A number of previously unannounced features for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare have recently been leaked via a Twitch Live Stream by a user called Anfuny29. The user broadcast Advanced Warfare gameplay (how he got access to a code is a bit of a mystery) and a number of Call of Duty YouTubers were quick to jump into the stream and soak up some of the content before it was ultimately shut down.
Glen Schofield, the co-founder at Sledgehammer Games, has spoken out and had the following to say:
We took 3 years 2 make a game. Kept it quiet 4 the fans & it has to be stolen & leaked a week b4. That sucks. A real bummer. Thanks a lot.
— Glen Schofield (@GlenSchofield) October 26, 2024
We agree, it does kind of suck; however, fans seemed to disagree and hit up Schofield, saying that things weren’t all bad and that this leak “satisfied a need from players for more information on the game.”
Schofield acknowledged the comment, but masterfully countered saying that: “I realize that but stealing and releasing is not the answer. The code (used to play and stream the game) was stolen at some point along Activision’s normally tight supply chain. It is a big deal to us because discovery while playing is part of the fun. It will all be good, just saying.”
That’s a pretty satisfactory answer in my opinion and he’s right; even if fans did want more information about the game, it doesn’t somehow give someone a right to steal a copy and live stream it - that logic is pretty twisted.
Some of the leaked information picked up during the live stream includes a DNA bomb (apparently unlockable after a 30 kill streak) which kills enemies on the opposing team and - once detonated - leaves behind a green mist that spreads throughout the battlefield before dissipating. You can check that out below.
Other things leaked include the option to turn on and off Paintball Effects as well as the full list of weapon camouflage patterns. Leaks are certainly nothing new in the world of video games and something like this was bound to happen sooner or later. The real question people should be asking is whether this will hurt sales or not; the answer is no. People are still going to buy Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, regardless of whether or not they know how many people they have to kill before being able to drop a bomb or how they can make their gun look.
As leaks go, Sledgehammer has been extremely lucky compared to what has happened in the past. Look at Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, where a massive of information about the game appeared online six months before it was due out (or even properly announced for that matter), offering tons of details on everything from the new aspects of multiplayer to the plot details of the storyline. If you happened to read through all the documents that appeared online, nothing was a mystery or a surprise when you eventually got to playing the game.
