Disgraced publisher Activision has announced a free trial for Call of Duty: Vanguard‘s multiplayer just two weeks after launch. The announcement follows reports that Vanguard‘s launch sales in the UK were significantly down year-on-year both digitally and physically. (Editor’s Note: Call of Duty has been holding free multiplayer trials every couple of months in its games for the past couple of years, despite what the sales numbers have been.)
Vanguard‘s free access will begin on November 18th and end on November 22nd. Players will have full access to the game’s multiplayer, where they can level up over three dozen weapons before they hit Warzone Pacific in December, unlock gear for a dozen Operators, and check out variable Combat Pacing on 21 maps, including Champion Hill and the newly launched Shipment.
“This Free Access period gives you a taste of what Vanguard owners get to experience before the next year stacks the deck with tons of free Multiplayer content,” developer Sledgehammer Games wrote. “Owning Vanguard also gets you a gripping single-player Campaign and a universe-expanding Zombies mode, let alone 24-hours exclusive access to Warzone Pacific’s new map Caldera when it launches on December 2.”
Activision is having a rough week. Its yearly juggernaut launched to lukewarm critical reception, and in the months leading up to launch, the publisher got slapped with a lawsuit for unfair work practices, followed by numerous reports of its management fostering a toxic work environment. To make matters worse, a lengthy and damning investigation published by Wall Street Journal yesterday revealed that CEO Bobby Kotick reportedly knew about the allegations all along and deliberately shoved them under the rug. Kotick himself has been accused by multiple employees past and present of misconduct, which includes a death threat.
We’ll continue to update our readers as the situation develops.
