Call of Duty fights back in exciting Cold War game
In recent years, the first person shooter Call of Duty franchise has fallen flat on its face; repetitive gameplay, repetitive game mechanics and repetitive multiplayer has seen this series dissolve from what it once was.
However, Treyarch Studios have made me fall in love with the series again by by returning to the ever-popular and legendary Black Ops series which follows CIA agents Mason and Woods through the depths of the Cold War in the 1960s and 70s.
This time round the game is firmly planted in the bright lights of the 1980s.
The latest addition to the series sees our two main protagonists once again join up with the CIA and new additions from MI6 as well as a new playable character called ‘Bell’ in order to foil the Soviet’s plan to detonate nuclear weapons around Europe during the peak of the Cold War.
Set in 1981, Call of Duty Black Ops: Cold War also reintroduces the popular ‘Zombies’ game mode which can be played both single and multi player, with strangers or with friends. Finally, a return to killing hordes of mindless undead creatures is here!
Returning to a simple story line and the world renowned ‘Zombies’ game mode has seen the Call of Duty franchise revived into an energetic and exciting gaming experience.
But no game is without its caveats. The online multiplayer, like the previous three instalments to the COD franchise, is rigidly repetitive. Levelling up takes an eternity and the new skill-based matchmaking makes it even harder to get to those higher levels and upgrade weapons effectively.
To add to that, players have experienced a woeful queueing system when servers get overloaded.
Call of Duty regular Arron Tull said: “I know we’re in a lockdown right now but the studio shouldn’t have published a game where they can’t accommodate the volume of people wanting to play… sometimes once you get to the front of the queue (to play online), you’re booted right back to the beginning. It’s just not good enough for a game costing over £50.”
He’s absolutely right, the game is overpriced for what you get… some editions of the game cost almost £90 and you get this level of service with almost identical multiplayer gameplay as the last three instalments. “The multiplayer just isn’t what it used to be,” added Tull.
Overall the game is solid… despite its shoddy multiplayer. The franchise has been throughly revitalised by revisiting this old favourite era and thats why I’m awarding this game four stars.
