COD7 Vietnam rumours resurface

By Robert Purchese Published 22 February, 2010

Casting call hints at characters.

Speculation that the Treyarch-developed Call of Duty 7 is set during the Vietnam War has resurfaced following an Activision call for motion capture and voice-over actors

The casting sheet outlines the roles of four central characters, the leader of which - Frank Barnes - works for the Studies and Observation Group (SOG) that's based in Vietnam. That setting is backed by the post-WWII descriptions of the three other squad members, although Vietnam is not specifically mentioned.

Barnes is an "old warhorse" in his late forties who has a "gravelly" but "authoritative" voice. "A fiercely patriotic veteran of WWII, Frank is a solid leader, possessed with an excellent ability to assess and respond to any situation quickly and decisively. In other words - nothing fazes him," reads the description, spotted by VG247.

Barnes is joined by Joseph Lewis, Jason Hudson and Kristina Ivanova. Lewis, a black male in his late twenties, is something of an army prodigy - albeit a small, wiry and silent one. Hudson's a big lump in his mid-thirties who excels at the tactical side of warfare but can clearly pack a punch if needed, apparently.

Finally, Ivanova is a Russian who fled her homeland and wound up working for the CIA. She's in her late twenties, is an expert at martial arts and isn't trusted by her US colleagues.

Call of Duty 7, whatever it may be, will be developed by Treyarch and be released this year.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (55) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • ckyman2 #1 2 years ago

    hmmm interesting, but what happened to the MMO idea, would be nice to have a MAG type version that worked?

  • TriggerHippie #2 2 years ago

    Great. They can probably squeeze in a high profile and needlessly provocative "Village massacre" level.

  • MaFlippinHeadHurts #3 2 years ago

    Vietnamese Zombies too then!

  • Anthony_UK #4 2 years ago

    For all the grief Treyarch get from people saying there not fit to wipe Infinity Wards boots. When it comes to multiplayer, I'd have to say I much prefer Treyarch's maps to Infinity wards! If Zombie mode in WAW was a glimpse of what Treyarch is capable of when given chance, i'd love to see what they could come up with if they were given total free reign to create whatever they wanted for the next COD, rather than a reskinned Modern Warfare like last time, which i'm sure wouldn't of been there decision!

  • cianchristopher #5 2 years ago

    Frank Barnes? Is he a straight rip-off of Tom Berenger's Barnes character in Platoon? Sounds like it...

    I heard they were licencing all those classic sixties rock-and-roll songs for this game (jefferson airplane, the doors, rolling stones, etc.) Not sure, but it sounds cool...

    But, the US lost the Vietnam war... How does that make for a compelling Call of Duty narrative? Will the final mission be the evacuation of Saigon?

  • JayScott #6 2 years ago

    There are so many ways for them to act tastelessly with this it's almost giddy making. Can't wait for the level where your character witnesses the moment of that famous photo, the one of the naked little girl fleeing as her village burns behind her. Really not looking forward to this game.

    @cianchristopher

    All that song licencing and they might as well rename it Tour of Duty.
    Edited by 1 at 22/02/10 @ 10:19

  • BillMurray #7 2 years ago

    The only man that can kill Barnes, is Barnes.

  • cianchristopher #8 2 years ago

    Is Elias gonna be the "surprise" character you liberate midway through the campaign (a la Captain Price in MW2)?

  • Rodchenko #9 2 years ago

    The inclusion of a martial arts woman has fail written all over it.

  • Mnia786 #10 2 years ago

    @ Anthony_UK - I agree. Most MW2 maps are just buildings in the centre with a little lap on the outside. Half the maps only have one area of primary combat on TDM (e.g. Sub-Base, half of which is wasted near the submarines) and magic bullets come out of peoples guns like no tomorrow. And dont even get me started on the piece of shit they call the spawn code. IMO, people can call W@W another WWII game but it built on the good foundations on COD4 (which IW are duly awarded their creativity) but MW2 as compared to W@W MP is pathetically nerfed. Everything could be counter balanced on W@W e.g. flakjacket > bouncing betties, fireworks>flakjacked etc. etc.

  • FeralGamer #11 2 years ago

    Finally! I got tired of WWII games years ago!

  • CaptainQuint #12 2 years ago

    Twenty quid says Ivanova is a sultry babe with big tits. Oh and World at War campaign > Modern Warfare 2 campaign.

  • mashk #13 2 years ago

    Not as good as the Infinity Ward games.

  • Yossarian #14 2 years ago

    Not as good as the Halo games.

  • space_ace #15 2 years ago

    a vietcong campaign would be nice... there are too many war shooter and none of them is from the "enemy" p.o.v.

  • TruWari3r #16 2 years ago

    +1 on the Vietcong Zombies!!!

    I wonder what they'll do about co-op, although I loved spec ops I hope they do a proper co-op campaign
    Edited by 1 at 22/02/10 @ 10:49

  • bodypopper #17 2 years ago

    Lemme guess.
    There'll be a night mission with the Viet Cong popping out of holes, a chopper mission with you on the MG, some flamethrower action here and there (as they spent all that time coding it for WaW), a sniper mission a la Full Metal Jacket. and a rousing assault on a base at the end possibly ending in a big napalm explosion.
    Throw in some period music and stock characters from movies and a multiplayer that slightly expands on the WaW offering (possibly shoehorning some air drop/care package type option in there) and watch the Xmas big bucks roll in.
    Edited by 2 at 22/02/10 @ 11:02

  • CaptainQuint #18 2 years ago

    There's absolutely nothing wrong with Treyarch, they know what they're doing with their CoD games and to suggest that Infinity Ward is superior is nothing more than completely needless fanboyism based on absolutely nothing. The one and only truth of the matter is this though: they both pale in comparison to Bungie.

  • metalangel #19 2 years ago

    @CaptainQuint: No, she'll have small, perky B-cups to suit her slinky frame. She will have a sultry pout, though, because of all pain she is suffer in Soviet Russia, yes? After all, Roman and Niko had to leave Iron Curtain type places because beeg teetees is in America only, yes?

    I can't help but think they're arriving a bit late to the Vietnam games party (about a decade too late). Also, while the inevitable jump from a Huey into a hot LZ in the bush will be cool, it would be cooler if this was a Battlefield type game and that Huey was being flown by another player, instead of this being another scripted ride through the gaming equivalent of an amusement park ghost house.

  • Fab4 #20 2 years ago

    They should remake CoD3 in Vietnam. CoD3...Best MP experience on the 360 I've had, even if it was 'flawed'.

    Then again, lose the fucking perks and kill-streak rewards and I'd be happy.

  • Quak #21 2 years ago

    But, the US lost the Vietnam war... How does that make for a compelling Call of Duty narrative? Will the final mission be the evacuation of Saigon?

    As they did with WW2, I'm guessing the Americans will attempt to re-write history. In this case the re-writes will centre around how, in actual fact, they won the war.

  • brainbird #22 2 years ago

    If they want to go for a controversy again, why not let us play as a Mujaheddin in Afghanistan or as a Vietcong in this game for a change? You know, fighting for freedom against imperialistic fascist pigs just like in the first three CODs.

  • jambo74 #23 2 years ago

    Battlefield Vietnam was ace back in the day!

  • Rodchenko #24 2 years ago

    Twenty quid says Ivanova is a sultry babe with big tits.

    Raise that to thirty that her character will lean on Xenia Onatopp from 'Goldeneye'

  • dirk_aircool #25 2 years ago

    what happened to Korea? was the soundtrack too un-cool or somthing.

  • carlitoswagon #26 2 years ago

    Nice to see Treyarch getting some love here. Thought cod:waw multiplayer was quality. Some beautiful maps. In fact I'd go as far to say they nalied the maps better that IW's mw2. Size and scale may be a pain in the nuts to some but it created little skirmishes all over the map, instead of small confined areas where all the combat takes place.

    Also, I'd like to see more vehicles. Seems like a way to push the frachise forward a bit.

  • Jonny5Alive7 #27 2 years ago

    I hope they have some classic Vietnam songs like Battlefield Vietnam did. As wars go Vietnam definitely had the best soundtrack :-)

  • chrisola #28 2 years ago

    hopefully a side mission will involve attacking the radio station where robin williams is based.

  • ParanoidZombie #29 2 years ago

    People of vietman should be proud: after a lenghty study, activision has finally decided that their war against the US was videogame worthy. I hear that Korea was on the final list, but sadly they didn't make the final cut: not enough choppers and cool weapons, and the resolution of the conflict was definitely anti-climatic.

    WHat war will be next? I suggest WW1: I mean, tons of people died, that was hella fun. And it featured bayonets and chemical warfare, too.

  • AllenSpawn #30 2 years ago

    COD: Vietnam.

    Sounds a bit fishy to me.........

  • bad09 #31 2 years ago

    I'd rather have another Vietcong than COD Vietnam. Stick a fork in me, I'm done with COD no matter how cool 'nam is.

    / listens to paint it black

  • Cadence #32 2 years ago

    ^^ Awesome.

  • RedPanda #33 2 years ago

    Post deleted at 14:31:59 28-01-2012

  • Haloboy #34 2 years ago

    It's about time folk realised Treyarch can now actually make a decent game and CoD isn't all about the next overblown IW edition. Looking forward to this as I always said a Vietnam game would be perfect for the game engine.

  • Iain815 #35 2 years ago

    ..is it not a bit late for doing motion capture and voice-overs this far into the year, seeing the game is being released in around 7 months?

  • Hantheman #36 2 years ago

    7 CODs in what.. 9 years?

    Crazy. They run the risk of really saturating themselves.

  • Deckard1 #37 2 years ago

    So do we get to play as the good guys in this or are we stuck playing as the Americans?

  • rhinoxious #38 2 years ago

    Playing as the vietcong sounds a lot more interesting, as would a flags of our fathers/Letters from Iwo Jima style split.

    Bound not to happen though.
    Edited by 1 at 22/02/10 @ 14:31

  • thedaveeyres #39 2 years ago

    Charlie don't surf the web.

  • wiggy1 #40 2 years ago

    CoD, CoD Finest Hour, CoD Big Red One, CoD2, CoD3, CoD4 Modern Warfare, CoD Word at War, CoD Modern Warfere 2 = 8 CoD games so why is it CoD7?

  • SAMagic #41 2 years ago

    If there's a level inspired by Forrest Gump where you have to RUN FORREST RUN and collect your wounded squad-mates from the jungle, I'm buying it.

  • Meatblade #42 2 years ago

    @ParanoidZombie

    Yeah a WW1 game would be cool, maybe nearer the 100th aniversary we'll see something.

  • AphoticCosmos #43 2 years ago

    COD: Korea would be better.

    For one, an arse-ton of different countries fought on both sides. Definitely some interesting perspectives bound to be hidden in there.

    Vietnam is OK, but everyone knows everything there is to know about Vietnam. Shine some light on Korea instead.

  • Wolverfrog #44 2 years ago

    The Russian Sergeant (I forget his name) from WaW needs to be in somehow. Weren't the Soviet Union at Vietnam?

  • jambo74 #45 2 years ago

    Look, Gook Troop's Sloop

  • SAMagic #46 2 years ago

    I'm not sure why some people are disgusted at perceived patriotism in COD games - it's a given when US armies are involved and it doesn't mean it'll be mindless when IW and Treyarch are involved. MW2 was particularly biting in some areas - Shepherd's opening speech could have worked with the Team America music playing in the background, while some of the plot turns, well, made a point of showing how modern conflict is far from being all black and white.

    With Treyarch doing Vietnam, let's wait and see.

  • X3Entente #47 2 years ago

    as long as this game has a tutorial mission with a Gunnery Sergeant Hartman-esque drill instructor and they include the line "i'll rip out your eyes and skull fuck you to death" this game wont be entirely without merit

  • lockload #48 2 years ago

    Not interested in vietnam game at all been done before

  • mintycabbage #49 2 years ago

    Well I am glad the cast won't be stereotypes then.

    /sarcasm

  • jefranklin18 #50 2 years ago

    I would like to see Battlefield Vietnam: Redux. It was my favourite of the Battlefield games (maybe because of the soundtrack). I think on modern hardware, the rainforests of the Central Highlands would look great with a stick of Hueys against a sunrise.

    I only hope that the temptation to stereotype the Vietnamese is avoided. Having spent a month there, I could easily spend a year there because the people are so great.

  • MARKIV #51 2 years ago

    I can see where this is going, what they gonna do if they run out of wars or are Activision gonna start sponsering US governments or even run for Presdient!! COD Iraq, COD Afganistan, COD Iran, COD N Korea.. what's next..?

  • GooseUK #52 2 years ago

    @ thedaveeyres

    Lol

  • aufi #53 2 years ago

    odds of being able to play ANY vietnamese soldier at all, let alone NVA/VC = LOL.

  • BobsUncle #54 2 years ago

    Not so long back people would bitch like hell that Treyarch were shit compared to IW.

    But now it's fashionable to bash MW:2 it seems people are reversing that opinion. How long before Treyarch are the new cool cats and IW are evil bastards?

  • cyber_nicco #55 2 years ago

    "There'll be a night mission with the Viet Cong popping out of holes, a chopper mission with you on the MG, some flamethrower action here and there (as they spent all that time coding it for WaW), a sniper mission a la Full Metal Jacket. and a rousing assault on a base at the end possibly ending in a big napalm explosion.
    Throw in some period music and stock characters from movies and a multiplayer that slightly expands on the WaW offering (possibly shoehorning some air drop/care package type option in there)"

    That sounds awesome.