Call of Duty 2014 wishlist: what Sledgehammer needs to win the new-gen war

Call of Duty 2014 may or may not be Modern Warfare 4, but that’s not all that important. What is important is that Sledgehammer Games delivers a standalone debut worthy of the Infinity Ward glory days, and proves to the world that Activision’s franchise can happily exist in the new generation. Dave Cook gets entitled and demands some features.

”We heard rumours that Modern Warfare 4 will be set in the near-future, and that the hero has a Black Ops-style PDA device strapped to his wrist. I kind of like that, given the space a technologically advanced setting would allow Sledgehammer to chuck in some neat gadgets and toys to keep things fresh.”

Yeah, OK, so Call of Duty: Ghosts isn’t really doing it for me, but I’m still a fan of the series. I think I’m holding on to the hope that Treyarch’s next entry which – fingers crossed is Black Ops 3 – manages to set everything right again. I prefer that studio’s games over Infinity Ward’s any day of the week, but I’m intrigued about the new contender in town, Sledgehammer Games.

I’ve long-theorised that Sledgehammer’s absence after its work on Modern Warfare 3 was due to it crafting the first properly next-gen Call of Duty, and as it happened I was right. But what is this new, mystery game? We’ve heard a few rumours that it’s the fourth entry to Infinity Ward’s Modern Warfare series, but when I sit down and actually think about it, where else could that brand go?

Makarov’s kaput, Price has surely used up all of his nine lives and Soap’s now languishing in mohawk heaven. There’s every probability that Sledgehammer has devised a new Modern Warfare arc with a fresh cast and plot, but to be honest I’d be really worried if the studio announced with yet another ‘America saves the world against rogue nation X storyline’ set in the present day. That shit’s getting old, no joke.

Back in March we heard rumours that Modern Warfare 4 will be set in the near-future, a bit like the Ghost Recon series, and that the hero has a Black Ops-style PDA device strapped to his wrist. I kind of like that, given the space a technologically advanced setting would allow Sledgehammer to chuck in some neat gadgets and toys to keep things fresh. As long as there’s not another fucking rappelling section I’ll be happy.