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Call of Duty: Vanguard is getting an alpha and it's happening as soon as next weekend. The alpha for Call of Duty: Vanguard was confirmed during the CDL Championship with a new trailer that showcases some of the first proper gameplay footage. The brief look gives fans an idea of how Sledgehammer Games is innovating on the long-running franchise and confirms a new mode called Champions Hill.
The newest entry in the franchise, Call of Duty: Vanguard, was revealed this past week with a Warzone event and a cinematic trailer. The game will take players back to WWII, but won't focus on one particular part of the war. Players will switch between four protagonists across four different fronts, including the Pacific and North Africa. Sledgehammer has revealed a few tidbits regarding the multiplayer, but seems to largely be holding back on diving too deep into it until a full reveal at a later date.
That said, players will get a brief taste of the multiplayer at the end of August. During the CDL Championship, Activision revealed the first look at the game's alpha. This shouldn't come as much of a surprise, as a Call of Duty: Vanguard alpha leaked a few days ago. It appears all of the details in the leak are true. The alpha will be exclusive to PlayStation users and feature a mode similar to Apex Legends' Arena mode called Champions Hill. The mode will mix battle royale elements with Gunfight, forcing players to start with the same loadouts and then gather weapons, cash, and resources to grow stronger while whittling down the limited lives of the other players across multiple rounds.
Watch the Call of Duty: Vanguard Alpha trailer on YouTube here.
A full reveal of the multiplayer will take place on September 7 and will be followed up by the first beta weekend on September 10, which will be exclusive to players who preorder on PlayStation. Starting September 16, Xbox and PC pre-orders can join in on the action before the beta opens up to everyone on September 18. The beta will end on September 20. There's still lots to learn about Call of Duty: Vanguard, but it seems Activision has a plan to steadily release info about the game and keep players engaged leading into its November launch.
Although the alpha is just the start and a small slice of the game, it will be a good way for players to get an idea of what the game is. The trailer demonstrated some of the new mechanics, such as the ability to blow out walls and create new sightlines on the map, which should be an interesting way to keep matches feeling dynamic. The alpha will be the first time players can see if Sledgehammer has managed to successfully innovate on the series while also going back to basics via WWII.
Either way, Call of Duty: Vanguard is trying to appease fans with new features like an anti-cheat system and the return of fan favorite mechanics like the Gunsmith. Whether or not it will actually work remains to be seen. Sledgehammer is also expected to debut the first footage from the campaign of Call of Duty: Vanguard on August 25 at Gamescom Opening Night Live.
Call of Duty: Vanguard will release on November 5 for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and PC.
Source: Call of Duty/YouTube