There have already been many speculations about the Call of Duty from 2021 and slowly the picture of the latest CoD is sharpening. Data miners have now found supposed images of the new shooter in the data from Black Ops Cold War, which is said to actually be called “Vanguard” and offers a setting in World War II.
What’s going on? Every year a new Call of Duty is released – so much is already known. But not everything is the same as always. Even the last CoD, Black Ops Cold War, was only revealed in August 2020 and apparently, CoD 2021 continues this new pattern. The CoD from 2019, Modern Warfare, had its reveal already in May 2019 and the CoDs before that also showed early images of the new title early in the year.
However, there have been hardly any concrete statements to the players about CoD 2021 so far. Only information from an investor call, in which the developers assure that CoD 2021 will be released in the fourth quarter and that players will find a familiar and popular setting (via CharlieIntel.com). But the leakers and data miners are not asleep.
First images of “Vanguard” found in Cold War data
What is there to see? First of all: There are no images of gameplay or anything similar yet. The images that are currently circulating come from the in-game shop of Cold War and likely show promotional images that will be seen for the purchasable product in the shop. In total, there are four images in a gallery on reddit. Click on the thread to see the images on reddit:
Images in the thread
- A large image with 4 soldiers and the caption “Call of Duty Vanguard” with palm trees in the background
- Image for the Ultimate Edition with a windmill in the background
- The first image slightly modified for the “Cross-Gen Bundle”
- A collection of images that possibly show the contents of the Ultimate Edition
How reliable is the information? Take the new information with a grain of skepticism. These are leaks, and there is no certainty that they are real images. However, in the leaker community of CoD, the images are considered real. One of the most active Twitter accounts around Call of Duty data mining, @Cheezburgerboyz, has confirmed that the images are in the game. But one cannot know for sure.
What can be concluded from the images? The most obvious thing: The name of the game. “Vanguard” has long been a favorite for the name of the latest CoD, but for a long time, data miners assumed it was a placeholder or project name. Apparently, this is actually the title of CoD 2021. However, there is still no definitive certainty.
The same applies to the setting. Palm trees can be seen, which suggest locations near an ocean. On the other hand, a typical windmill is visible, which hints at European locations. Both would fit a setting in World War II, with battles in Europe and the Pacific Ocean as well as to the developers’ statement that players will see a familiar and popular setting.
The three images of soldiers on the supposed contents of the Ultimate Edition would also fit. “Lucas” fights in the hot sun of Africa, “Polina” in the severe winter of Russia, and “Wade” in the treacherous jungle of a Pacific island. All real locations of World War II.
But also keep in mind: Such images can still be adjusted or exchanged. A forgery cannot be ruled out either.
Presentation of Vanguard next week?
When could the official presentation be? If you believe some leaks, it could be as early as next week. Much currently points to Season 5, and the timing would also fit. The date of August 19 is often mentioned, but the entire week from August 18 to 25 seems likely (via dualshockers.com).
There is even an official hint at a Vanguard reveal in Season 5:
A line with letters from the Japanese language apparently shows “Vanguard is coming” in the background of the Season 5 promotion. It is quite possible that before the reveal it will become mysterious again and players will have to go on a treasure hunt to get new information. During the presentation of Cold War, this “puzzle phase” lasted about a week and ended with the first teaser for Cold War. The complete reveal with the first trailer then took place in the Battle Royale Warzone.
However it turns out – CoD 2021 will be released this year, and slowly the first official hints/information should start coming in. Currently, there is still nothing concrete, and the information comes either from leaks or unclear sources. But the density of information is increasing, and every day the bomb could finally drop. Last year, it was even a bag of chips that provided the first real hint about Cold War. Let’s see how it goes this year.
Are you actually excited about a new CoD? What do you think about the setting? Feel free to share your thoughts with us in the comments on MeinMMO.
