"We come into this world with our eyes closed. And most of us choose to live our whole lives that way..."
Mitchell - Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
The Gamer Returns
Hi there!
You might wonder why my blog has been a cold, sad wasteland of nothingness for months. I promise, my long absence wasn’t on purpose—there’s a totally legit reason behind it. I've gathered the intel and facts to support and back up my post today. It meant hours and hours of gaming (oh, the pain!) to give a full perspective on what's happening with Call of Duty.
For months, I’ve thought about tossing a quick update on the blog, but every single day, I remind myself—I can't just post anything for the sake of it! My content needs needs substance, not just my opinion (which is obviously the best), but true experience that I can confidently use to back up everything I am about to say to you. I wanted to bring to light a topic I'm passionate about—something I can't let go of.
So, let’s talk about Call of Duty campaigns—a series I’ve been obsessed with since I was just a wee little gamer.
The OG of all COD Games: AKA my personal fav.
My Great Idea
A while ago, I told myself, "You know what? Since the new Call of Duty: Black Ops VI is coming out, I want to revisit all the older campaigns, play through them, and get an idea of how they'll compare to the new release." That idea spiraled into this crazy adventure where I’ve been playing through all the campaigns. And let me tell you, it's been a blast! I had to dig out my old PS3 and track down the physical copies I knew my family had lying around. Dusting off the PlayStation and those disc cases brought back so much nostalgia—it had me giddy with excitement!
In my campaign adventures, I found that each game just gets better and better in terms of story, and I have a lot to say about it.
First off—on this journey, I discovered a shocking truth: a lot of people have never played the campaign! What!?!?
Hold up—if you're a Call of Duty player and you've never played the campaign, you're missing out on a truly amazing experience. The campaign is where the iconic characters of the franchise come to life. You get to know their backstories, go through hell and back with them on missions—it adds a whole new layer to the game!
I've always played the campaign first before jumping into multiplayer. As a kid, that's what I bought the game for! It always felt like I was wasting my money if I didn't play through the campaign. That was part of the whole experience. I got my money's worth because I enjoyed every aspect of the game, from start to finish.
I don't just play campaign mode for the story, though—that's just part of it. The cool thing? Campaign mechanics usually end up in multiplayer, so playing the campaign gives me a deeper connection to the game itself.
But I digress. I'm not finished yet with my campaign journey! So far, I've played Black Ops, Black Ops II, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and Modern Warfare 3. Right now, I'm powering through Ghosts—and I’m not even halfway yet!
There are a total of 23 games since their debut release in 2003!
Check out this article for more info
It's been so cool to see how the campaigns have evolved and to remember my first reaction as a kid, picking up a controller and getting totally invested in these stories.
I've gotta admit, I was pretty impressionable as a kid. These storylines were epic! I had never played games with campaigns like these before, and replaying them as an adult? Honestly, they're still really good! Sure, some of the older stories are a little cheesy, but I expected that. They still have great moments, and while the game mechanics might feel a bit clunky now, it's understandable given that this was tech from two decades ago.
The Evolution of Call of Duty
From the first campaigns back in the 2000s to Call of Duty: Ghosts (2014), and last years newest release of Modern Warfare III (2023), you can see how much the games have changed. These campaigns are like full-on movies now, and they keep getting better. From the way the guns fire to the movement and speed of the characters to the tech and weapons you use—it's fun to see how the company has evolved over the years.
I also want to shout out the special edition releases of these games—stuff like character journals, metal DVD cases, and all the memorabilia that came with the physical copies. I remember begging my parents to stop at GameStop just so I could check out all the cool Call of Duty special editions. How cool is this stuff!
Those were the good times. I wish they still did this kind of thing. Instead of physical memrobelia, players who buy the limited editions of the game unlock the season's battle pass, character skins, and special gun blueprints. Which is still cool, but for the amount of money you pay for the special editions I want a physical collectors item.
There was a time when Call of Duty paid great attention to these details and showed the players a lot of love. But this is where I started noticing a shift.
The Beginnings of A Shift
It's subtle, but it's there in the campaigns.
Take Ghosts, for example. The game doesn't have multiplayer or zombies. I mean, huh? Sure, it's got online multiplayer, but it's not what you expect it to be. The online "squad" mode severely lacks creativity and funness (I think I'm making that word up). In Modern Warfare 3 (the older version), the game had the same problem—a great campaign but lacking the expected online multiplayer features. Both games feature this strange wave-after-wave of AI enemy gameplay that just doesn't go anywhere. It lacks that excitement, that fun factor multiplayer brings. And it doesn't include Zombies ( a fan favorite mode).
Hmm. I'm at a point where I can see the shift in what Activision and Treyarch are trying to do with Call of Duty. It's so obvious the devs at this time were pumping out games and slapping on extra bits just to keep players happy but with no real reason to their decision. But why?
I’ve already snagged a sneak peek at their 2023 release—I’ve played it! I can see where my campaign adventure is heading, and I’ve got a glimpse of where Activision takes things. But I can't say exactly at what point the campaigns really start to turn to crap. I still have quite a few titles to play through until I reach Black Ops VI.
I still need to do my research on the uninspiring game modes they seem to be including in the 2010 era. What are my theories as of now? I think it might be a lack of funding, layoffs, or maybe new people have come in and started changing things up within the company?
Big Brother Is Listening...
I don't want to critique Black Ops VI too much yet—I haven't played it. But I've seen sneak peek videos of players playing the beta release, and some upgrades to player interaction and movement are super cool! Like, they've introduced omni-movement, which I've never seen before, and you can grab enemy players and use them as shields. That's new, and it also introduces proximity chat with the enemy. And let me tell you, proximity chat leads to some hysterical and chaotic moments. It's bringing back the chaotic but fun side of multiplayer I haven't seen in a long time. But there is a very distrubing part of Acitvision that I just can't accept.
Activision has cracked down on moderating chat and lobbies in their games for a while now, so people hardly talk in lobbies or risk being banned. There are countless memes about chat logs being released and sure its funny, but its also a really unnerving to have a game compnay act like Big Brother and record your voice chat. When did Activision decide to become the hall monitor and become the fun police? Call of Duty has always been a game where people go crazy, talk trash, and spew ridiculous comments. It's got a reputation sure, but its also apart of its appeal. Yeah, it was toxic at times, but honestly, it taught me to grow a spine as a kid and talk back. It was entertaining as hell!
I see some of that chaotic energy returning now in the playthrough of the beta release, but Activision is still listening.
I'm hoping Black Ops VI can help patch up the terrible reputation Call of Duty has been getting lately. And maybe do away with the heavy chat moderation while they’re at it!
A Disappointing Campaign
My doubts about Black Ops VI stem from the Modern Warfare III campaign (the new one) in November 2023. I played this game long before I ever thought about doing a podcast or playing through all the campaigns.
At that point, I hadn't played a Call of Duty game in years and was super excited. I couldn't believe how massive the game was—500GB! I also bought a digital copy for the first time.
The file size didn't bother me. I was ready for an epic campaign…
Two hours later, I finished what I consider to be, without a doubt, the WORST campaign I've ever played!
Campaigns usually take me two or three times as long to finish! This one was abnormally fast, and I was shocked. I thought there'd be more content, but then—boom!—the game just ends. No satisfying conclusion, just a messy ending with a cliffhanger promising a sequel and probably just as crappy a story for the next game.
The campaign was cutscene-heavy and dialogue-heavy, with minimal action, copy-paste missions, and weak character development. I barely remembered any of the characters. Going in, I knew it was a rehash of a previous campaign, updated a little. That's fine. The characters' backstories changed slightly to fit the narrative. But the updated story? Lame. Even Makarov, who's supposed to be a ruthless, stone-cold killer and one of my favorite villains, was watered down. How could an elite group of soldiers get bamboozled by this guy? And General Shepherd? He was so weak. Like, he betrayed us in Modern Warfare 2, but in this version, he's just this sad, rat-like pawn who Captain Price decides to let live.
Like… what? Captain Price, the guy who's gone through the deadliest combat, lost his men, and still came out swinging, now just lets a murderer of his own men go free? It made no sense.
I came to this game to kick some ass. All I got was a non-challenging campaign with terrible, seen-it-before missions that weren't fun, cutscenes that dragged on forever, and characters I wanted to slap into being badass!
It was disappointing.
For the first time,
I understood why people don't play the campaigns anymore. They just jump straight to multiplayer.
It's sad.
Have people forgotten how to tell a good story? Or is Activision just in its own echo chamber, convinced that whatever they put out, we'll buy anyway?
Wow…
I just can't believe it.
That's why I have low expectations for Black Ops VI. Either it will be a success that brings back that nostalgic magic, or it will follow the same disappointing path as Modern Warfare III.
Yearning For The Return of Good Storytelling
This whole campaign adventure has been an eye-opener. It made me go back and replay the older campaigns to see if I was just being nostalgic or if they were actually good. Turns out, the old games had great storytelling! However, the new developers at Activision seem to have lost that connection with their audience. The new releases of the campaigns, zombies, and even other games modes feel like they've taken a sharp turn downhill. On the surface, the game looks impressive—flashy, with all the bells and whistles you’d expect. It’s like ordering a cake online, where it looks like a work of art, but when it arrives, it’s a sloppy, rushed mess—overpriced and underwhelming. The heart and soul that made these games great are nowhere to be found, leaving us longing for the immersive, unforgettable experiences of the past.
What happened to good storytelling? Why does it feel like people just don’t understand it anymore? While I’m talking about games here, this creative drought has spread far beyond gaming, affecting other major industries too. It’s as if the focus has shifted from crafting meaningful, engaging narratives to churning out content that looks good but lacks depth. This isn’t just a gaming problem—it’s a creative crisis across the board. Theres much I could say to that, but I'll leave it alone for now.
Activision has become a Goliath in the industry, but even giants can fall.
I hope Activision turns things around because it's time for strong characters and unforgettable storylines to make their much-needed return.
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