If there’s one aspect of recentCall of Dutygames 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’sModern Warfarewhere guns saw a significant overhaul with the new Gunsmith features.Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold Warcontinued Gunsmith with its 80s era weapons, and presumably,Call of Duty: Vanguardwill continue this trend as well. At least, based on leaks for the upcoming 2021Call 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 indicateCall of Duty: Vanguardwill carry on with Gunsmith weapon customization afterBlack Ops Cold War. Even if it’s not the most period accurate functionality,Vanguardhaving that same degree of player choice makes a lot of sense. However, outside of weapon customization, the selection of weaponry inVanguardhas additional implications as well.
All the Weapons in Call of Duty: Vanguard’s Leaked Images
Call of Duty: Vanguardhas yet to be officially revealed, but Activision has recognized that players are aware that 2021’sCall of Dutyis 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 toVanguard.The initial leaks featured key art forCall 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, theseVanguardimages 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 fromboth 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 doshow 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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Variety in Guns and Locales for Call of Duty: Vanguard
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 withVanguard’s content. The first is that, with Gunsmith (or whateverVanguard’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 inCall of Duty: Vanguardcompared toCold 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 inCall of Duty: Vanguard. Early entries in theCall of Dutyfranchise operated strictly within WW2’s Western Front, or northeastern Europe, but that wasn’t always the case.Call of Duty: World at Warwas 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 titularCall of Duty: WW2, only the Western Front (and a strictly American soldier perspective) returned to the main campaign.
However, there’s a few indications thatVanguardwill 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 inCall of Duty: WW2’smultiplayer, but the key art forVanguarddoes depict palm trees, potentially signifying a pacific setting.Call of Duty: Vanguardcould be taking aWorld at Warapproach, tackling multiple theaters of war in one of the biggest armed conflicts in world history.
