Activision has confirmed that Kit Harington, otherwise known as Game of Thrones' sexy bastard Jon Snow, will be the head bad guy in the upcoming shooter Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.
"Kit is an amazing talent, and the consummate pro," Infinity Ward Narrative Director Taylor Kurosaki said. "Our story is about an epic showdown of opposing forces, and Kit immersed himself into the role and truly became the embodiment of the enemy, the Settlement Defense Front. We can't wait for fans to see Kit play an entirely different kind of character."
The Settlement Defense Front, or SDF, is an Infinite Warfare faction that fights SATO, the Solar Associated Treaty Organization. According to the Call of Duty Wiki, the group is made up of “brutal and militant radicals [who] seek to control all resources and wealth from outposts throughout the Solar System, putting a stranglehold on the countries of Earth.” Not much is known beyond that because Infinite Warfare isn't actually out yet.
Activision also said that it “worked closely” on the game with director Guy Ritchie, he of Lock Stock, Snatch, and Madonna fame. Ritchie directed the “Surprise” trailer for Black Ops 2 a few years ago.
“Guy Ritchie is a friend of the franchise, so it was great to have him back to work with us, assisting in bringing Kit Harington's character to life in Infinite Warfare," Infinity Ward Studio Head Dave Stohl said. "It meant a lot to us to develop the role into everything it could be. We're excited about the performance Kit delivered and can't wait to get it out to the public. We're committed to delivering a compelling story with rich character depth, and this was a special opportunity to add to our fantastic cast.”
There's probably a Game of Thrones convergence joke to be made here, but I don't actually watch the show and so I'll simply point out that this is far from the first bit of high-profile casting to happen in the CoD franchise. Both Black Ops and Black Ops 2 had well-stacked casts, and Advanced Warfare was headlined by Academy Award-winner Kevin Spacey. Guy Ritchie's presence makes a little less sense to me; he's directed some fun movies and it's always nice to have another name to drop, but “rich character depth” isn't what I think of as the appeal of Call of Duty.
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare comes out on November 4.
The PC Gaming Show returns to E3 on Monday June 13, featuring game announcements, updates to existing favourites, and conversation with top developers. You can find out what to expect here, and also book free tickets to attend in person at pcgamingshow.com. The PC Gaming Show will be broadcast live through twitch.tv/pcgamer from 11:30 am PT/2:30 pm ET/6:30 pm GMT, but be sure to tune in beforehand to check out The Steam Speedrun, in which one lucky winner will buy as many games as they can in three minutes.
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