An unimportant opinion regarding call of duty from a hater of the series

Alright look, ill be honest, im a cod hater. Take that for what you will, but plain and simple I find the franchise grossly overrated. I’m somewhat jealous of the success that encompasses the game more than what the actual game entails. I hate on cod solely because it has the power to sell millions and millions of copies day 1 while my all time favorite game franchises barely break the 500,000 lifetime achievement award. I have always refused to accept or even play cod mainly due to popularity alone and my somewhat skewed morals of acceptance with this series. For some reason there is always an immense pressure to play a call of duty title. I guess it’s due to the fact that every gamer, relative, cousin and friend owns the game or has at least played it once. I have been constantly bombarded with psn requests stating “would you like to play black ops?” since release day, which only infuriates me as they can clearly see I have never played the game. Yet, I am constantly spammed with invites as if they gain some sort of recruitment reward if I join. Well I can only take so much and I decided to rent the game that is black ops.

I didn’t know what to expect going into black ops as the world of call of duty is still very new to me. I played big red one on the ps2 and that was truly the last time I have picked up a cod game until now. I remember hearing about mw2 like it was the second coming, then playing it at a friend’s house and becoming more angered that I had ever been in my entire life. For me mw2 was the bottom of the barrel as far as games were concerned. It was crude, cheap, rough around the edges and generally speaking, a disaster. I could not stand mw2 so I expected the same results with black ops, but something happened. As I sat there playing black ops I realized something, call of duty is a fantastic franchise. Even more so, it’s a game that’s miles ahead of every fps multiplayer on the market. It truly is in a league of its own and I now regret on not giving modern warfare 2 a chance.

To be clear im not saying it’s the best FPS multiplayer you could possibly play cause it’s not. What im saying is that the sheer amount of content included on the disk is something I don’t generally see. This is where I was taken back and somewhat thrilled at the same time. I was looking at like 14 maps and around 15+ games modes once I got into things, not including the variant tweaks on existing game modes. This was something I couldn’t comprehend. I may seem like a kid on Christmas day here, but why can’t more games include vast content and follow this model? Is the milking of dlc far more important than the fanbase? Sure, cod isn’t one to talk with their overpriced map packs and all, but when you have an abundance of content day 1 those other map packs are merely bonuses for those who want to enjoy it. I feel like other games make the buying of content a necessity due to the game having a bare minimum on release day. I also find the repetitive nature of multiplayer somewhat daunting and rarely can it keep my interest. I can only play the same map and game mode so many times before I leave the game behind and I have yet to reach that point with black ops.

I retract all the hate I once had for the franchise as I now realize where the appeal comes from. Its fast paced, addicting and above all enjoyable in more than 1 aspect. My biggest gripe, complaint and argument for this gen has always been about content whether that be for single player or multiplayer. Gamers complain about graphics, but to me I could care less. Nothing annoys me more than when I see 8 maps and 2 modes with dlc a month down the line. It’s like call of duty has taken every complaint I’ve ever had about multiplayer, made the opposite and packaged it on a disc for me to enjoy. It’s a game that keeps its self from going stale and now I realize why the fanbase is so large. There are other reasons for sure, but I see the content aspect as the biggest selling point amidst dlc and online passes.

Sure it’s not the most graphically intense game on the market but would a shiny coat of paint actually change the game? I mean I already see the overwhelming hate for mw3 stating that it’s merely a copy and paste of cod4/mw2 and so on. I was the biggest follower and believer of this sort of mob mentality but in essence you are correct and I accept that. It’s not like they have overhauled the gameplay or graphics so essentially you are getting an updated mw2 and im fine with that. The true core of the game, like stated before, lies in the content. New spec ops, new maps, new weapons, new game modes, new killstreaks and so on which is what I truly can’t wait for. If more developers could follow what call of duty is doing in content, not in gameplay, maybe the fanbase would stick around, maybe I would still be playing your game or maybe you would sell more map packs in general . Who knows, all I can say is I welcome activision and infinity ward into my living room on November 8th and I couldn’t be more excited.

In the grand scope of things my opinion means very little, but thanks for taking the time to read this post.

[SageHonor]

Yup Yup.. I want to add something.. What most gamers dont understand about the industry is the business aspect.. COD can appeal to anyone for the most part. Like you said its fast paced, addicting, rewarding, full of content and has lots O customization ..

Thats why it sells well.. and thats why most developers and publishers are influenced by it when it comes to multiplayer or FPS games.. The need to appeal to a larger fanbase.. its all business

Some of the COD haters I know personlly dont like it for the very same reasons as you. Your favorite games dont sell nearly as much. Also, people hate when a game gets criticized for something that COD does all the time..

Thanks for admitting to being a hater. Most COD haters have the same grievances as you.

[bozebo]

I hate CoD because they are incapable of doing it right yet they have the foundation of the game there to make an amazing fps.

It is something about the feel of the guns in CoD that is great. Nearly everything else is total rubbish.

You need to try MW1 though because that was actually a brilliant game and had a competitive scene (like any good FPS will). I think it is only alive on the PC though (dedis).

[dinkeldinkse]

But no seriously it's cool if you like COD. The main reason I hate it because I think the series is watered down dog shit. Probably the most important thing I take from reading your blog is if you hate something, make sure you actually hate it first.

[christheredhead]

I still have a few issues with the game but i can only speak for black ops as thats my starting point. I cant really defend the progression of the series cause i refused to play it till now. My reasons for hating the series as a whole still have not changed i just learned to accept its a fun game with more content than most, if not all, first person shooters.

[Kee]

Dude, you played the wrong game. CoD4 and MW2 were great but black ops was a huge let down compared to it's predecessors. Still, it was good enough, but not quite what I wanted from it.

[Otheros00]

If you hate MW2 you would hate BO as well. They are the SAME game. A broken car will still be a broken car even if you give it a new coat of paint.

You DO NOT HATE cod.

Reasons why cod s*cks:
same game since cod4
gets lots of sales when great games get very little
broken
series went down hill after cod4
copy and paste
skill doesn't matter
tacked on single player
$15 for 4 small maps
heavily unoptimized

[SeanRL]

This.

[christheredhead]

i have a question, an honest question. ive been seeing overwhelming praise for bf3, myself included, but what is so truly different about bf3 in comparison to mw3? i mean dont get me wrong, i cant wait to play bf3 as my pre order is already paid off, but i see a massive contradiction as you could easily write that list for many other games in favor with a few minor tweaks. i mean bf3 has the new engine and looks out of this world, but isn't it the same as all the other battlefield games? im sure ill be capturing some areas in conquest and blowing up some station posts in conquest style just like all other battlefield games. the cod franchise does have a copy and paste formula but do you really expect them to scrap everything and bring in something new in terms of gameplay? just as any other franchise i dont see that happening and im not just picking on bf3 here. i hated cod but i have to admit they have a winning formula thats a solid foundation for competitive multiplayer.

[Hicken]

You spoke about the amount of content on disc for Black Ops; If BC2 is anything to go by, BF3 will definitely trump that. Or, perhaps, I should say that the content and possibilities in each match will easily trump that.

I can really only think of one or two game modes (mostly Zombies) that CoD has that BF does not. Granted, I haven't played Black Ops since launch, where it proved to be better than MW2, but still not enough to redeem the franchise in my eyes.

That said, what BF brings to the table WITHIN the match is variety: infinite routes through a map, destructible environments(which adds to the first point), more realistic bullet physics, vehicles and installations, etc. Add these into your standard deathmatch and the game changes drastically. For things like Rush, they increase the number of strategies available to each team.

You also get a sense of accomplishment when you go on a crazy streak, because you did it all with your own work. I went 47-21 the other night with 25 medals, and even I was amazed at my numbers, because it takes lots of work and skill- and a fair bit of luck- to do something like that. On the other hand, Call of Duty helps you get to such achievements.

I prefer the in-match variety and that sense of accomplishment I get from Battlefield, and I know those things will be there in Battlefield 3.

[fr00ty-wizenhymer]

CoD1 - Decent start
CoD2 - Improved many things from 1. Decent story/MP
CoD3 - Questionable changes but some good additions, overall decent
CoD4 - Arguable the peak of the series, along with 2.
WaW - Basically a CoD4 expansion.
MW2 - Absolute. Fucking. Disaster. A big step backwards.
BO - Tried to fix mistakes of MW2. Failed.

It was never a great series, but the fact that it holds the spot of #1 purchased and played game is sad. And it's all due to marketing, hype and Activision paying for good reviews. $15 DLC is B.S.
Most overrated series in the history of gaming. Ever.

Also the community is full of whiny 12 year olds who think they're 'pro' because they play CoD.

I could go on and on, shit I could probably write an entire book on why CoD is bad and ruining gaming. Maybe I will.

[the_eddster]

What I carn't get over is that a majority of cod haters always put down that they enjoyed the ww2 cods. There is a reason why activision reinvented the series, ww2 was REALLY boring by cod 3. Thats why I carn't like treyarch as they seem determined to make games set in the past; I wish people would just realise that old guns are crap, they take ages to reload theres not enough power to kill a cat and they actually look like someones found it in the gutter. Don't get me wrong those guns worked for and against the nazis but a game is a game, if I wanted to simulate being in a war with real weapons I would join the army. NOTE: Completly agree that cod dlc is WAY overpriced.

[christheredhead]

what i enjoyed most about ww2 cod was the authenticity and the atmosphere. sure older guns are not as reliable in a sense but it had authentication and that is something that have absolutly lost. the reinvention of the series into modern warfare has been pretty cool, but they have been unable to match the heightened adrenaline rush that came with the ww2 experience, at least from a single player perspective. the modern warfare single player has been lackluster at its best. now its kinda flipped for me. i find the modern era kinda boring.

at the same time i understand though as the focus is multiplayer now. no one really cares about the single player anymore when it comes to cod. a lot of fans dont even touch the single player and go straight to multi.