Call of Duty: Vanguard era officially announced yesterday, the first major revelation of Activision Blizzard since the corporation came under public scrutiny for their unpleasant treatment of employed women. A minor detail in the revealing video speculates that Activision wants to avoid reminding everyone involved in game development.
This strange phenomenon was first noticed by Twitter user Neoxon619, who pointed out that the end of the Call of Duty: Vanguard the trailer did not include the Activision logo along with those from the development studios Sledgehammer Games, Treyarch and Beenox. In fact, the video does not mention Activision anywhere, but the small print copyright information required by law.
A quick look at the previous trailers in the series official YouTube page shows that there has been a prominent Activision logo since ad video per Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, which was first uploaded to the channel on May 23, 2011.
Neoxon also highlighted the fact that the Activision logo does not appear on Call of Duty: Vanguard on Battle.net, the company’s digital showcase. Again, Kotaku confirmed this is a common inclusion on several of the platforms Call of Duty listings, where you can see the Activision chart located on game logos such as Modern Warfare, Black Ops: Cold War, i Black Ops 4.
“Call of Duty has continued to expand into an incredible universe of experiences, ”said an Activision representative Kotaku. “This was a creative choice that reflects how Vanguard represents the next big installment of the franchise “.
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Activision Blizzard is still embroiled in controversy following a lawsuit filed by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing accusing the massive corporation of foster an environment of harassment and abuse aimed primarily at female workers for years. Since then, various remarkable figures have left the company, including Blizzard President J. Allen Brack, Blizzard Head of Human Relations Jesse Meschuk, and Diablo 4 lead designer Jesse McCree.
Omission of Activision logos from Call of Duty: Vanguard marketing has been outright mocked on social media as a cowardly distancing the game from publisher involvement.
“If that doesn’t show you how terrified Activision is by the lawsuit,” one user wrote in response to Neoxon’s original tweet, “I’m not sure what to tell you.”