Call of Duty franchise makes a return to familiar territory with WWII announcement

A return to the series’ World War roots.

Famous for being one of the oldest and most successful gaming franchises in the industry, the Call of Duty series appears to be making significant diversions from its formula, according to recent announcements.

The series, which recently revealed its next title, Call of Duty: WWII, has always been known for its fast-paced gameplay that rewards players for actively seeking out opponents in multiplayer. Though often mocked in the gaming community for its non-innovative nature, each Call of Duty title has seen consistently successful sales, with even the most highly-criticized games still selling millions of copies.

Still, despite its success, the announcement of the series' last title, Infinite Warfare, received an overwhelmingly negative reception. 3 million dislikes were left on the trailer released on YouTube, making it the second most disliked video ever, just behind Justin Bieber's "Baby."

Perhaps it was this extremely negative feedback that led to recent developments, or maybe it was the impressively positive response to Battlefield 1, which was set in WWI. Either way, the trailer for Call of Duty: WWII marks a return to the series' World War roots. Check it out below.

In addition to this hopeful development, the studio for WWII have announced in a recent Game Informer article that the title will be doing away with regenerating health and ammo. The removal of these mechanics, a staple of the series since Call of Duty 2, hints at a style of gameplay that is slow-paced and tense - far removed from former titles characterized by high-speed, almost arcade-like matches.

Even with these positive changes, it will be a while yet before the Call of Duty franchise is able to restore its public image in the gaming community. Hopefully the developers will continue to heed the wishes of its fan base in continuing to innovate a series that has otherwise become the subject of many tired jokes.

Call of Duty: WWII is set to release on November 3 for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. Players interested in playing ahead of time will have the opportunity to participate in the early-access beta by pre-ordering the title. Visit the official website for more information.