A little over a fortnight ago, we came across a leak that hinted at an insane collaboration between one of the biggest video game franchises and football.
The franchise in question here is not EA Sports FIFA or PES, or not even sports-related for that matter. It is, in fact, a first-person shooter called Call of Duty.
CoD, as it is popularly called, is a game developed by Activision and has been running as a gaming title since 2003.
A behemoth in the world of video games, Call of Duty has worked with several well-known faces throughout its history and the developers are seemingly continuing the tradition with the upcoming release.
On 10th October, a first leak about the newest installment told us that footballing superstars Neymar, Pogba, and Messi are going to be included as characters in the game.
Possible reasons for this included a collaboration to hype up the upcoming World Cup in Qatar, a tournament that has attracted an equal amount of good and bad headlines due to various reasons.
Now, yesterday, the initial leak was further substantiated.
ChuBoi, a famous content creator, leaked screenshots of how Neymar and Pogba will look in Call of Duty.
We can say with some confidence that the pictures are genuine, simply because it would take a huge amount of effort and time to render these images. That being said, these are still leaks and nothing will be certain until the game releases.
Modern Warfare II has been playable in certain modes since 20th October for those who pre-ordered but the full game launches today, 28th of October.
Right from the off, we can say that the digital rendition of the French and the Brazilian is spot on.
It is also pleasing to see that the game has decided to stick to its guns, no pun intended, and not gone for a sporty look with jerseys and shorts for the two players.
No image of Lionel Messi, the third player to be included in the initial list, has surfaced online thus far.
It was announced yesterday that the Argentine would be coming to PUBG, another first-person shooter game, making CoD his second such collaboration, if and when it is officially revealed.
Twitter was quick to joke about Neymar and Pogba being part of such a violent game, given that the two have had their fair share of injuries and Neymar particularly being infamous for diving at the first hint of contact when playing.
Then there were some comments about leveling up in the game to unlock new hair-dos for Pogba. Dare we say, the same can be applicable to Neymar as well?
Comments regarding Pogba were all the rage.
This is certainly an exciting development for the world of football and opens a new array of possibilities for the stars of the game.
The audience too can connect with their favorite players in a completely different, and unexpected manner than before, adding another dimension to their fandom as well.
All of this though comes with the asterisk that these leaks come to fruition.
Well with the game launching shortly, we thankfully won’t have to wait too long.