Call of Duty: Vanguard was recently announced, showcasing the latest that the first-person shooter franchise has to offer. Interestingly however, the trailer made no reference to its publisher Activision, instead saying “Call of Duty Presents”. While some have speculated this to be due to the recent controversy and lawsuit against the publisher, a spokesperson has denied this.

As noted by CharlieIntel, “Activision’s logo was not in the Vanguard trailer, as lawsuit controversy continues,” with the trailer’s end card only showing “Sledgehammer, Treyarch, and Beenox logos”. In fact, the only place where Activision’s name is featured is during the legalese – which is likely to have been a requirement.

In response to this, an Activision spokesperson said “Call of Duty has continued to expand into an incredible universe of experiences. This was a creative choice that reflects how Vanguard represents the next major installment in the franchise.”

Regardless of whether this is in fact the reason or not, there is no denying that the Call of Duty name has been so closely tied to Activision for so long. It will be interesting to see whether the upcoming game suffers in any way as a consequence of the association to Activision and its recent lawsuit surrounding alleged workplace sexual harassment – despite the publisher seemingly trying to distance itself from the game.

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KitGuru says: What do you think of the Activision situation? Did you notice the lack of the publisher’s presence in the trailer? What do you think of Vanguard as a whole? Let us know down below.

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