In the early months of 2013, Activision gave gamers what was thought to be their first look at next-gen Call of Duty in the form of a handful of screenshots. However, as it turned out, the quality suggested by those screenshots and what was seen in the end product, Call of Duty: Ghosts, were not one in the same.

Luckily, Call of Duty (2014) developer Sledgehammer Games has learned from last year's unveiling and they have come out swinging with the first official, in-game image from their franchise entry. The image was actually revealed as part of a GDC 2014 panel called Quest for Reality: Maximizing the Relationship Between Creative and Production, and can be seen (via IGN) in full below.

Right off the bat, readers will notice that the detail featured in the screenshot is unlike anything seen in a Call of Duty game thus far. This is the type of facial detail fans expect when they think next-gen, and instantly puts the COD franchise on par with the likes of Battlefield…at least in terms of facial textures.

That being said, this in-game screenshot isn't substantial enough for gamers to unequivocally say that, yes, Call of Duty (2014) is headed in the right direction. The angle is so tight on the character's face that it's hard to see anything but the detail in the skin, and the character in the background is nothing more than an incomprehensible blur. Also, it might just be me, but the character looks a little dead in the eyes. Still, the screenshot makes a solid first impression for a game that has mostly been a mystery thus far.

At this point we only know a few things. We know that Call of Duty has moved to a three-year development cycle. We know that Sledgehammer Games is working on this year's game. And we know that Call of Duty 2014 will be a "next-gen first" game. Aside from that, though, meaningful details about this new game are hard to come by.

That should change very soon, however, as Activision typically likes to unveil their new Call of Duty iterations during the NBA Playoffs, which, coincidentally, just kicked off this past weekend. They usually wait until the Conference Playoffs or the NBA Finals for that reveal - i.e. mid-May - but chances are we will see something from this new Call of Duty, likely a trailer, within the next month or so.

What do you think of this alleged first screen from this year's Call of Duty? What are your hopes for this year's game?

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Source: IGN