'Call of Duty' news: Franchise could have gone further back in time with 'Roman Wars'


A lot of first-person shooter (FPS) fans are excited about the upcoming game, “Battlefield 1” due to its concept that instead of moving forward to feature modern warfare, they went back in time specifically during World War I. Interestingly, the “Call of Duty” franchise could have also gone the same direction by going back to the era of Ancient Rome.

“Call of Duty” started during the World War II era and has been moving forward with its timeline until it leapt into the future, which is evidenced by the upcoming “Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.” The brand could have possibly offered fans something different with the project “Call of Duty: Roman Wars” but that was ultimately cancelled.

According to the latest reports, the game developers behind “Skylander,” Vicarious Visions, spearheaded the project and also created a prototype which already contained some levels. The development team presented the idea to Activision, and the company actually liked the concept of the game. However, the project was discontinued because the company was afraid that the brand of “Call of Duty” would be oversaturated.

Activision ended up instead with another game called “Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare,” which still offered some of the elements from the previous games of the franchise, but with a more futuristic take.

Some fans see the potential of warfare set in Ancient Rome because it is a different kind of concept. Players would have had the chance to be one of the soldiers during the time of Julius Caesar, possibly even answering to him. Essentially, the game was supposed to focus on Titus Pollo, a soldier belonging to Caesar’s legion.

“Call of Duty: Roman Wars” could have offered players a third-person perspective with gameplay that is similar to “Gears of War.” They could have also engaged in first-person sword combat, as well as battles while riding horses or elephants.

Fans are hoping that the project may still come to life in the future.