If there's one aspect of recent Call of Duty games that's been a significant innovation over previous games, it's the weapons. As subsequent games have come out, alongside other additional content, the sheer amount and diversity of weapons has increased and varied over time. However, it wasn't until 2019's Modern Warfare where guns saw a significant overhaul with the new Gunsmith features. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War continued Gunsmith with its 80s era weapons, and presumably, Call of Duty: Vanguard will continue this trend as well. At least, based on leaks for the upcoming 2021 Call of Duty, fans got a few hints on the guns coming to the next game.
From the leaked images that dataminers were able to discover thus far, there are a few implications beyond the obvious expectations of an arsenal of iconic WW2 weapons. Of course, mainstays like the M1 Garand, the MP40, or the Thompson are expected to be there, but the leaked images did show a few weapons that indicate Call of Duty: Vanguard will carry on with Gunsmith weapon customization after Black Ops Cold War. Even if it's not the most period accurate functionality, Vanguard having that same degree of player choice makes a lot of sense. However, outside of weapon customization, the selection of weaponry in Vanguard has additional implications as well.
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Call of Duty: Vanguard has yet to be officially revealed, but Activision has recognized that players are aware that 2021's Call of Duty is coming. So far, beyond the official teases from Activision in response to the leaks that were discovered this past week, players got a good look at several of the upcoming weapons headed to Vanguard. The initial leaks featured key art for Call of Duty: Vanguard, as well as additional content coming in the game's pre-order and/or deluxe edition versions of the game. Other than details on a cross-gen bundle, ultimate edition, as well as early access to the game's open beta, these Vanguard images showed off some guns.
Starting with the leaked key art, some of which cannot be shown here due to copyright takedown notices being issued by Activision, there's a nice variety of weapons from both theaters of war in WW2. From left to right, the guns depicted in the leaked images are as follows: A British Sten submachine gun, a British Lee-Enfield sniper rifle, a Japanese Type 100 submachine gun, and a Russian Mosin-Nagant sniper rifle.
The leaked bundle images do show more imaginative weapon customizations, but the foundational designs under all the attachments are true-to-form WW2 weapons. The guns depicted in those images are as follows: a custom German STG 44 assault rifle nicknamed "Breacher," the Mosin-Nagant sniper rifle again in a customized "Snowstorm" form, as well as a "Thunderhead" Type 100 submachine gun. Additionally, there's a separate image of a "Night Raid" Mastercraft version of a Russian PPSh-41 submachine gun. Lastly, there's the "Frontline Weapons Pack," which seems to depict a heavily customized variant of the Sten and German MP-40 submachine guns.
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There's a couple clues fans can pull from these leaked images thus far; some of the implications are obvious, but there is one subtle hint that could indicate what to expect with Vanguard's content. The first is that, with Gunsmith (or whatever Vanguard's iteration of it may be) is coming back, judging by the almost-ridiculous amount of attachments on the weapon blueprints in the leaked images. An MP-40 with an unusually long barrel, or a Sten gun with an AK-47-like stock and vertical foregrip, are clearly not exclusive attachments to these weapons, so there should be a similar degree of flexibility in Call of Duty: Vanguard compared to Cold War/Modern Warfare.
One more interesting insinuation is the selection of weapons in these leaked images: This weapon variety indicates that both theaters of war will be included in Call of Duty: Vanguard. Early entries in the Call of Duty franchise operated strictly within WW2's Western Front, or northeastern Europe, but that wasn't always the case. Call of Duty: World at War was a WW2-set entry that included the Western Front, Russia, as well as the Pacific theater of war. However, when the franchise returned to the historical setting in the titular Call of Duty: WW2, only the Western Front (and a strictly American soldier perspective) returned to the main campaign.
However, there's a few indications that Vanguard will see multiple perspectives and theaters of war, coinciding with the leaked details of the game's campaign. The first is the obvious variety of guns depicted in these images, as they represent British, American, Japanese, Russian, and German manufactured weaponry. On its own this would be kind of a moot point considering the Type 100 was in Call of Duty: WW2's multiplayer, but the key art for Vanguard does depict palm trees, potentially signifying a pacific setting. Call of Duty: Vanguard could be taking a World at War approach, tackling multiple theaters of war in one of the biggest armed conflicts in world history.
Call of Duty: Vanguard is in development.
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