Most people jump into the Call of Duty games for the multiplayer portion of the game, with a fair amount completely abandoning the single player offering. It’s a shame because the early Call of Duty games were all about the single player experience, placing you in historic battles during World War II, fighting the evil Nazi’s with the multiplayer being an added bonus to get some replay value out of the game you had just spent a lot of money on.
Then came along Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and flipped the formula on its head making the single player experience the added feature and the multiplayer component the centre piece and it’s been pretty much that way right up to the latest release Call of Duty: Black Ops 2.
However, Black Ops 2 did something for the franchise’s story telling, things that are standard within the industry but new for this particular franchise, things that we want more of the improve the single player experience, because while it’s good fun to blast a bazooka in the face of annoying 10 year olds who have ‘done your mum’ (online only, do not try in real life, you may hurt yourself,) there’s nothing like a good old-fashioned story to get you sucked into a different world.
So here’s our 5 features we want to see make a comeback/improve in Modern Warfare 4:
5. Cut-Scenes
Ever since Modern Warfare there’s been a shortage of cut scenes, in fact, the entire series has relied on in-game scenes or the distinctly boring map view in the Modern Warfare series. Call of Duty: Black Ops went some way in making a change with a few cut-scenes from the in-game engine, but Black Ops 2 was the first to introduce pre-rendered cut-scenes of a high quality. It showed that some extra work had gone into the game and pushed the story forward in great fashion. Though they were never action packed, they acted out the parts that would have previously left us wiggling the right stick around and having a nosey at the environment whilst someone else did the talking. If this makes a return in Modern Warfare 4, then fans of the single player experience will be more than happy.
4. Decisions
Tested to some degree in Black Ops 2, the way you played altered the eventual outcome and made the player feel like their actions weren’t just a bunch of scripted shootouts. If Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer (or is it Neversoft?!) can improve on this mechanic, perhaps the campaign mode will appeal to the multiplayer-only crowd, as well as keep regular campaign fans happy. Maybe an open world experience sometime down the line? The possibility is there, just look at Far Cry 3, an open world shooter than looks fantastic and doesn’t need scripted moments to keep the action enjoyable.
3. Campaign Length
I played through Call of Duty last week, the original one for the PC. The campaign was intense and whilst the graphics were not a scratch on today’s standards, the story was more than long enough, around 10 hours, but then came the United Offensive expansion pack which added around 5-6 hours game time. These days Call of Duty‘s single player offerings span around 4-5 hours, far short of the good old days. Black Ops 2 gave you a reason to play back through the game so you can see the different outcomes, if Modern Warfare 4 can hit at least 6-7 hours with decision-making, I’ll be happy with my purchase. Whack in some single player DLC with new stories or mission and boom, I’m even happier, as are the many single player enthusiasts out there.
2. Co-Op Campaign
Remember Call of Duty: World at War? Yeah, it may seem like a lifetime ago, but throw your mind back and you’ll remember that there was the ability to play through the campaign mode with a mate via split-screen. To be honest, it wasn’t that good due to being split-screen, but it was something and was a good way to kill some time with a buddy on the sofa, but with a lot of games now offering online co-op, why not do the same with Modern Warfare 4? With the focus being on the online multiplayer, why not expand that to the single player offering? If games are truly ‘going social’ as was touted with the PlayStation 4, then it makes sense to bring the single player together with multiplayer, just as long as it doesn’t result in a shortened campaign, I reckon it’d be a great addition to the Call of Duty recipe.
1. Vehicular Combat
Battlefield 3 undoubtedly trumps Call of Duty when it comes to vehicular combat, especially in multiplayer where you’re free to jump in a tank, plane or dirt bike and go on a kill-spree at speed. Believe it or not, but vehicular combat was present in the older games, the original Call of Duty had you ride in, not on, a Russian tank and blow the bejesus out of enemy tanks and troops. It’s something that’s died out from the series in recent years, but it could make a comeback. Specific levels dedicated to riding around in a tank, or flying around pulling off spectacular barrel rolls in a fighter jet would be awesome. Black Ops 2 had some vehicular combat, but it’s nothing on what it could have been and felt like you weren’t really in control, but just there to press the fire button. Heck, even put it in the multiplayer and inject something new to the formula, just make sure the single player fans don’t get left out!
I know this won’t appeal to a lot, but there are many out there that prefer the single player, or at least enjoy the single player experience enough to play through a couple of times and not just for the sake of collecting Trophies and Achievements.
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Do you play the single player campaigns? What would you like to see in Modern Warfare 4? Let us know down in the comments.