By now, it should come as no surprise that A) the Minecraft community is incredible and B) sometimes, the cinematics in first-person shooters can lend themselves really well to Minecraft recreations.
For proof, look no further than YouTube user FPSNation's incredible Minecraft rendition of the Call of Duty: Ghosts Masked Warriors teaser trailer. Check it out above!
Yesterday, we ran a piece entitled 3 Features Battlefield 4 Simply Has to Have in which we speculated on a few things that DICE absolutely has to include in the game for it to be as awesome as we're expecting. Today, we set our sights on Call of Duty: Ghosts and the team at Infinity Ward for the same treatment.
Call of Duty: Ghosts is making a lot of bold claims so far and if the game is going to be half as good as we expect it to be, there are a few things that Infinity Ward will need to focus on and keep in mind with Call of Duty: Ghosts.
Those things are...
Call of Duty: Ghosts can have the most engaging and fascinating singleplayer campaign in Call of Duty history and the plain fact of the matter is that most players will never touch it.
Call of Duty is first and foremost a multiplayer experience for the vast majority of its fanbase. To that end, the most important thing that Infinity Ward needs to keep in mind is strong, balanced multiplayer.
This means keeping the post-launch nerfs and buffs to a minimum. Every game will require a bit of tweaking here and there after it gets into the hands of the massive userbase, but we'd like to see some better day one balancing. We're talking across the board weapons balancing, where no class is blatantly more useful than another. To us, DICE has always been great at this in Battlefield games.
Killstreaks or scorestreaks need to have their cost/reward structure thought out and tested in great detail. The RC-XD in Call of Duty: Black Ops, for example, was kind of a nightmare. It was ridiculously easy to acquire and yet could net you multiple kills if you timed the detonation properly. To our minds, a 3-kill streak should not be capable of getting you multi-kills.
The next generation of Call of Duty has been announced, confirming the rampant rumors that have been afoot since last week's retail display leak. Ghosts will take place in the future, using a mix of current technology and weapons to fit with an entirely new story, setting, and cast of characters.
A brand new engine is the cherry on top of this delicious, bullet-ridden sundae, one that Activision claims will redefine the series for the next generation.
"Infinity Ward set the gold standard for first-person action for a generation, and they're going to do it again with Call of Duty: Ghosts," said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing, Inc. "Ghosts delivers an all-new story, all-new characters, an all-new Call of Duty world, all powered by a next generation Call of Duty engine, which is a leap forward for the franchise. Infinity Ward is going all-in to create the next generation of Call of Duty worthy of the world's greatest fans."
Infinity Ward had more to say on their development choices for the next in the legendary series:
"Everyone was expecting us to make Modern Warfare 4, which would have been the safe thing to do. But we're not resting on our laurels," said Mark Rubin, executive producer of developer Infinity Ward. "We saw the console transition as the perfect opportunity to start a new chapter for Call of Duty. So we're building a new sub-brand, a new engine, and a lot of new ideas and experiences for our players. We can't wait to share them with our community."
A first-look debut will be taking place on May 21st; those interested can tune in to Xbox: the Next Generation Revealed on Xbox.com, Xbox LIVE or SPIKE TV.
The game is slated to launch November 5th, and eager fans can already pre-order for Xbox 360, PS3, next-gen consoles, and PC for $59.99.
Stay tuned right here for more details on Ghosts; we'll be eagerly following development news just for you.
Whatever Activision has up their sleeves for the next great Call of Duty experience, we're going to find out on May 1st. That is, assuming that the promotion materials at the top of this page are to be trusted.
So, what will Activision actually be announcing next week? Here is what we know about the next Call of Duty game:
We'll be here to cover the unveiling on May 1st, so be sure to check back with us! In the meantime, we've been exploring some potential storylines for the next Call of Duty game - take a look and let us know what you think!
Source: IGN
Earlier this week, Call of Duty: Ghosts was all but confirmed as the next entry into the massively popular Call of Duty franchise.
With the promise of a new game, and the hints that we have been given over the last few months, we've put together a few general story arcs that Infinity Ward might be working on with Call of Duty: Ghosts.
Chances are, this is not a totally fresh storyline as we have heard that at least one major character will be returning to Ghosts.
We could be miles off here, but speculation is part of what makes Call of Duty such an exciting prospect every year.
Note: this article will contain spoilers for the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare story branch, you are warned.
It's that time of the year again and speculation is running rampant as to what Activision has up their sleeves for this year's annual Call of Duty release. If annual trends are to be believed, here is what we can expect over the coming weeks.
Assuming that nothing is leaked online prior to the official reveal - a situation which is virtually impossible in this age of always-on lifestyles - the next Call of Duty game should be unveiled within the next month. The NBA playoffs have started and as you might know, the official debut trailer for the last two Call of Duty releases has made its appearance on national television during these very finals.
The tradition of releasing big Call of Duty teasers or reveal trailers during NBA finals games started back in 2009 with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Here is what the last few years have looked like:
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | Second teaser released May 10th, 2009 during NBA Eastern Conference Finals |
| Call of Duty: Black Ops | Debut full-length trailer released May 18th, 2010 during NBA Eastern Conf. Finals |
| Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 | Debut gameplay trailer released May 23rd, 2011 during NBA Western Conf. Finals |
| Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 | Debut trailer released on May 1st, 2012 during NBA Finals |
| Call of Duty 2013 | ??? |
Yesterday, a YouTube user by the name of Drift0r posted an 'exclusive' leak of information regarding the next Call of Duty game. These rumors are completely unsubstantiated and may very well have been pulled from Mr. Drift0r's hind quarters. For what it's worth, he says that the information comes from 'a very reliable source' that Drif0r 'quite literally trusts with [his] life'.
None the less, a rumor is a rumor, so take it with a grain (or bag) of salt. Here's what The Drifted One has to say on the next Call of Duty game.
Call of Duty: Ghosts is allegedly the next game in the iconic franchise and will tell a story that spins off from the Modern Warfare franchise. According to the leak, Ghosts takes place in the future but somehow uses current technology courtesy of some plot event that causes all of our soldiers to be stuck with old stuff. The game was previously known as Call of Duty: Phantoms but Infinity Ward ultimately settled on Ghosts, presumably because the character Ghost is very popular and this rumor would generate more interest if that name was attached to it.
The reveal is expected to come on May 1st, where Activision will officially unveil the game to the world.
Just take a second for the weight of that title to settle in. Minecraft has taken over the throne as the most played video game on Xbox Live, surpassing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 in unique users.
Call of Duty has had at least one title in the top 10 most played games on Xbox Live nearly constantly for the last 5 years. The franchise has dominated the top spot for almost all of that time, only giving it up for a few weeks at a time when a brand new game launches on the console. Minecraft is not a new game on Xbox Live, it is simply proving to be a more popular game than Modern Warfare 3.
We have to wonder if this speaks to the incredible popularity of Minecraft or to the increasingly stale 'Call of Duty formula' that we hear so much about in this community. Call of Duty has, more or less, been the same game for nearly a half-dozen years now. Yes, there have been new features, new settings and updates to the core game engine but, just the same, the core of Call of Duty has not changed since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare hit shelves in 2007. While Call of Duty is growing stale, it would be doing Minecraft a great disservice to pin their success on Call of Duty's stagnancy.
Minecraft is a game that surpassed 1 million sales in one week after launching on Xbox 360 this year and a game that currently has 7.8 million registered users on PC. Minecraft's popularity should not be attributed to the failure of other great games to claim the top spot, but rather the dedication and talent of the folks at Mojang and their incredibly passionate fan base.
If you're into Minecraft, we suggest checking out http://www.minecraftforum.net/ but, hey, if you're a fan of Minecraft, you've already been there, haven't you?
Source: Major Nelson
Infinity Ward has released a title update for Modern Warfare 3 on all platforms, bringing some bugfixes and performance enhancements across the board.
As posted by Candice Capen, Community Coordinator on Modern Warfare 3, the changes in Title Update 23 (and patch 1.18 for PC) include:
These changes are going out on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC and should be available now.
As for downloading, these changes will go out automatically so if you're prompted to download anything, go ahead and proceed. Other than that, you don't have to do anything to benefit from these enhancements.
Check out previous title updates and patches at http://community.callofduty.com/.
Over the weekend, Modern Warfare 2 players noticed that one of the staples of the game's competitive multiplayer mode had vanished into the abyss. "Where has Favela gone?" they cried out into the darkness, "Who has taken our Favela from us?"
As it turns out, Infinity Ward has temporarily removed the map after receiving some complaints from the Muslim gaming community. The problems originated with paintings hung in Favela that read, 'Allah is beautiful and He loves beauty.' This is a quote widely credited to Muhammad, a cornerstone of the Muslim faith.
While this quote, in and of itself, is nothing problematic, it was the location in which it was displayed that rankled Muslims in the community. You see, whether by design or horrifying coincidence, the paintings can only be found in bathrooms over some very questionable toilets. If this is purposeful, which Activision doesn't exactly deny, it is essentially saying that the 'beauty' that Allah loves can be found in dirty toilets in the backrooms of seedy buildings.
Not exactly the message you want to be sending your players.
Activion responded to Kotaku, saying:
We apologize to anyone who found this image offensive. Please be assured we were unaware of this issue and that there was no intent to offend. We are working as quickly as possible to remove this image and any other similar ones we may find from our various game libraries.
We are urgently working to release a Title Update to remove the texture from Modern Warfare 3. We are also working to remove the texture from Modern Warfare 2 through a separate Title Update. Until the TU is ready, we have removed the Favella multiplayer map from online rotation.
Activision and our development studios are respectful of diverse cultures and religious beliefs, and sensitive to concerns raised by its loyal game players. We thank our fans for bringing this to our attention.
So, if you've been playing Modern Warfare 2, it looks like you're going to be missing out on Favela for a while. We'll post an update when Activision pushes out that title update and gets Favela back in the rotation.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 might be releasing in a little over one month, but doesn't mean Modern Warfare 3 is ready to step out of the limelight just yet. The team at Infinity Ward has just released a playlist update across Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.
The playlist update introduces two brand new game modes; Hardcore 3v3 Face Off and a community game mode called Money in the Denk. Hardcore 3v3 Face Off is pretty straightforward and is exactly like it sounds; Face Off mode with two teams of three using Hardcore rules. Pretty basic.
Money in the Denk, however, is a totally new community game mode based around Sabotage-style gameplay, but with some major twists in gameplay. The game mode was first conceived by YouTube producer, I Am The Denk, who implored his viewers to convince Infinity Ward that Money in the Denk should be added to the community playlists. Well, it happened and now all of us can give it a shot.
Watch the video above for a full explanation from Denk about how you play Money in the Denk and jump on your preferred platform to give it a shot! Unless you're preferred platform is the Wii, where none of these game modes reside.
Activision and Infinity Ward have announced a really exciting Double XP Weekend in Modern Warfare 3, giving the community a chance to choose which maps will be played on special 24/7 playlists.
You may remember back in Call of Duty: Black Ops, Treyarch introduced Nuketown 24/7 to resounding enthusiasm. People loved Nuketown, and it was great to have a playlist where you knew that it would be available around the clock.
Well, this time around, players in Modern Warfare 3 can choose which maps they would like to see added to this weekend's special 24/7 playlists. The winners will be available on Sunday, based on voting that is going down at https://www.facebook.com/ (Click here for Elite DLC map voting). On Friday, players will be able to play Dome 24/7 while Saturday will see Terminal 24/7.
Once the voting ends, Infinity Ward will announce the winners of both DLC and base maps voting on Twitter, launching the playlists in-game at the same time.
Whether your favorite map wins or not, everyone will be enjoying Double XP across all platforms, all weekend long. This is a great chance to make that big push for your next Prestige level before Black Ops 2 hits shelves in November.
Have fun!
Source: Call of Duty
As Call of Duty: Black Ops II heats up, Modern Warfare 3 begins to cool down. Activision announced today that the fourth and final DLC collection, entitled Final Assault, will be releasing on September 6th.
Final Assault is a straightforward multiplayer map pack for Modern Warfare 3, and delivers five new maps to the fray. These maps include:
Modern Warfare 3: Final Assault will be launching on Xbox 360 on September 6th, no word on when the three new maps will be available for Premium members, however.
Stay tuned for more information on Final Assault!
According to a leak over at Se7ensins.com, we may have our first - and very vague - look at the next Call of Duty installment, presumably to launch in 2013, after Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 has run its course. The details are vague, completely non-credible and should be taken with every grain of the salt in the Pacific Ocean.
The leak suggests that Neversoft - a studio perhaps best known for their work on Activision's Guitar Hero and Tony Hawk franchises - are working on a brand new Modern Warfare game. We know that Neversoft is going to be working in the Call of Duty universe, that much is confirmed already, but another Modern Warfare game? That's something we weren't exactly crossing our fingers for.
The source alleges that they were able to spend some time inside Neversoft HQ, and had a chance to jot down some notes on what they were seeing. According to them, Neversoft revealed several interesting notes, namely:
As you can see for yourself, the list is pretty vague and could easily be a fabrication. Keep reading for more on exactly what HALO jumping is - it's not what you are probably imagining.
Modern Warfare 3's latest DLC offering, DLC Collection #3: Chaos, was released this morning for premium Elite users on Xbox 360.
The content features a brand new co-op game mode, entitled Chaos, as well as three new Spec Ops missions and some Face Off Maps. All told, DLC Collection #3 includes:
Four new Spec Ops missions:
Three new Face Off Maps:
Also included is the Chaos game mode for co-op - up to two players, locally or online. In Chaos mode, players battle against endless waves of enemies to rack up as many kills as possible.
If you're a premium Call of Duty Elite subscriber on Xbox 360, the content is available to download right now. Otherwise, just hold tight for a couple more days; DLC Collection #3 goes live for everyone on Xbox 360 on August 9th.
Activision and the Modern Warfare studios are going all-out as they prepare to release the final DLC add-ons for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, bringing new game modes, new maps and new missions in two stellar DLC releases.
First up is DLC Collection #3, Chaos Pack. This collection brings a brand new game mode, three new Spec Ops missions and some Face Off maps.
Chaos Mode is a brand new Spec Ops game mode that is reminiscent of Treyarch's popular Zombies game mode.
In Chaos Mode, players can go solo or team up with a friend locally or online to survive as long as possible against an unrelenting mob of enemies.
Chain kills together to increase your points multiplier and rack up as many kills as possible until you and your partner are taken down, or until the clock hits zero.
The Chaos Pack is scheduled to launch on August 9th (August 7th for Premium) and also includes four new Spec Ops missions; Arctic Recon, Vertigo, Light 'em Up and Special Delivery. Also included are three Face Off maps; Vortex, U-Turn and Intersection.
If all that content isn't enough, Activision has also announced DLC Collection #4, which is due to launch in September of 2012. Keep reading to learn more about DLC Collection #4: Final Assault!
Last year, during a Premier League football match on Sky Sports 1 in the United Kingdom, the world premiere trailer for Modern Warfare 3 debuted, mostly to enthusiastic response but not entirely.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the United Kingdom received complaints that the advertisement was too graphic and frightening to be broadcast in a time slot where children would be exposed to it. The ASA noted that the trailer, seen above, contained 'computer-generated scenes of New York under military assault, with buildings exploding and catching fire, soldiers loading guns and a submarine firing rockets.'
Activision responded to these complaints, noting that they specifically designed the trailer to abide by rules given to them by the ASA and that they had deliberately edited the trailer to be in accordance to those requirements. The trailer had been given a PG rating, designed to be suitable to be broadcast during a time slot where children may be watching.
Unfortunately, the ASA has ruled against Activision, and deemed that the trailer is too graphic to be broadcast before 7:30PM. This, essentially, means nothing at all as Activision is focusing nearly all of their marketing muscle on Call of Duty: Black Ops II. The question does arise, however, if similar complaints have been leveled against the debut trailer for Black Ops II, as well.
Activision has announced some more Modern Warfare 3 DLC for the month of July. We knew that Terminal is coming on July 17th, but alongside that map are three brand new content drops, first on Xbox 360.
First up are three new multiplayer maps. Decommission takes place in a 'graveyard of rotting ocean liners'; Offshore is set on an oil rig out on the ocean with plenty of areas for sniping and, of course, Terminal - the fan favorite Modern Warfare 2 map that is returning in Modern Warfare 3.
Also coming to Xbox 360 on July 17th is Vertigo, a Spec Ops mission where players will take down 'helicopters and enemies alike from a rooftop vantage point on the Oasis hotel.' PlayStation 3 users will see the last four content drops released on their platform on July 19th.
Check out http://community.callofduty.com/ for the full release schedule for the rest of July!
Valve Software has officially begun the Steam Summer Sale and the journey to lightening our wallets starts now.
There are a ton of amazing deals today, but as this is a shooter community, let's focus on some of today's first-person and third-person deals:
Individual Games
Check out the collections available today after the break...
Terminal was one of the most popular multiplayer maps in Modern Warfare 2 and Infinity Ward confirmed this morning that the map would be making a return in Modern Warfare 3.
In Modern Warfare 2, one of the campaign missions - No Russian - caused quite a stir with it's controversial airport terrorist massacre. That mission took place in Zakhaev International Airport, and Terminal is based on that singleplayer mission. The map features mostly indoor combat and features some combat inside an aircraft, as well. Terminal will be coming to Modern Warfare 3 on Xbox 360 on July 17th for Elite premium members and July 18th for non-premium Elite members.
The DLC is going to be completely free of charge for both premium and non-premium members. No word yet on PlayStation 3 and PC release dates but we'll keep you informed.
