Call of Duty Devs Think Vanguard's Failure Is Due to the WWII Setting
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World War II is Call of Duty’s most visited time period dating back to the first game’s release in 2003, but according to Activision Blizzard, Call of Duty: Vanguard’s poor sales are largely due to this setting. After launching in 2021, Call of Duty: Vanguard didn’t sell particularly well when compared to other games in the franchise.
Following Call of Duty: Vanguard's poor sales and mediocre critical reception. However, Activision Blizzard has publicly praised the next campaign in the series, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II. The Modern Warfare series went down as some of the best Call of Duty games to ever hit store shelves, and in 2019, a remake of the first game received a decent amount of praise while earning more than $1 billion in revenue before the end of the year. If these promises are delivered upon, the series could be bound for a significant return to critical acclaim.
Related: Call of Duty: Vanguard's New Mayhem Map Is a Miniature City
Based on recent statements, it may be possible that the series doesn’t return to its classic World War II setting for some time following the underperformance of Call of Duty: Vanguard. According to Activision Blizzard’s 2021 annual report (via Kotaku), the company believes that Vanguard's WWII setting didn't resonate with many players,
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