For the first time in the Call of Duty franchise history, Activision decided to release the reveal trailer for the recently announced Call of Duty: Vanguard without slapping the company’s logo on the video. While some viewers out there noticed the lack of Activision branding, many didn’t. That does not mean the publisher got away with it.
The media started asking questions specifically related to the ongoing lawsuit the company is facing in California dating back years of multiple sexual harassment claims and abuse. According to Activision, the lack of branding on the Call of Duty: Vanguard trailer was simply a “creative choice” and doesn’t have anything to do with the company’s reputation at the moment.
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The trailer, which was released last week, starts off with a “Call of Duty Presents” introduction. It is then followed by “a Sledgehammer Games production”. Usually, when Activision isn’t facing a lawsuit, it would slap the company’s logo on the trailer too. However, that is not the case this year.
The publisher is completely absent from the video. There isn’t even any mention of the company at the end of the video. If you have to compare the trailer to last year’s Black Ops: Cold War reveal, you would see it as clear as day. The same goes for literally every single other Activision-published game released. This includes Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 and more.
Former Kotaku editor-in-chief Stephen Totilo reached out to the company to ask about the missing logo. According to Activision, the publisher decided to remove its own name from the video as a creative choice. They released a statement saying:
“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”
Of course, no one is buying this nonsense. Clearly, Activision is trying to stay out of the limelight while also trying to market one of its biggest annual video game releases. How they plan on tackling the situation closer to launch is still unclear.
If you missed it, the Call of Duty: Vanguard alpha kicks off this week. Find out more about it here. You can also catch up on our Vanguard announcement coverage here and all the game editions available to pre-order.
I asked Activision about the logo’s absence, a change from other CoD reveals.
Their PR: “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” https://t.co/12PPrXRFcY
— Stephen Totilo (@stephentotilo) August 20, 2021
