Advanced Warfare Almost Had Wall Running Like Titanfall 2 but Sledgehammer Stopped Because Call of Duty Wasn’t “a wall running game”

Do you remember Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare? It came out back in 2014 and was a mainline entry in the series. In case you weren’t playing CoD back then, it was a very ambitious title because it introduced the exosuit and its advanced movement mechanics. But you know one thing that didn’t make it to the game? Wall running.

According to Sledgehammer Games co-founder Michael Condrey, the decision was made because wall running didn’t fit Call of Duty’s identity. While we eventually saw the feature come to Call of Duty with Black Ops 3 and Infinite Warfare, Advanced Warfare ultimately focused on its exo-based movement system instead.

Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare almost had wall-running

During an interview with AusGamers, Michael Condrey explained that Sledgehammer had the rare opportunity of a three-year development cycle, which allowed them to take creative risks. So we now know that this additional time is what let the devs experiment with various movement ideas, including elements like the exosuit’s boost jumps and dashes.

So this isn’t a wall running game, that’s not part of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, but as you’ve seen, it’s a pretty transformational change to how you play.

Wall running was one of the features tested for Advanced Warfare, but after careful consideration, the developers determined that it didn’t feel like a natural fit for Call of Duty’s established identity. In hindsight, movement tech like wall running was made mainstream by Titanfall. Now that was a fun game built around fluid parkour-based movement.

While Advanced Warfare didn’t feature wall running, the mechanic eventually debuted in Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 and then made its way into Infinite Warfare.

These games fully went into the whole movement mechanics hype and added wall-running, boost jumps, and thrust mechanics. Advanced Warfare could have taken a similar approach, but Sledgehammer ultimately opted for grounded verticality over fluid parkour.

New rumors on Infinity Ward’s next Call of Duty game

– Expected to be another Modern Warfare title
– 2026 release
– Expected to feature omnimovement and wall-running
– MP may include some MW3 (2011) maps remastered along with new maps

(via @TheGhostOfHope) pic.twitter.com/4hK3wVi1xf

— CharlieIntel (@charlieINTEL) December 12, 2024

And the idea of maintaining Call of Duty‘s identity is super fair. Wall running eventually became a big mechanic for other games, most notably Titanfall 2. The predecessor of Apex Legends was a game super focused on fluid movement and Respawn Entertainment made some of the best movement mechanics in the genre.

The franchise’s future may bring this feature back

Call of Duty’s experimentation with advanced movement led to a period of division within the community. Advanced Warfare, Black Ops 3, and Infinite Warfare all introduced variations of futuristic mobility, but not all were well received. Some players found the increased verticality exciting, while others disliked how it affected traditional gunfights.

Interestingly, recent rumors regarding Call of Duty 2026 suggest that wall-running could make a return. According to leaks, the game will incorporate both wall running and the Omnimovement system seen in Black Ops 6. This would mark the first time since Infinite Warfare that a Call of Duty title features wall-running.

Looking back, how different do you think Advanced Warfare might have been if wall running had been included? Some players argue that the game’s exosuit movement already pushed the boundaries of what Call of Duty could be, so adding wall running wouldn’t have been too much of a stretch