The latest marketing push for Call of Duty: Vanguard wants you to believe its graphics are so realistic that conflict photographers can't tell the difference between the videogame and reality. "Call of Duty: Vanguard captures the epic intimacy of World War II in an incredibly immersive manner," said chief marketing officer Fernando Machado, presumably keeping a straight face.
A pair of photojournalists were given "special camera-like portals [to enter] into the game engine itself," where they captured images just as they would if they were photographing a real conflict. Naturally, they also raved about how realistic the experience was: "As photographers, this is what conflict looks like," war journalist Sebastiano Tomada Piccolomini said afterward. The resulting video of the two photographers at work (above) is as dramatic and over-egged as any Call of Duty trailer.
Prints of the four photos are being sold to raise funds to help US military veterans find "high quality employment" through the Call of Duty Endowment program. Which is a good cause, and a convenient thing for Activision to keep in its pocket as a response to any accusations of crassness.
Still, these four screenshots aren't exactly Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima or the Execution of Nguyễn Văn Lém. They're being sold for $515 each.
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