Call of Duty Advanced Warfare Will Include Coop

When Activision first revealed that Call of Duty would be moving to a three-year development cycle many wondered how this would impact the franchise as a whole. Would this new team have the freedom to tinker with the base COD formula, or would they be bound by their publisher's expectations?

So far, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare looks the part of a typical COD title, but with some decidedly unique twists. For this year's game, Sledgehammer is taking players to the near-future and outfitting them with some truly awesome weapons and tech.

But, even though Sledgehammer Games is trying some new things within the Call of Duty framework, they are still delivering a very familiar experience. That includes a full single player campaign, multiplayer experience complete with new modes, and as we just learned this week, a cooperative variant as well.

While we don't know much about co-op just yet, Sledgehammer Games' Co-Founder Michael Condrey assures players a reveal trailer is right around the corner. Condrey also stressed that the latest Advanced Warfare footage is "hot."

As far as what players can expect from Advanced Warfare's co-op, that's mostly a mystery at this point. We'd be inclined to guess that Sledgehammer is preparing a horde mode of some sort, but there's no guarantee. Players might also be looking at a 2-player mission-based experience, not unlike what was offered in Modern Warfare 2's Special Ops mode.

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In addition to word of a cooperative mode for Advanced Warfare, Sledgehammer has also unveiled a new multiplayer mode called Momentum for their forthcoming game. Momentum plays out a lot like a 'Tug of War' match, with two teams trying to secure a series of points in quick succession. However, if the other team secures any of the points first, the momentum shifts in the opposite direction.

Without having played Momentum, it's hard to tell just how well the mode will mesh with Call of Duty's usual suspects. Capture point modes typically do well in multiplayer-focused titles, but Call of Duty fans tend to stick with what they like. Still, Momentum looks like fun and will certainly be worth checking out for at least a few matches.

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And finally, we have a new video focused on Advanced Warfare's Supply Drop system. Supply Drops are basically unlockable chests that come in three different tiers. Each Supply Drop package will contain new weapon variations, reinforcements, and gear for the player's customized solider.

In essence, Sledgehammer is giving players yet another carrot, on top of the usual experience grind, to keep them coming back. However, the video doesn't make it clear whether Supply Drops will be unlockable solely in-game or if there will be microtransactions attached. It certainly looks like something that would carry a price tag. We will have to wait and see.

Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare releases November 4, 2014 for PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.

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Source: IGN, Gamestop