Activision showed off gameplay visuals from Call of Duty Mobile at Unity Technologies’ press event at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.
The free-to-play game is open for pre-registration on Android and iOS, which means that players will get notified for downloading the game when it’s ready for distribution. This is an example of how mobile games are approaching the visual quality of console and PC games, thanks to advances in both mobile devices and game rendering engines such as Unity.
Activision partnered with Unity to publish Call of Duty Mobile on mobile devices, and it also teamed up with Tencent to take the game to mobile devices and into markets like China. Tencent’s Timi mobile game studio is making the game, which will be released not only in Asia but in markets like the Americas and Europe as well.
The game will include characters and weapons from Call of Duty: Black Ops and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Players can jump into games anytime, anywhere, and compete against other players on classic multiplayer maps such as Nuketown, Crash, and Hijacked.
“Call of Duty is synonymous with incredible quality and gameplay, and our team couldn’t be happier working together with Activision to bring it to life on mobile,” said Steven Ma, senior vice president of Tencent Holdings, in a statement. “With our expertise creating games custom-built for mobile players, we’re excited to deliver a new, feature-packed Call of Duty experience that all types of fans will enjoy.”
Multiplayer modes will include Search and Destroy, Free-for-all, and Team Deathmatch, among others. It has advanced graphics features like specular occlusion, high-level physics, and other things as well.
The game does not yet have a launch date. The first-person shooter game is built in Unity, and players will be able to jump into “visceral Call of Duty firefights.” The players can upgrade their gear with Scorestreaks, Skills, and Perks before competing in five-on-five multiplayer matches in familiar maps.
“This is console quality, PVP action, in the palm of your hand,” said Chris Plummer, vice president at Activision, in the presentation in San Francisco.