The new Extinction mode for Call of Duty: Ghosts has finally been revealed and I must admit, it is looking like something that I’d like.
Too bad I won’t support Call of Duty again until they deliver a new engine with impressive graphics like Battlefield did two years ago.
Is the Call of Duty franchise all milked out? I mean, it certainly feels old. Old but polished, I’ll give them that. Black Ops 2 was fun and all, but insanely outdated graphics and mechanics were apparent.
Now when they are talking about Ghosts, the biggest stories are about dog and fish AI. Wow. Is that sad or pathetic? Does this imply innovation does no longer exist in Call of Duty? I mean look at how new and fresh Battlefield 4 looks.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II multiplayer is free-to-play for two days and I decided to give it a shot, considering I haven’t played it yet and it’s the most popular shooter out there. I can say I was pleasantly surprised.
My last Call of Duty experience was in Modern Warfare 2 and on the Xbox 360, and I loved it. But I did play the single player campaign of the other CoD games, though plus some online on the PC during “try it for free campaign”. But Battlefield 3 has been my main shooter the past two years, although I hardly touch it anymore so it’s not really a fair statement, more like 2011-2012 and then this entire year I haven’t gamed shooters.
I didn’t expect much from Black Ops II, but I was surprised. I remember Modern Warfare 2 being fast and fun, and this is exactly what I got from Black Ops II. It’s so incredible fast, easy, fun, intensive, and quick. Instant respawn, small maps for maximum intensity, no vehicles and fun customization. Now I remember why this franchise is so successful. Compared to Battlefield 3 this game is years more polished in terms of basic features such as joining as a party etc.
However, not everything is gold and roses. The graphics feel insanely outdated compared to Battlefield 3, this game looks like shit. It truly feels like Modern Warfare from 2007 and they need to fucking delete that engine and make a completely new one, not an enhanced one like they are doing for Call of Duty: Ghost.
With being so positively surprised by this, I might actually pick up Call of Duty: Ghost. But the graphics really bother me. Battlefield 4 will be so much more beautiful with stunning effects that I don’t know if I want to support a company that doesn’t innovate in graphics.
I lost my gaming lust when it comes to single player games. I have tried Sleeping Dogs, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Assassin’s Creed III, Metro 2033 and Hitman: Absolution during my Dota 2 era and I only managed to finish Modern Warfare 3 out of all those games. And that’s because I played all the other CoD games prior. And the fact that CoD is usually between 3-5 hours long only.
Sure, some of these games were not bad. Sleeping Dogs, for an instance, I like a lot. I just don’t have the energy or urge to finish it right now. Metro 2033 is very interesting too, but like I said, single player games have no hold over me anymore. I do hope to get around and finish them one day. Maybe even AC3, but I doubt Hitman though.
Now I have received some more games from the gaming gods, and first up is DmC the new Devil May Cry game. I very much enjoyed the previous games and I haven’t played a hack N slash action game in a long while. I hear this game runs at 60 FPS on the PC with gorgeous graphics. I look forward to being a judge of that.
Also in my gift basket was Far Cry 3, Black Ops II and Mass Effect 3. I feel like I might finish Mass Effect 3 to end the trilogy. Black Ops II, the same story as it’ll be short and I’ve played every single other CoD game.
I don’t like the new Dante design. May I cry along with the devil?
Activision are having a free weekend of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and in all honesty, I have never tried MW3 so I thought I’d give it a shot after having played Battlefield 3 as my primary FPS for a long time.
My first reaction was a tiny bit of nausea already at the menus as I really hate that color scheme of grayish dark green. Well, I decided to find a match and it went live pretty quickly. Much better than Battlelog, that’s for certain. In-game I was struck by what I feared – graphics from 2007. I mean this game is just so ridiculously ugly and lack details everywhere. Compared to Battlefield 3 this game just doesn’t stand a chance.
In terms of gameplay mechanics, it felt very primitive. There was hardly any bullet recoil and no coriolis effect on the bullets depending on wind/distance etc which made me get kills very easily and despite being underleveled in terms of guns and perks, I managed to finish second and pull off very easy kills. But it didn’t feel epic. It felt very confined and small compared to the epicness that I experienced in BF3.
I definitely won’t pick-up Black Ops II as I am certain it will feel outdated and old just like MW3 did to me. BF3 and CS:GO are both significantly prettier games with more depth and deliver an overall more enjoyable experience.
Not an impressive game experience by any means in 2012.
I’ve now spent several hours with the Global Offensive beta with my friend and feel ready to deliver some impressions.
The first thing that struck me was how good the game looked. It falls short to Battlefield 3 in terms of detail and polygons for sure, but at a quick glance it looks just as good as Battlefield 3. It’s only when you start looking at the the details of the textures you can see the age of the Source engine. And also when you throw molotov cocktails and smoke grenades. Those effects look easily 10 years old. And that’s what I have been complaining about a lot with the Source engine. But I can’t deny the fantastic job done here with the looks of the game in all honesty it exceeded what I thought by far.
Let’s get down to the feel and authenticity of the game. It feels like Counter-Strike immediately. It looks kind of what Counter-Strike 2 would look like in the eyes of the players coming from CS 1.6 several years ago. The maps are remade with new paths added, textures, details, destructible objects etc. There is no quick scope or regenerating health and this is for sure Counter-Strike.
There are premade modes now such as Casual and Competitive which differ in terms of team damage, money, and other minor details. Obviously if you to try competitive you will be playing what the pros played like where you have buy kevlar yourself and whatnot. Then there are two other modes I haven’t tried yet such as demolition. I’ve played almost all the classic maps and they look and play great so far in my opinion.
The tactical elements of CS are still here. Sound is key and so is locking down positions and being map aware. Sneaking removes footsteps and it all feels familiar. I definitely feel like I am playing back in the days but with modernized graphics and some minor changes. The recoil feels easier to handle and the new cross hair is nice even though my friends don’t seem to fancy it that much, I do. But you can always use the classical one should that be the case.
Keep in mind that the game isn’t out yet and that this is the final beta – so I expect the retail version to play and feel even better than what I am given right now. I was expecting a bit more of options in terms of creating servers and esport things, but I am not sure if they are missing because they aren’t there or because of the beta and they are in the final version. Right now it still feels a bit “light” in terms of options so to speak. In fact, I felt there was easier and more customization options in forms of scripts and so in 1.6, although I just started playing GO and it might be there I just haven’t found them yet.
Compared to Battlefield 3 CS:GO feels more like an esport shooter with fast pace and focus on just that. Battlefield 3 feels more like a realistic war experience and feels exactly like war and chaos due to its massive scale and 64 player limit. They are two completely different games and I tried them back-to-back and they arose different feelings although I think that I will stick with CS:GO due to the esport focus and the nostalgia. Battlefield 3 might be close to an uninstall because of GO. But there is no denying that Battlefield 3 is the prettier game with more depth and larger battles. But GO is still very pretty too look at considering the age of the Source engine.
To sum it up, I feel that CS:GO has a bright future if Valve keeps supporting it like they are doing with Dota 2 and Team Fortress 2. That is, with constant updates and improvements. New features will be needed here I feel but possibly not if the esport prize money is enough. There are already numerous tournaments announced and I know pro players are making comebacks for this game. CS 1.6 was unprecedented in size and popularity and I hope to see GO reach same heights and become a behemoth of shooters and prove that esport focus is the way to go.
There are a lot of nice games coming out this year. Around 20 maybe, I’d say. But the number of those that are potential 10/10 is significantly lower than that. Here are some of the ones that I believe have the potential to be that perfect match for you.
Rage, Id Software
Coming out for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 this beast promises to be the “best looking console game ever” and runs at an impressive 60 FPS. Hardcore gamers know of course, that if this game will be that good-looking on the console, it will be even more unreal on the PC. Rage looks to be a relatively fresh breeze in the FPS genre with focus on vehicle racing in multiplayer and like I said, fantastic graphics and soundeffects. If Id Software truly work hard on the multiplayer and make it stern, stern but fair, I have no doubt this game will be a blast. Here’s hoping that we finally get a decent FPS with amazing vehicle combat online.
Dark Souls, From Software
The sequel to one of the toughest games to ever hit mankind will be even harder than its predecessor. Sounds good, right? Add improved graphics, co-op gameplay, and so much more and you begin to see why this game has a lot of potential to clinch that magic ten points on my review scale. Just the thought of running around being a Knight and slaying monsters, dragons and invading other people’s games with my friends is getting me hard. I have no doubt that Dark Souls will be one of my most played games on the Xbox 360 this year.
Battlefield 3, DICE
Though Rage might be a graphical beast on the consoles and the PC as well, Battlefield 3 looks like the graphic king. It is without a doubt the best-looking game that I have seen in my life. Add to that that it will support an impressive number of 64 players online and have that world-class Battlefield online quality to it. Real authentic weapon sounds and a deep and engrossing singleplayer campaign and Battlefield 3’s greatness is obvious. Modern Warfare 3 honestly looks like shit compared to this behemoth and it is undoubtedly my most anticipated game of the year, that is, unless Diablo III gets confirmed for this year. I would be shocked if it turns out that Battlefield 3 doesn’t become my most played game of the year and crowned Game of the Year.
Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Eidos
It certainly looks like Deus Ex franchise is back and stronger than ever. Impressive graphics, gameplay, and a lot of cyber goodness is packed into this baby and it will be interesting to see what it feels like being a badass in the future feels like. Players looking for that complete singleplayer experience with stealth or guns blazing will get their fix in Human Revolution and the amount of detail they put into this game to make it feel like a real world in the future is amazing. You bet your ass that I will be playing this game.
The rumors are true folks! You’re going to need a lot of subscriptions to play a game at its full potential. Activision has confirmed Call of Duty: Elite, which will be a subscription service to Call of Duty. Not free, of course.
That means that Xbox 360 users will need to pay for their Internet subscription, then Xbox LIVE subscription, then for the Call of Duty game, then an additional subscription fee to the game in order to be able to enjoy it 100%. Sweet, huh?
Paying for things that were free is becoming a norm. Just look at DLC, ten years ago it was all free. Big updates of maps, classes and items all got inside our harddrives for free and we loved it. Now we have to pay 10 bucks for three maps and then an additional monthly fee to get our statistics tracked in a decent way. I for one think it is truly sad that we are moving towards a direction that forces customers to pay even more outside the game. Once you buy the game, that should be it, everything should be accessible.
Well, here is hoping that Blizzard will not adapt this to their Battle.net system as it was rumored before. I would pay that fee for Diablo III, but as soon as Guild Wars 2 comes out I would stop. Companies are way too greedy these days.
Pay for Xbox LIVE, pay for the game, pay for the subscription. What is next?
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