Modern Warfare 3 fans are hoping Sledgehammer Games hasn't forgotten about iconic Modern Warfare villain Khaled Al-Asad.
With all eyes moving towards the launch of Modern Warfare 3 and the start of the campaign early access window, it's unclear if the antagonist from Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare will feature alongside another iconic villain that's making their long-awaited return.
While most of the campaign trailers have focused on the battle between Task Force 141 and the Konni Group, fans are worried about the prospect of Al-Asad disappearing into Call of Duty folklore instead of playing a role in Captain Price's mission to take down Makarov once and for all.
To highlight the lack of Al-Asad, user MysticHawaiian took to Reddit wondering whether Sledgehammer Games will include Al-Asad.
The player says: "I remember when people were all over Hadir being Al-Asad. He just decided to pull a Houdini or what?"
Thanks to some information from the Verdansk era of Warzone, there's a chance Al-Asad could appear in some capacity. One fan believes: "He should be in Urzikstan as per some intel from Warzone 1. Maybe he'll reappear during zombies or the post-launch story."
While many believe there's a chance that Hadir, the brother of Farah, has morphed into Al-Asad, others are less convinced by the theory. One fan says: "Hadir was never Al-Asad. The only reason people thought this was because his Vanguard skin used an altered face model of Hadir. Hadir is dead now and with the inclusion of Makarov, it's super unlikely any other villains will be making appearances."
Judging by the storylines of previous Modern Warfare titles, Khaled Al-Asad is still alive but with the main focus of Modern Warfare 3 being between Price and Makarov, the chances of the Al Qatala leader appearing are slim. However, he could feature as part of the Season 1 update that's rumoured to launch at the start of December. Could Task Force 141 face the threat of two enemies? We'll have to wait and see.