Activision Blizzard has officially announcedCall of Duty: Vanguard, 2021’s iteration of the ever-popular annualCall of Dutyfranchise. As has become expected,Call of Duty: Vanguardwill deliver a huge story-driven cinematic campaign, a unique and competitive multiplayer experience, and connectivity with battle royaleCall of Duty: Warzone.Call of Duty: Vanguarddoes have one big surprise, however. It’ll feature its own Zombies mode, developed by the Zombies team atBlack Opsdeveloper Treyarch Studios.
This new Zombies mode forCall of Duty: Vanguardis being described as a “franchise-first crossover,” implying that Zombies mode remains aTreyarchBlack Opsfixture but is crossing over to bolsterVanguard’s diverse game modes. Early gameplay details are unfortunately scant, though Treyarch does confirm that it’ll be a cooperative multiplayer Zombies mode just like it is on its otherCall of Dutygames. Zombies fans can expect a “detailed preview” of the game mode leading up to Halloween.
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One big question that Zombies players are likely pondering is just how this crossover game mode forCall of Duty: Vanguardwill tie into the ongoing Zombies story.Zombies' Dark Aether storylineis at a climax and fans of the mode don’t want to miss anything, so they’ll definitely be curious how this crossover fits in. According to Treyarch, theCall of Duty: VanguardZombies mode isn’t necessarily a continuation of Dark Aether, but it does “intertwine.” Fans can expect plenty of exciting lore, but it may only be indirectly related to the other Zombie modes.
Otherwise, the brief description of Zombies mode inCall of Duty: Vanguardpromises a very traditional Zombies experience. It may seem like a ripe opportunity to mix up the Zombies experience or to try something new, since it’s not a full Treyarch game. But that doesn’t seem to be the goal. It seems likeActivision Blizzard just sees Zombies as popular, so it wants to bring it into moreCall of Dutygames.
One other exciting aspect ofCall of Duty: Vanguardthat could interest Zombies players is that the game will featurefull cross-play, cross-progression, and cross-gen support at launch. That means Zombies players will be able to group up with all of their friends, regardless of platform, or even swap platforms on the fly and not lose any progression.
Expect to hear a lot of Duty: Vanguard, including its Treyarch-developed Zombies mode, itsCall of Duty: Warzoneintegration, and much more in the months to come. Don’t be surprised if Activision Blizzard also holds some beta or preview events ahead of launch, either. Stay tuned.
Call of Duty: Vanguardreleases November 5 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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