Call of Duty WWII is confirmed to be in development at Sledgehammer Games, and according to a teaser released today it'll have a full featured debut next week. Although most discussion has been centered around how gamers feel about the series heading back to World War II, there is controversy that has erupted regarding the game's feature art.
The art in question (seen above) shows a soldier scarred and bloodied from war staring straight forward with hands crossed over one another. Dog tags can be seen held tightly in his grasp, and reflections on his eyes display four soldiers before him. It's a quite powerful image, but might just have taken inspiration from another well-known work without permission.
Gearbox Software president Randy Pitchford posted an image on Twitter just moments ago showing the Call of Duty WWII box art alongside official art from Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway, a game similarly set in the World War 2 era that released in 2008. The images are strikingly similar, with both soldiers bearing military headgear, muddied skin, a distraught stare, and even dog tags.
The controversial comparison was posted as follows:
It doesn't end there. As it turns out there was a promotional image released alongside Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway that was even more similar to the Call of Duty WWII image. Check it out below.
And here's a split comparison between both images:
There's no telling if the artists who designed the Call of Duty WWII art intentionally took inspiration from these works by Gearbox Software, but they are similar enough to raise questions. Though, it should be considered that virtually every AAA FPS game in the past five years has featured the face of a soldier, and there's only so much variation to go around; this could just be an honest coincidence.
Note that this art will be featured on the millions of game boxes that will be printed and sold internationally.
Call of Duty WWII will be the first World War II game in the franchise since Call of Duty: World At War in 2008, which was the same year Brothers In Arms: Hell's Highway released. Its reveal will take place on April 26th at 10:00PM PDT.
