Infinity Ward split on whether the Call of Duty dog dies

Call of Duty: Ghosts developer Infinity Ward is split on whether Riley, the game's dog companion, should die during the course of the game.

“You know what’s funny about that is, we were all watching the Xbox One reveal event in our theater,” said Infinity Ward’s senior community manager Tina Palacios in an interview with Rock Paper Shotgun.

Riley has become something of a cult favourite since his original introduction as part of the Xbox One reveal event in May. After the initial reaction online--both positive and negative--Activision and Infinity Ward further detailed the canine companion as part of Activision's pre-E3 event for Call of Duty: Ghosts.

“We didn’t expect any of this at all," added Palacios, adding that after the community response "the studio became divided. Half of them said, ‘Ok, the dog absolutely has to die.’ And then the other half--I’m on this half--said, ‘Whoa, no way! People love him.’"

"It’s a constant debate, but we do have an answer.”

Palacios adds that while Riley's hi-tech arsenal--flip-up camera, an earpiece, and two vibrating devices--might sound implausible, Infinity Ward has grounded the dog's equipment in reality.

“We actually had a couple Navy SEALs come in with their dogs that served in combat in Iraq," she said. "When we met them, they did have the same type of gear on, and they had cameras on their backs. Their trainer has a camera on their arm, so when they throw a dog into a building or into a room or over a wall, they can see what’s going on. If they’re far away, they can also give them instructions with a collar that vibrates on each side.”

Call of Duty: Ghosts will be released for current and next-generation platforms in 2013. For more on the game, check out five things GameSpot noticed during the Call of Duty: Ghosts E3 demo.