My Opinion on the CoD Franchise: What's Yours?

[Cold Ransom]

What is up gamers, geeks, nerds, and often small children think they're NadeShot! Hey guys, Cold Ransom here today to give you guys my opinion on the Call of Duty Franchise as a whole. Now please do keep in mind that I am an avid player and lover of Call of Duty, so my opinion may seem somewhat biased, which is why I want feedback from the community!

Well first of all, let me answer the question: Is Call of Duty dying?
The solid answer to this question is simply no. The Call of Duty community is growing now more than it ever has before due to Treyarch's involvement with the newest Call of Duty title: Black Ops III's eSports community.
Treyarch made the announcement a few weeks back that they would be setting up the Call of Duty eSports World League which would consist of two sections--one for pro players and one for amature players--with a prize pool of over $4,000,000. Now, in the past, Call of Duty eSports have not shown as large of a payout as other big titles such as Counter Strike, but in 2016, Call of Duty eSports will have the Call of Duty World League along with the events that have always taken place in the past including GFinity, MLG, UMG, X Games, and much more including the Call of Duty Championships that will take place in the Fall of 2016. This new prize pool is a huge factor in the future growth of the community.

Now, to give my personal opinion on the actual "fun" and "wow" factor of the Call of Duty franchise.
From Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and even in the past with CoD 2 and 3, the Call of Duty franchise has offered unique, exhilarating Campaign modes that hooked players and fans alike to create memorable moments and unique connections to the characters portrayed. Aside from campaign, it's safe to say Call of Duty is one of the--if not THE--most successful multiplayer titles on the Xbox and PlayStation. But why is the game so successful? The simple answer is because of a dedicated audience that enjoys playing the game and wants to grow their skill and be the best they can be.

Now, we have average Call of Duty players who play the game occasionally with their friends just for fun, and we have Professional Call of Duty players. These guys literally make their living playing Call of Duty, making videos about themselves and their teams, and grinding the game as much as they can to be the best. It's not only extremely exciting to watch these guy play--which creates a huge market for streaming the game--but it's extremely inspiring. For example:
In Modern Warfare 3, when I started playing Call of Duty competitively, I watched a lot of OpTic NadeShot's videos because I found them really entertaining. Eventually, I would tune into his live stream every night and I'd check my sub box for his content daily because I felt like when I watched him play, I learned how to heighten my skills, making me a far better player! Eventually I was inspired to make a YouTube channel and play video games for an audience just like my idol, which is the reason I'm here with you guys today!

I hope you guys stuck around this long to read this, but remember--this is my personal opinion! I would love to know what you guys thoughts are too, so leave me a reply letting me know how you think Call of Duty is doing with their games and what you think the future looks like for them!

 

[Draco986]

I enjoyed COD alot but i feel exhausted playing a release every year that I do not take it seriously like I used to anymore. For me they need to take a break fro mthe series just like sins creed and really come back with bigger and different mechanic. Personally I feel exhausted

 

[Cold Ransom]

I enjoyed COD alot but i feel exhausted playing a release every year that I do not take it seriously like I used to anymore. For me they need to take a break fro mthe series just like sins creed and really come back with bigger and different mechanic. Personally I feel exhausted

Thanks for the reply brother! I totally understand what you mean. "Same Call of Duty, different year" kind of thing. I personally think that's why Advanced Warfare was such a good pace changer for the series. Rather than the same old boots on the ground Call of Duty, we saw tons of futuristic settings and characteristics that transformed it into an entirely new form of Call of Duty. The exo suit changed the game from a simple, war-based strategy FPS to a highly vertical game that allowed for exciting gun fights with a completely new spin.

 

[SANz]

Thanks for the reply brother! I totally understand what you mean. "Same Call of Duty, different year" kind of thing. I personally think that's why Advanced Warfare was such a good pace changer for the series. Rather than the same old boots on the ground Call of Duty, we saw tons of futuristic settings and characteristics that transformed it into an entirely new form of Call of Duty. The exo suit changed the game from a simple, war-based strategy FPS to a highly vertical game that allowed for exciting gun fights with a completely new spin.

I am a massive fan of Call Of Duty too, but only for Treyarch CODs, they are the brains behind it all in my opinion. They actually listen to, and are honest to the community. They are the driving force behind the esports iniative too right? Starting from BLOPS 2, with CodCasting mode and various other in built features!

 

[riganthor]

I have tried to play COD some time ago but I just dont see what the fun is with the perks and such. That includes with e-sports I mean if you are winning the whole perk system makes the win even faster so I think you can easily predict the outcome of a match.

 

[Cold Ransom]

I have tried to play COD some time ago but I just dont see what the fun is with the perks and such. That includes with e-sports I mean if you are winning the whole perk system makes the win even faster so I think you can easily predict the outcome of a match.

I believe the term you are referring to is "killstreak". Killstreaks are a very big deal in a Public/Casual setting, but they are actually disabled or banned in eSports settings. Killstreaks, although very exciting and fun to play with, do exactly as you said in making a match too favorable for the first team to build them up. On the contrary, thankfully, competitive Call of Duty does not include killstreaks. [DOUBLEPOST=1444141482][/DOUBLEPOST]

I am a massive fan of Call Of Duty too, but only for Treyarch CODs, they are the brains behind it all in my opinion. They actually listen to, and are honest to the community. They are the driving force behind the esports iniative too right? Starting from BLOPS 2, with CodCasting mode and various other in built features!

I can totally support that opinion. It seems like the innovations of the CoD franchise all come from the guys at Treyarch, but the Infinity Ward guys have the credits of the Modern Warfare series which completely set the stage for Call of Duty Multiplayer[DOUBLEPOST=1444141566][/DOUBLEPOST]I actually made a slight typo here, Activision is responsible for announcing the CoD World League, not Treyarch. I apologize if this caused any confusion

 

[H2O Warhawk]

im surprised with COD, i really dont understand how they are still going. personally i really think MW2 was the last good and enjoyable COD. but Treyarch is what has been keeping the game alive cuz their games seem to be alot more Multiplayer friendly and the side games like zombies and party games are wonderful. then u can tell they hit a wall when Ghost came out, they showed that they have ran out of ideas which personally is expected. question is, why are they trying to bring their games into the future where as their strong point was with Past conflicts like World war 2 vietnam war etc. people say advanced warfare is the best cod, but im calling your bluff cuz thats just a bunch of little fan boys who only know about the game cuz daddy played it when it was good. Cod has been going down hill with their ideas ever since the launch of MW2.5 (MW3). if they want to get back up in the world as a top contender again, they must go back to their strong point... WW2. Personally i grew up with CoD, my very first Multiplayer experience online was with my PS2 playing Call of Duty 3, in my opinion the best CoD to ever come out and the multiplayer was amazing, no perks to the weapons, everyone had to choose from classes that couldnt be turned into something u can have an advantage. No one had an upper hand. everyone had a fair fighting chance, granted u had vets kicking the **** out of rookies till them rookies got used to the game and became vets. to top it all off, call of duty 3 was a completed game, not a rushed one.

 

[LloydIrving69]

I personally don't play all the call of duty, but I mostly play the black ops series. That is my favorite CoD games in general. I can't wait for ops 3 to be released

 

[Cold Ransom]

im surprised with COD, i really dont understand how they are still going. personally i really think MW2 was the last good and enjoyable COD. but Treyarch is what has been keeping the game alive cuz their games seem to be alot more Multiplayer friendly and the side games like zombies and party games are wonderful. then u can tell they hit a wall when Ghost came out, they showed that they have ran out of ideas which personally is expected. question is, why are they trying to bring their games into the future where as their strong point was with Past conflicts like World war 2 vietnam war etc. people say advanced warfare is the best cod, but im calling your bluff cuz thats just a bunch of little fan boys who only know about the game cuz daddy played it when it was good. Cod has been going down hill with their ideas ever since the launch of MW2.5 (MW3). if they want to get back up in the world as a top contender again, they must go back to their strong point... WW2. Personally i grew up with CoD, my very first Multiplayer experience online was with my PS2 playing Call of Duty 3, in my opinion the best CoD to ever come out and the multiplayer was amazing, no perks to the weapons, everyone had to choose from classes that couldnt be turned into something u can have an advantage. No one had an upper hand. everyone had a fair fighting chance, granted u had vets kicking the **** out of rookies till them rookies got used to the game and became vets. to top it all off, call of duty 3 was a completed game, not a rushed one.

This is actually a standpoint that I see very often from the older CoD players that were around back in CoD 2 with the attacks on Normandy and the great historical events. The issue with this standpoint is that most--and I am certainly not accusing you of this--have only heard rumors of the newer Call of Duty games rather than actually sitting down and taking the time to play them, themselves. Whether the Call of Duty games are enjoyable is certainly a mater of opinion, but saying that they have been going down hill is actually a false statement. In the first week of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare's release, 370 million online matches were played: over 50 million patches per day. And this type of viewership extends to the millions of viewers of the live eSports events such as the MLG Finals coming up in less than a week now.
You mentioned that you felt like some players, now have a somewhat unfair advantage when it comes to perks, weapons, or attachments. I don't really see where you're coming from there. Players are rewarded for putting ample amounts of time into the game with Perks, Weapon Customizations, and Killstreaks that can help them in the game, yes, but these are so easy to access that any player willing to play the game should be able to reach them to gain the same "advantages" that lie with the more experienced players. I simply think the game has evolved to be more complex and more user friendly to support an larger audience of Rookie Call of Duty Players as well as the Veterans like yourself and I that have played the game for years. Maybe you can find some enjoyment in Black Ops III! After playing the Beta, I can assure you that the multiplayer will be among the best so far in the franchise. Granted, this game will be nothing the same as a game like Call of Duty 3, simply due to it's completely different structure and setting, but it will be a wonderful game to say the least! [DOUBLEPOST=1444224946][/DOUBLEPOST]

I personally don't play all the call of duty, but I mostly play the black ops series. That is my favorite CoD games in general. I can't wait for ops 3 to be released

The Black Ops series is one of the more popular Call of Dutys for sure mainly due to its Zombies Mode, but I hope you enjoy Black Ops III! I know I will!

 

[H2O Warhawk]

This is actually a standpoint that I see very often from the older CoD players that were around back in CoD 2 with the attacks on Normandy and the great historical events. The issue with this standpoint is that most--and I am certainly not accusing you of this--have only heard rumors of the newer Call of Duty games rather than actually sitting down and taking the time to play them, themselves. Whether the Call of Duty games are enjoyable is certainly a mater of opinion, but saying that they have been going down hill is actually a false statement. In the first week of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare's release, 370 million online matches were played: over 50 million patches per day. And this type of viewership extends to the millions of viewers of the live eSports events such as the MLG Finals coming up in less than a week now.
You mentioned that you felt like some players, now have a somewhat unfair advantage when it comes to perks, weapons, or attachments. I don't really see where you're coming from there. Players are rewarded for putting ample amounts of time into the game with Perks, Weapon Customizations, and Killstreaks that can help them in the game, yes, but these are so easy to access that any player willing to play the game should be able to reach them to gain the same "advantages" that lie with the more experienced players. I simply think the game has evolved to be more complex and more user friendly to support an larger audience of Rookie Call of Duty Players as well as the Veterans like yourself and I that have played the game for years. Maybe you can find some enjoyment in Black Ops III! After playing the Beta, I can assure you that the multiplayer will be among the best so far in the franchise. Granted, this game will be nothing the same as a game like Call of Duty 3, simply due to it's completely different structure and setting, but it will be a wonderful game to say the least! [DOUBLEPOST=1444224946][/DOUBLEPOST]
The Black Ops series is one of the more popular Call of Dutys for sure mainly due to its Zombies Mode, but I hope you enjoy Black Ops III! I know I will!

i can only agree with Black ops franchise, cuz those are multiplayer friendly. im considering getting black ops 3 cuz the Black ops plus World at war had a distinct format that made the game fun. but i when i played activision created games putting aside MW and MW2. they were nothing but ****. oh man Ghost, idk if i can exactly consider that a cod lol i played it for about a week and a half and had to get rid of it. Advance Wearfare turned into just an armor collecting game. got rid of that too. Treyarch coming to the rescue again with Black ops.

 

[Neal]

For those that have played since CoD 4 like myself, we are definitely burnt out on it. Is it going to die anytime soon? Heck no.

They'll come up with a new name to replace black ops or advanced warfare and then continue about their day eventually.

It's still a great series of games.

I'll prolly pick up BO3 on my PC anyways. Played the beta and it was great.

 

[Cold Ransom]

For those that have played since CoD 4 like myself, we are definitely burnt out on it. Is it going to die anytime soon? Heck no.

They'll come up with a new name to replace black ops or advanced warfare and then continue about their day eventually.

It's still a great series of games.

I'll prolly pick up BO3 on my PC anyways. Played the beta and it was great.

You're probably right there. But is that to say the people who came to life in MW2 will get burnt out in another year or two??? I surely hope I won't be burned out on CoD for a while. There are just so many different scenes under which you can compete, I don't find myself being turned away unless some drastic change happens. Loved this response!

 

[8-Bit-Relic]

I have played the first COD game at a friends house. He was basically using auto save every 15 seconds and tried to convince me why his game is better than the other tactical shooters which were around at that time. As I am more the Arcade style guy I haven`t understood the appeal in a single player which is made easy with an autosave function.
The multiplayer was actually nice in some Lan parties. However, 3d Shooters online are a pain in the bump. Interactions with other players are just about insults.
Needless to say that I don`t like playing online anymore.

 

[Cold Ransom]

I have played the first COD game at a friends house. He was basically using auto save every 15 seconds and tried to convince me why his game is better than the other tactical shooters which were around at that time. As I am more the Arcade style guy I haven`t understood the appeal in a single player which is made easy with an autosave function.
The multiplayer was actually nice in some Lan parties. However, 3d Shooters online are a pain in the bump. Interactions with other players are just about insults.
Needless to say that I don`t like playing online anymore.

I see where you're coming from with the ease of having an autosave function, but otherwise the game would possibly be too difficult for some of the less advanced players. For a greater challenge in single player, I would recommend trying a more challenging difficulty such as Hardened or Veteran.
If you are interested in getting into the multiplayer side of the game, I would strongly recommend either getting a group of friends to run public matches with, or if you are really serious about the game, getting god and playing some GameBattles matches until your team is good enough to compete at a higher level! I hope this might help you in future Call of Duty games, should you give them a shot.

 

[8-Bit-Relic]

I see where you're coming from with the ease of having an autosave function, but otherwise the game would possibly be too difficult for some of the less advanced players. For a greater challenge in single player, I would recommend trying a more challenging difficulty such as Hardened or Veteran.
If you are interested in getting into the multiplayer side of the game, I would strongly recommend either getting a group of friends to run public matches with, or if you are really serious about the game, getting god and playing some GameBattles matches until your team is good enough to compete at a higher level! I hope this might help you in future Call of Duty games, should you give them a shot.

Actually my friend has just moved a couple of meters and has then used the autosave function. This was done several times and than he got shot, so he new where the enemy was and has loaded the game again. That was more work than skill.

You may laugh but I tried the game in multiplayer. It was ok but not enough difference to other games to hook me. I revisited it at some point again but if I believe the voice chat this game is only full of people with questionable sexualities, mother issues, superiority complexes or just babies. There were barely nice words. Well, some have complained about balance issues.

However, I reckon the whole genre has these issues at the moment as Team Fortress doesn`t have these issues that much...

 

[LloydIrving69]

That is why I mainly play the black ops series lol, I highly enjoy the zombies. I plan to get high in rounds if I can in the new zombies

 

[Cold Ransom]

Actually my friend has just moved a couple of meters and has then used the autosave function. This was done several times and than he got shot, so he new where the enemy was and has loaded the game again. That was more work than skill.

You may laugh but I tried the game in multiplayer. It was ok but not enough difference to other games to hook me. I revisited it at some point again but if I believe the voice chat this game is only full of people with questionable sexualities, mother issues, superiority complexes or just babies. There were barely nice words. Well, some have complained about balance issues.

However, I reckon the whole genre has these issues at the moment as Team Fortress doesn`t have these issues that much...

I can definitely understand your issue with the people in multiplayer, as this is a commonly known thing, but I feel like when you enter those lobbies expecting these types of people, it makes the environment not only more fun for you, but it often times changes the way these people act in a way that may better liking. I personally prefer to play CoD at a competitive level which basically skips the drama of public matches.

 

[Chazore13]

My first CoD game was WaW and it's still my favorite. Why? Because Zombies is the only part of any CoD game that I've ever found fun. Although, I must admit that I also preferred that mp in that one as well. Thompson4lyfe.
I have played MW2, but I used that one as more like a party game. Don't care for it outside of that.
With Black Ops, I came back to the series because they brought zombies back. To be fair tho, as much as I like WaW's zombies; blops pulled it off well and I love those too. Hate the multiplayer though; however, I'd rather play mp in blops than anything else. No idea why. I'm just better at that one.
I got MW3 and put it down. Hated it. MP was mediocre and there wasn't a zombies mode (survival is boring). MW3 is the last game I bought.
I do own BLOPS2, but all I ever did on that was a few rounds of multiplayer. Which my K/D was averaging around 2 (for once, in every other game it was probably averaging 0.5 to 0.8). The player base of that game is terrible.
I didn't get Ghosts, AW, and I don't intend to get BLOP3. Did I miss one?
Oh. I might add that I've never done campaign on any of these games. I can't get into them. They bore me to tears.

Overall, I don't care for CoD. In fact, I wish they'd take like a 5+ year break from it and focus on BLOPs 3 for a bit. Not only do I not like companies (looking at you to Ubisoft) that shell out a new game 1-3 times a year, but it drives me mad when they do that, throw in a couple $20 DLCs and then drop the game altogether right after it's release.

 

[xHebHaH]

In the beginning was the game, that great game we expected him future. But year by year by recycling no longer becomes attractive, he was a fan of the series but it died for me and I do not see more future in any way.

 

[Cold Ransom]

My first CoD game was WaW and it's still my favorite. Why? Because Zombies is the only part of any CoD game that I've ever found fun. Although, I must admit that I also preferred that mp in that one as well. Thompson4lyfe.
I have played MW2, but I used that one as more like a party game. Don't care for it outside of that.
With Black Ops, I came back to the series because they brought zombies back. To be fair tho, as much as I like WaW's zombies; blops pulled it off well and I love those too. Hate the multiplayer though; however, I'd rather play mp in blops than anything else. No idea why. I'm just better at that one.
I got MW3 and put it down. Hated it. MP was mediocre and there wasn't a zombies mode (survival is boring). MW3 is the last game I bought.
I do own BLOPS2, but all I ever did on that was a few rounds of multiplayer. Which my K/D was averaging around 2 (for once, in every other game it was probably averaging 0.5 to 0.8). The player base of that game is terrible.
I didn't get Ghosts, AW, and I don't intend to get BLOP3. Did I miss one?
Oh. I might add that I've never done campaign on any of these games. I can't get into them. They bore me to tears.

Overall, I don't care for CoD. In fact, I wish they'd take like a 5+ year break from it and focus on BLOPs 3 for a bit. Not only do I not like companies (looking at you to Ubisoft) that shell out a new game 1-3 times a year, but it drives me mad when they do that, throw in a couple $20 DLCs and then drop the game altogether right after it's release.

I actually got to play WaW for the first time this week! It was an incredibly enjoyable game for me! It was cool to go back and see where Zombies originated!

I hate that you can't find the same enjoyment I do in Call of Duty. I can see what you mean in suggesting a 5 year break from Call of Duty, but you should remember that there are 3 developers that share the Call of Duty franchise. Treyarch, Infinity Ward, and Sledgehammer alternate year-to-year, meaning each game has 3 years for development. I believe if Call of Duty were to take a "Leave of Absence", it would not only upset a huge fan base, but it would put a lot of pro players in the eSports community out of a job. I'm sure we'll see a day in the--hopefully distant--future where CoD will b discontinued or take a break, but for now, I think they're here to stay.

Thank you for the feedback!