Call of Duty: Vanguard will include banned symbols in its German version

Call of Duty: Vanguard is set during WWII, and as the release date gets closer and closer, we’ve learned another bit of information about the shooter and its setting, specifically in the German version of the game. Nazi symbols, including the swastika, will be included this time.

German site GamesWirtschaft confirmed that “swastikas and other Nazi symbols are used” in Vanguard, “at least in the single player campaign.” Germany had a total ban on Nazi symbols in video games until 2018, which meant certain games in that territory had to be altered. As an example, German versions of recent Wolfenstein games referred to Adolf Hitler simply as “the chancellor” and showed him without the infamous mustache. The swastika wasn’t seen either.

Now, games are under the same jurisdiction as movies and TV, where Nazi iconography is permitted for artistic or dramatic purposes. This change happened in 2018, and since Call of Duty: WWII launched in 2017, Vanguard will be the first Call of Duty game to include the previously banned content in Germany.

Call of Duty: Vanguard is headed to PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, and Xbox One on November 5. Classic multiplayer modes like Team Deathmatch, Domination, and Search & Destroy will return, along with new ones like Patrol and Champion Hill. Zombies mode is back too, of course.