Despite releasing year after year theCall of Dutyfranchise still manages to come in as the best-selling game annually almost every year.Call of Duty: Modern Warfarelooks to be taking the series back to the roots that made the franchise so popular. They’re not only taking multiplayer mechanics down a familiar path, but they’re remixing the original story and telling a new version in a high-quality single-player campaign.
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Let’s now look at five waysCall of Duty: Modern Warfarewill refresh the franchise and five ways it will feel like every other entry.
10Same: Same, But Different
Call of Dutyhas seemed to operate by the same, but different approach over the last decade-plus. It seems that with each new title they focused on making sure it felt like the same familiarCall of Duty, but changed enough to justify a new annual release at a $60 price point.
Some years, there have been entries that are drastically different than their predecessor or successor, but ultimately at the end of the day, you know what you’re getting when you purchase a newCall of Dutygame.
9New: Less Is More
Sometimes, the longer a franchise goes on, the more it’s weighed down and convoluted by its legacy and history. Over the yearsCall of Dutyhas seen the implementation and iteration of several gameplay mechanics and features and the game began to feel busy and bloated.
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Infinity Ward is looking to strip things down to what made the simple approach of theModern Warfareseries so well-received. If they can stick the landing then the less is more approach can do wonders for the long-running franchise.
8Same: Lack Of Innovation
TheCall of Dutyseries innovated online console multiplayer games in the mid-2000s alongsideHalo 2and those early online days for console helped mold the series into a blockbuster annual release. Since then the series has tried some new and inventive stuff, but you’d likely never see the word innovative mentioned.
The series has always had some of the industry’s best shooting mechanics and gun feel which they’ve leaned on for the last decade-plus as a new game is released every year.
7New: Killstreaks
Players have become upset and tired over the focus on scorestreaks in multiplayer. For a game focused on killing the enemy players online, it has a system that can be taken advantage of and doesn’t reward only solid gunplay.
Modern Warfarewill ditch those in favor of the classic and simply killstreaks the sub-franchise was known for. Stripping it down goes back to that less is more approach and having players focuses on stringing together kills could make the game feel refreshing in a back-to-its-roots sort of way.
6Same: Microtransactions
Whether or notModern Warfarecontains gun crates doesn’t mean there won’t be microtransactions. At the end of the day, Activision has always seen them as a great way to earn a ton of additional revenue via their best-selling game franchise that happens to release a new entry every year.
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Expecting a newCall of Dutyto release without any microtransactions is like hoping you don’t have to pay taxes. Players are just hoping they’re entirely cosmetic with no pay-to-win mechanics.
5New: Gunfight 2v2
The new 2v2 gunfight mode that was featured in theModern Warfare Betaalready has fans excited for the game’s full release. The mode has two teams of two battling it out in tense round-based matches.
The mode puts a focus on teamwork, focus, and skill as loadouts are irrelevant since the mode chooses the players’weaponsfor them. Players felt like it truly brought back a part of theCall of Dutyseries they felt has been missing for several years. Try and find yourself a solid companion and try it for yourself.
4Same: Veterans Will Thrive
PlayingCall of Dutyis very much like riding a bike, but every year the frame of the bike changes. Sure there will be a learning curve as you get used to the new features and details, but the core stays the same, which makes it feel like home after a couple of hours.
If you’re one of the many lapsedCall of Dutyplayers returning specifically forModern Warfare, be prepared to run into the hundreds of veteran players who return every year like clockwork. It may be a new game, but to them, it’s a fresh coat of paint.
3New: Back To Modern
The simple fact thatCall of Dutyis returning to theModern Warfareseries after 8 years has lapsed fans wanting to hop back in. Through preview coverage, fans have seen teases of the familiar stripped-down gameplay and mechanics that made the sub-franchise so beloved to them.
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With the confirmation of a return to killstreaks and an impressive looking single-player campaign, this will likely be the entry in the series that sees the return of the highest number of lapsed players in years.
2Same: Guns Will Be Familiar
Call of Dutyfeatures new and interesting guns every year that change depending on the setting and theme of that year’s entry. WithModern Warfareit will feature many of the guns from the original trilogy and those guns will likely feel very familiar.
The franchise is often ridiculed for multiplayer gameplay decisions or horrible microtransactions, but everyone knows how good the first-person shooting gameplay feels. They’re some of the best in the world at making gunplay feel good and don’t look for that to change.
1New: Solid Narrative
Infinity Ward is doing something interesting with their 2019 soft reboot of theModern Warfareseries. They’re taking many of the familiar characters from the original trilogy’s story and delivering a brand-new campaign set in the world and inspired by the events of its original telling.
It’s going to be interesting to see how it pays off as it’s essentially rewriting arguably one of the franchise’s best campaigns. If it’s bad then the recent remaster ofCall of Duty 4: Modern Warfarewill have it sting a little less.
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