Considering how big each game in the franchise is, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Activision would want everyone to know about new Call of Duty games as quickly as possible.

After all, Call of Duty is one of the best-selling franchises of all time, why wouldn't Activision want to get the word out?

For whatever reason, Activision always decides to do the opposite: the publisher keeps each game a secret, and seems to wait as long as possible before revealing it.

The same is true for this year's game: the only thing that fans know about the latest Call of Duty is that Treyarch (the studio behind the original Zombies mode) is developing this year's entry.

However, more information may be coming soon: eagle-eyed gamers have spotted what appears to be a new viral marketing campaign for this year's Call of Duty.

It all started with a YouTube user named Drift0r. According to his video, Drift0r noticed that an update to Call of Duty: Black Ops II had added a small graphic onto one of the game's posters. At first, it doesn't look like much - it's just a small piece of art pasted on top of another. However, if you take a closer look, it's easy to see that the graphic is actually one of the QR-esque codes that the SnapChat app uses.

So, why did Activision add a SnapChat code into the art of a three-year-old game? Well, when the code is scanned, it adds the official Call of Duty SnapChat account to the user's Friends List - and, while the account was empty at first, a single ten-second video has since been added:

The only thing in the video is some black-and-white footage and a man saying "Listen only to the sound of my voice." It's not much to go on, and trying to confirm anything about the next Call of Duty game from 10 seconds of dialogue is ridiculous - but that hasn't stopped the Internet from speculating.

Most believe that, considering the tease was first updated into Black Ops II, Activision is preparing to announce Black Ops 3. It would make sense, as the Call of Duty series loves to work in threes (three original games, three Modern Warfare titles), and it's Treyarch's turn to release a new game. The dialogue also refers to a line commonly used during hypnosis, which would fit in well with the Black Ops storyline: previous games featured multiple accounts of brainwashing and thought implantation.

However, this theory also clashes with the idea of Treyarch returning to World War II. Treyarch produced Call of Duty: World At War back in 2008, and rumors circulating throughout the industry seem to point towards a return to the series' roots. Considering the futuristic bent the series has been on for the last several years, going back to WWII would be a huge twist - and one that might not sit well with gamers who were tired of the setting well before World at War was released.

Looking at the campaign as it is, there's no way of telling what the next Call of Duty could be. That being said, if the next game falls in line with the same reveal schedule as previous entries, fans might not be all that far away from finding out what the next Call of Duty is: Activision typically reveals new titles in May, with a larger gameplay reveal taking place at E3 a month later.

So, is Call of Duty returning to the Black Ops timeline, or could it go even further back to World at War? Could it be something entirely new? There's no way to tell just yet, but a proper reveal probably isn't that far off...

Be sure to follow T-Lounge on Twitter and visit our Facebook page!

ⓒ 2024 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Join the Discussion