set in the near future). With the CoD series spanning wars from World War II to the future, we have to ask, "What setting will Sledgehammer take for its new game?"
As far as wars involving guns go, Call of Duty has most of the major ones covered. It's hard to imagine what new trail in modern-ish warfare Sledgehammer could blaze. But I've come up with a list of possible settings Call of Duty could tackle, and all of them have the potential to be awesome. Where should Call of Duty go next? Read on.
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Vietnam War
Black Ops may have dabbled in the Vietnam War, but that was all behind-the-scenes, secret operative stuff. We still haven't experienced the conflict from the perspective of the average soldier holding his own in the jungles of 'Nam. Some of the greatest moments from the old WWII games in the CoD series came from being a participant in the massive, famous battles from history, and now I think it's time that Vietnam gets the same treatment.
What's most interesting about setting Sledgehammer's game in Vietnam is that the jungle environment and enemy Viet Kong tactics could make for some intense engagements. Enemies could use guerrilla tactics in the jungle, hitting your squad in the middle of a patrol, then disappearing into their dug-in hideouts. But there wouldn't be a lack of huge battles. The Battle of Hamburger Hill was one of the most hard-fought and tragic of the war. And while a CoD version of the battle could be one of the most epic missions ever, showcasing conflicts like these could give the developer a chance to show how much war actually, really sucks.
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Far future
Look, I know that this is pushing CoD close to the Halo zone of FPSs, but going into outer space and having futuristic weaponry isn't too farfetched for the series. In previous Call of Duty games, players have already spent some time floating around in space, shooting zombies on the moon, and getting their hands on super-advanced tech. Sledgehammer could make bringing CoD to a far--but perceivably realistic--future a setting that could work.
So far, the series has taken us almost as far as the year 2030, which really isn't that far into the future. What would really be interesting would be to go into the distant future, perhaps 100 years, when the world would be almost unrecognizable. Maybe in the future, new tensions will rise between nations (anything to make it so that we won't have to fight Russians again). Advanced technology could give players more gadgets to play with, and soldiers won't be shooting bullets anymore. If Sledgehammer wants to differentiate its game from all of the others, a radically changed future would be a surefire setting to distinguish yet another CoD.
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SWAT
Ok, this one is a long shot--but hey, soldiers aren't the only ones who answer the call of duty. Drug-soaked streets and heavily-armed thugs can make city streets a warzone. Why not put players in the role of a Special Weapons and Tactics officer on the mean streets of cities around the world? Better yet, make the world some sort of alternate universe in which the law is outnumbered and failing, and criminals rule the cities with an iron fist. But, uh, different from Judge Dredd.
Playing a police officer could have features parallel with what other Call of Duty titles have. You could work as a team to take down a murderous drug lord and his cartel, losing your beloved squadmates to police corruption and betrayal. The police could get state-of-the-art equipment, like drones and weapons, to help in tense hostage standoffs. There certainly wouldn't be any missed opportunities to breach doors here and there. Sounds like a perfect fit to me.
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Completely take over Treyarch's Zombies world
Treyarch created a monster when it introduced it's Nazi Zombies mode in World at War. The wave-based horde mode got so big that Black Ops 2's Zombies was a full open-world. But where can Zombies go from here? How about the undead shamblers get their own developer, say Sledgehammer, and get their own full blown, full-featured game with a story, multiplayer, and, of course, classic Zombies mode.
Zombies has been so successful that I wouldn't be surprised if Activision decided to put a dedicated developer behind the concept. Players could follow a ragtag group of survivors as they attempt to stay alive in the undead-infested world, raiding other survivor camps, defending their base, and moving around an even larger open-world. There could even be a multiplayer mode in which players use the outlandish Zombies mode weapons against each other. It would be a silly contrast to the other CoD's more serious wartime tales and settings. But really, I just want to vaporize an opposing team with the Wunderwaffe.
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World War II
Yeah, I know. World War II has been completely done to death, but that was last, last-gen. We haven't seen a true WWII game in some time now, and in all seriousness, I think I'm ready to get back into shooting-up Nazis again. The second World War was one of the most famous wars in history, but it still can be seen from many more perspectives than have already been presented in games.
The other positive about bringing back the World War II era is that this is the chance to see war-torn Europe in all its next-gen visual glory. Imagine storming the beaches of Normandy with thousands of soldiers running by your side getting blown to mulch, or manning a sniper nest in the besieged city of Stalingrad. You've played those levels already--but imagine them with all the next-gen particles you could shake a rifle at.
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What setting do you want to see?
That's my wishlist for the settings I would like to see Sledgehammer's CoD create. Do you have any settings you want to see the next Call of Duty be set in? Let me know your suggestions in the comments below.
Also, be sure to check out our other articles, such as our The Order 1886 - Road to the Review and The Top 7...Games where you meet the President.
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gabriel-w-elkins - May 4, 2014 4:22 p.m.
I wouldn't mind them bringing out another WWII game, hell even a WW1 game would be awesome. I been playing COD since it came out and always loved the WWII game play. World at war was pretty fun, but I still miss cod 1 and 2 the most. I am all for scifi setting but the new Advance Warefare just looks like a copy of Black ops2. We need a change. -
MV1UC0DE - April 30, 2014 3:31 p.m.
Regardless of theme, it needs to tailor to today's generation of being used to high tech gadgetry. Going back in time, in my opinion is not a good idea unless (aha moment) there is a time warp element where weapons throughout all of time could be accessed and alter the game play whether through score streaks or unlocks. A timeless theme is what is needed where all wars and all times cross through each other. Kind of like that show Quantum Leap except you can jump into the bodies of certain war heroes, enemies, etc. For example, one map would be World War I because that's where the time zone puts us but you could access a VSAT that's only visible to you because you have the futuristic tools to make it appear on your gadget. Or you suddenly access a laser gun and have the advantage over your World War 1 opponents. The way it could work in futuristic settings is by default everyone has tracking devices implanted in them and you utilize a world war 1 character or weapon that can't be neutralized by EMP or whatever. Even an older type of sentry gun or cannon couldn't be neutralized by an EMP. In other words. Maps would have times as well. There might be Berlin 1941 and a Los Angeles 2212. Characters would be era oriented as well and each era character has advantages and disadvantages regardless of the time era of the map. Weaponry would "warp" through time where you might even call in a gatlin gun in 2212 because it can't be disabled with modern day technology and you wouldn't use EMP as a perk in World War 1. Attack dogs would be useful in World War 1 but not in 2212 if there is technology that can deafen or disorient dogs which is much needed. But gameplay has to be breakthrough as well. Everything has to be accessible like TitanFall. You should be able to set fires also with a gasoline can and lighter, smoke the enemy out of the building or burn it down, hand to hand combat has to be more controllable to include finishing moves with button combos virtually almost incorporating Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat like fighting into Call of Duty when you run out of ammo or holster your weapon. Maybe not too extreme but something to "wow" at when you're only left with hand to hand options. But my idea would be Call of Duty:Time Travel. To me, that would be fresh, engaging, interesting, and appeal to all audiences whether urging for some more gadgetry or missing the World at War concept. To me everyone could win with a Time Travel version. An absolutely mind blowing option would be to invite one of your friends mid game despite what time zone he/she was in and they would appear through a time warp into your game. Even accepting the invite would be a mystery not knowing where you're going and in what time, how your weapons will stack up, etc. You could ask over your mic but sometimes you may just join for the excitement and unknowing of it all! Zombies could be present in some maps or even be called in as a score streak. There should be toxic weaponry as well where you could either turn the other team into zombies or you infect one and they turn other team members into zombies as they get near them or something of that sort. There are so many ways the next Call of Duty could make breakthroughs which we all know has been long overdue. Time to step it way up! Especially if Sledgehammer is claiming this will be the best Call of Duty yet. Short of what I mentioned here would be anything but the best IMO. Perhaps that is just the dreamer in me. -
mattkoyak - April 23, 2014 1:58 p.m.
I know a lot of gamers who have been longing for a return to WWII, and I believe COD did it best. I think there have been enough advancements in the live play engine and graphics that would keep a reboot of epic WWII maps and missions interesting - even without the introduction of 'new' weapons. -
lucid_enigma - February 22, 2014 7:45 a.m.
Is it time to reinvent Cod?!? I'm pretty sure that time was years ago?!? COD and the consolification of gaming have stagnated the entire industry for years. COD has epitomised games that became as static as the hardware they were made for. Games used to push the boundaries of technology, now they just push the boundaries of profitability by remarketing and socially engineering trends to resell more of the same thing. (not to mention the now accepted trends of releasing unfinished software and not-so-microtransactions) No, it's not time to reinvent COD. It's time to kill it and replace it with something infinitely more creative and imaginative as many Indie games prove is still possible. It should also aim to be progressive; to utilise the ever developing technology of PC hardware rather than the decade spanning tech of consoles. Aim for an industry of quality not just one of profit. -
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wulf6491 - February 20, 2014 11:46 a.m.
The Swat and Nam ideas are fantastic! When I first read the title for the swat idea i shrugged and almost passed it up but when I read it i got this vision of urban war-fare. GTA style battles taking place in your standard (Non destroyed) neighborhood. Tactical, trained swat guys going up against thugs and gang bangers. maybe some levels/maps taking place in fancy high rise skyscraper suites as you go for the higher ups. One of the biggest things about that title that would be nice is since it wouldn't be your standard war-zone everything would start off pristine, and get more torn up as the round winds up. As for the nam idea I love it too. The smaller encounters with the hit and run tactics would be a new thing for single player, and a return to the older weapons would be nice. I mean I love future tech but im getting tired of it, BF CoD and KZ all have the same feel to a point. Something with a bit more age to it would be nice. And as a HUGE fan of the CoD zombie mini-game I've been saying for YEARS that a full blown title, with progression and a over-arching story would be amazing, not sure about the multiplayer aspect you mentioned but I would love a Left-4-dead style story, obviously geared to CoD but yeah... The story could range all the way from the start of the zombie mini game in WaW to where it finished off in Bl-ops 2 and move beyond that. All and all some amazing ideas in this article keep it up. -
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ghostshadow25 - February 19, 2014 10:23 p.m.
Yes. I'm tired of FPS games in modern times. Hell, I think they should ditch the military theme altogether and go for something else. I don't know what, maybe like Mafia Wars. -
simon-mc-dougall - February 19, 2014 6:50 p.m.
Got confused this with the pacifc, the sledgehammer kill all the japs. -
brian-dieringer - February 19, 2014 6:49 p.m.
Vietnam all day. Black Ops 1 was my favorite COD, WW2 could also work but I'm all about Vietnam. It's Nam, baby! -
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pro-Austin - February 19, 2014 2:40 p.m.
I think there should be more WW2 call of duty its been 6 years since they have done anything like that. Every single FPS is being set in modern day or the future. It is very repetitive. They should do a game where you are in the airborne and drop anywhere onto the battle field like in Medal of Honor airborne. How about WW1 or set in the American civil war even. When I play online I think it is more fun to use older guns because they are harder to use. Plus there would be a lot more melee combat instead of fights where it only matters how many shots you can put off in a minute. It is also a new idea so there will be more excitement when it comes out. A good title for a game set in the American civil war would be Call of duty a Nation divided. and the game should be a serial game where you have your battles and off time where you can bond with the other solders on your side. it would be like Ellie and Joel talking about random stuff in The Last of Us. So all the fights would not be meaningless and crumble under their on weight because of no bond between the characters. When the battles do come it will like you are fighting for something not just playing another Fps. Even if the multiplayer is set in a new way it does not mean it is bad or it is not possible to be good, it is just in our human nature when we are not used to something we tend not to like it. That is my opinion on that. Seriously think about how hard it will be to take down your enemy with one bullet to the chest or the head during the multiplayer experience. Then we get to the revolvers they would still be possible to kill someone with one shot but just harder than if you used the musket. Even if there are repeating rifles as well they would be like a special kill-streak you could get like getting a nuke with 25 kills in Modern Warfare 2. Anyway it is just something to think about. I think the best games are unique with a brand new idea. -
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universaltofu - February 19, 2014 12:30 p.m.
Some intriguing possibilities, especially since each team now has more time to make their respective entry. -
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david-andrews - February 19, 2014 12:39 p.m.
your saying call of duty with zombies is different? er?? and aliens? do u play cod. -
Malakie - February 19, 2014 12:42 p.m.
Call of duty zombies is not what I am talking about.. I am talking about a story driven game, the SHTF scenario and a you or a groups struggle to survive, maybe path or chain of events to get to a safe haven etc... A story line over a series just like Call of Duty Modern Warfare or Ghosts, not some mindless just shoot zombies and run around.
rutger-fryer - June 6, 2014 3:25 a.m.