Fans of the iconic shooter franchise are scouring the internet after a massive digital discovery sent ripples through the gaming community this week.
Speculation is reaching a fever pitch over howActivisionplans to roll out its next blockbuster instalment later this year. While developers remain tight-lipped, a sudden digital breadcrumb trail may have just pulled back the curtain on the upcoming launch schedule.
The hotly anticipatedCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 4could allow gamers to dive into the single-player story before the complete package hits shelves. In a discovery highlighted by CharlieIntel, Xbox users who purchased the title early noticed they could download dummy data files, one of which was titled 'Campaign Early Access Pack 1.'
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 could have Campaign Early AccessA 'Campaign Early Access Pack' is listed on Xboxpic.twitter.com/FhItHM2HDU
The plot thickened when YouTuber TDawgSmitty revealed that an attendee at an Infinity Ward creator event explicitly asked the studio about an early access window. While developers brushed off the question by claiming they could not comment on the matter, the content creator got the distinct impression that the audience received a silent nod of approval.
This interaction alone is hardly a definitive guarantee, but it certainly carries a lot more weight now that those Xbox files have surfaced.
Activision is no stranger to this strategy, though the franchise has steered clear of it for a little while. BothModern Warfare IIand its immediate successor offered fans the chance to play the story a full week before the multiplayer went live, but the publisher quietly axed the perk following the rollout of the third instalment.
The decision to skip the feature forBlack Ops 6and7might well stem from the backlash surrounding theModern Warfare IIIsingle-player experience. Even though the community embraced the multiplayer side of that release, letting a full week of purely critical campaign reviews dominate the internet undoubtedly cast a shadow over the game's grand launch.
That said, internal expectations forModern Warfare 4appear incredibly high. The narrative is taking some bold risks by plunging players into a war between North and South Korea, all while pushing Captain Price down a bleak trajectory that creates friction with past teammates like Ghost.
If this file leak is any indication, the studio must be proud of what they have built this time around, and Infinity Ward might just use the early window to spark positive word-of-mouth right before the global launch.
Source: International Business Times UK
