A new report from well-known Call of Duty insider Tom Henderson says that Call of Duty 2021?reportedly Call of Duty: WWII Vanguard?will be “held back so bad” by last-gen consoles. Additionally, Henderson claims that Infinity Ward’s next Call of Duty game in 2022, rumored to be a sequel to 2019’s Modern Warfare, will also come to PS4 and Xbox One, presumably facing the same challenges of being “held back” by the last-gen platforms.

WW2 Vanguard is going to be held back so bad by previous generation consoles, and from my understanding they are planning previous gen for both Vangaurd and IW’s next title. pic.twitter.com/PmokyHP0BU
? Tom Henderson (@_Tom_Henderson_) April 18, 2021

Every console cycle, there is a period of overlap for a few years where games will release for both previous-gen and new consoles. This is partially caused by developers learning the new tech, but it’s also in large part a profit-driven move. After all, the last-gen consoles have a much larger install base at the outset of the new consoles’ release, which can take some time to catch up as consumers shift over to the newer hardware. However, this also inherently means developers aren’t taking unique advantage of the new technologies available, in an effort to keep their games working on older platforms as well. The report that three Call of Duty premium games (including 2020’s Black Ops Cold War) will be cross-gen releases isn’...