Review: ‘Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare’ From the Editor

The latest iteration of Call Of Duty is in, and the critical reaction is strong: “Call Of Duty: Advanced Warfare,” people are saying, is the first meaningful refresh for the franchise in years. Sledgehammer Games’ sci-fi mix of powered exoskeletons, futuristic gadgets, manic mercenaries and Kevin Spacey seems like it’s been enough to bring the critical community back around after last years absymal “Ghosts.” People have their share of problems — this still isn’t the universal praise showered on “Modern Warfare–” but there’s an excitement about the property that’s been absent for years.

Most importantly, people are saying, it gives the series a new perspective and a new lease on life for a new generation. It was no secret that the franchise was looking tired at the end of the Xbox 360/PS3 generation, and Activision needed to get gamers’ attention to stay on top. We still don’t know if it works, but it’s at least started out right. The Xbox One version sits at an 85 on Metacritic.

IGN: Simply throwing a robot suit on Call of Duty could have been a lazy path to making Advanced Warfare seem different from what we’ve played before, but the way Sledgehammer has integrated its enhanced abilities and choices into every aspect of how we fight went above and beyond. By designing the levels in the campaign, co-op, and multiplayer to facilitate those new mechanics, Advanced Warfare is granted a weight and importance that changes how the fast-paced shooting action feels in all three modes. This is a Call of Duty game to its core, but one that rehashes as little as possible while still retaining its strengths.

In the late 2000s, the Call of Duty series was known for having some of the best storytelling in video games. Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2 are landmarks in the medium. Sadly, Advanced Warfare falls well short of that high-water mark. It features a frustratingly mundane story we’ve seen half a dozen times before in the CoD series.

There’s the requisite megalomaniac, the inexplicably evil Eastern Europeans who missed the memo about the end of the Cold War, a Russian squad member constantly buzzing in your ear, and groan-worthy plot twists. There’s a lead character upon whom everything hinges, despite his being little more than a glorified receptacle for other characters’ exposition. The plot feels less like the first part of a planned trilogy and more like something the developer, Sledgehammer Games, just copied and pasted from past CoD games.

PROS: Excellent character customization; Cool sci-fi world and weapons; Addictive multiplayer experience; Ultra-agile character movement changes everything; Double jump

CONS: Shallow and naive single-player story; Kevin Spacey lives in the uncanny valley; Vehicles handle terribly

VERDICT : Critical gameplay changes, more multiplayer customization make up for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare’s absolutely awful single-player story.

With Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, the first-person shooter has officially evolved. Agile, parkour-like movement, superpowers and thoughtful character customization are now de rigueur, and the whole of the genre is better for it.

While the lackluster single-player campaign won’t turn any heads, the addictive multiplayer mode will bring fans back again and again — at least until Call of Duty 2015.