New Call of Duty trailer finally points to something different

It's that time of the year again. A little earlier than planned we have our first Call of Duty trailer for the year. We already knew that Sledgehammer was making the latest game in the blockbuster franchise, but what we didn't know were any other details such as setting, time period, characters and a title.

We didn't know about Kevin Spacey.

Now we do. House of Cards star and all-round great actor Kevin Spacey is featured heavily in the debut trailer for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. It looks like he's going to be the main antagonist, and what a guy to have stealing the show in cutscenes. His inspired ramblings and catch phrases in House of Cards are the stuff of legend, and we can't wait to see what lines he'll be reciting in one of 2014's biggest videogame releases.

But that's only one positive. Usually these trailers are more of the same but there's something about this one that has us more excited for a Call of Duty game than we've been in years. Maybe we're just suckers for good editing, but Activision certainly knows how to draw people in.

The technology on show looks exciting, with hover bikes and drones given special attention, and Sledgehammer will be the first studio creating a Call of Duty game where the new consoles are a priority, unlike last year's Ghosts which was held back by last-gen.

Maybe it's an ode to Titanfall and the great critical response it got from fans and media, but the advanced weaponry also looks interesting. Cloaked helicopters, wall scrambling and portable cover are three things that we're very excited to see play out on the battlefield.

Of course, Call of Duty is all about the multiplayer, and we have no idea how any of the setting or technology will fit into that part of the game. But we can at least be a little bit optimistic that this might be a signal for change in the series. Today's news is a big positive.

Apart from the name. It's a terrible name.