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Call of Duty 2017 could take place during WWII, as Activision drops a big hint about the upcoming release.
A recent report suggested that this year's Call of Duty would ditch the futuristic warfare that has popularised recent releases and take the action back to WWII.
Activision is yet to officially unveil Call of Duty 2017, but the publisher did confirm that the series would be going back to its roots and would feature traditional combat.
“It’s clear that, for a portion of our audience, the space setting just didn't resonate, Activision's Thomas Tippl told investors.
“We have a passionate, experienced studio deeply committed to this direction, and despite the risks we saw, we believe it is important to consider the passions of our game teams in deciding
what content to create.
"While it wasn't the success we planned, it allows us to protect the core tenets of our culture that Bobby discussed: empowering our talented teams to have the chance to pursue opportunities
that they are passionate about.
“Providing an environment that recognises passion is a critical component of our success, and a process to learn from our mistakes is what makes our company special, and it's why the most
talented people in our industry are attracted to our company."
But it was Tippl's following comments that have excited fans the most, as he confirmed that Sledgehammer would be developing the new game.
“In 2017, Activision will take Call of Duty back to its roots and traditional combat will once again take centre stage," he continued.
"This is what our dedicated community of Call of Duty players and Sledgehammer Games, which has been developing this year's title, are the most excited about."
Sledgehammer Games previously developed the highly-rated Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare back in 2014.
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Fans are convinced that they've solved the mystery of this year's Call of Duty based on a brief clip posted by Sledgehammer on New Year's Day.
The snippet features an old engine - possibly a steam engine - that judders into life, before the dials turn to ‘2017’.
Just as those numbers align, you’ll then hear an old-timey chime, which many believe to be the sound of London’s Big Ben.
It comes after industry experts urged Activision to make a Modern Warfare 4 game to win back fans of the franchise.
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