There is one approach we can take- as Gene Simmons always said, "there's no such thing as bad publicity." So regardless of your feelings on Call of Duty: Black Ops , the fact that a game has managed to place the industry in the spotlight once again (CNN, ESPN, commercials with Kobe Bryant, etc, etc, etc.) is indeed a "good thing." And given the erratic economy these days and some recent lackluster numbers for the game industry, perhaps we should stick with this simplistic approach.
At the same time, there are many who seem somehow morally opposed to the very idea of CoD. Or rather, not just the games, but everything that surrounds them: Activision and its controversial CEO, Bobby Kotick, the accompanying DLC that will never cost less than $14.99, and finally, ammunition for those who say shooters are dominating store shelves. I don't necessarily agree with the latter, unless you include third-person shooters, but that opens up a whole new can of worms. In 2010, arguably the best games of the year thus far are God of War III , Halo: Reach , Red Dead Redemption , Heavy Rain , Final Fantasy XIII , and Rock Band 3 , only one of which can be classified as a FPS. And yes, there's Black Ops , but 2010 should close with Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood , Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit and Gran Turismo 5 .
So it's not so much a lack of diversity, but perhaps a concentration of popularity on shooters. Then, you have to add in the fact that CoD is really built around multiplayer, and single-player fans have been feeling threatened by the multi explosion since the start of the generation. With a Call of Duty these days, we get a campaign that will only last a day or two if you play long and hard (and really, not even that long and hard). Toss that into the mix and many will say a game like Black Ops along with the corresponding mania is an example of a diseased industry. Or, at the very least, an unwelcome trend that could lead us to the doorstep of Hollywood, where mediocre, big-budget action blockbusters top charts.
Ah, but is CoD really "mediocre?" Of course not. Maybe the quality alone will keep the industry's good name alive, and the naysayers shouldn't worry quite so much. Maybe we only need to worry when a boring, less-than-average CoD sells 20 million copies on name-brand recognition alone. That will mark the beginning of the end, in my opinion, but right now…not so much. So is the mania a good thing? Eh…not really my cup of tea and it's hard to say for sure, but let's not over-analyze it too much.
Related Game(s): Call of Duty: Black Ops
FYI, our Black Ops review will be up within 24 hours.
Haven't picked it up yet but your brother encountered the almost game ending 'glitch'. It may be worth adding to the review from the sounds of things.
Regardless, I'm hoping to pick it up within the next few days. It still looks badass!
I've seen one "game ending" glitch already.
cool i wanna see what you give it ben….personally after playing it…it gets no higher than an 8.0
I played about 3 hours worth of multiplayer last night with my Codaholic friends. lol.
I think I like the multiplayer better than MW2, but it certainly isn't without problems.
I literally had the other team spawning all around me over and over… mind you, it worked out in my favor as sometimes they would even respawn in front of me for a knife kill, but I would be SO pissed if that happened to me.
Also, anyone else notice it's a little laggy in sensing when someone is hit by a bullet?
i find black ops more enjoyable than mw2…by far…i returned mw2 2days after i had bought it used. But i still am not buying black ops…only rent.
Black Ops is sold out at my local JB Hifi games store.
I'm puzzled by this now… I've played Modern Warfare, COD: World at War and Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops looks EXACTLY the same.
The graphics look the same, the custscenes and menus look the same and the gameplay hasn't changed a jot. Still the same spawning and auto aim and pushing forward to trigger the next wave of enemies…
So, Black Ops not for me this time. I've learnt my lesson.
In my opinion Killzone 2 and Vanquish are far superior products if you are into shooting things.
The changes are of course minor since the former games were as good as they were. However the changes in perks and how you can obtain them are significant imo. It simply makes the game better.
And you can't compare this with Killzone 2. Killzone 2 is no multiplayer online shooter.
I'm sorry BeamBoom….I'm confused….
Why is KZ2 no MP online shooter?
Cause I played the hell outta some KZ2 online…and it was awesome.
COD is truly becoming the EA FIFA of first person shooters…
A new coat of paint and a few updates every season.
Looking forward to Call of Duty 2011.
Good? Bad? I dunno. I'm happy gaming is this huge extravaganza of pop culture.
But I do get concerned if popular passions in gaming trends skew the gamer cattle away for too long while missing those other hot games I'd like to think all gamers would want to play.
I remember so many friends of mine who got lost into the abyss of WoW. So many games came and gone, all the while they endlessly grinded away at their quest for power and socializing. Some of them have escaped, carrying the memory of WoW's lofty burden in their hearts (yeah, I'm doing a play off LotR here for humor) as a reminder to them that too much of a good thing can be a bad thing, and some things need to come to an end.
In answer to the question, no it's not a good thing. It reminds me of the whole Madden thing with an annual release and faux hype each year. Call of Duty feels like it's headed the same way.
I guess that's a hazard when your sales are as ludicrous as CoD's sales are.
It's too bad I can't pick up a CoD from 2 years ago for $5 like I can Madden. I'd lay down even $10 for a decently recent CoD =)
I have to give the CoD fanboys I know some credit, I have yet to see one of them purchase purely on brand name recognition, they've always surprised me with their knowledge of the game. I'm personally not against Black Ops at all, in fact, I'll probably end up buying it for Christmas or sometime around then, it does seem to be what I wanted from MW2.
Edit: Needless to say, I'll definitely be buying it used, Activision doesn't need or deserve the money.
Last edited by carl0975 on 11/9/2010 10:03:36 PM
Ben, I am not to fussed either way. In the end people have to chose what they want to waste their time and money on. As I have mentioned before, in similar ways, gaming is like chewing through Hollywood films. Some of the films that are released are master pieces, you want them in the collection, they are epic; others are just a cheap thrill and occupy your time for a few hours – alone or with friends.
Gaming is similar; generally, we have the games we want for our collection, the master pieces; others are there to be consumed quickly, and then thrown away. If a CoD game gives some entertainment whilst playing through the campaign, why not. If you want to extend that to multi-player antics on repetitive maps… again, why not for some.
Heck if they released a CoD every month, and you rented it and played through the campaign for 6 hours and then threw it away, who cares… the player is entertained… it is not a game to savor, or to have in the collection, it is a campaign you play through for an interactive Hollywood laden special effect extravaganza… an interactive action movie… that is all…
All in the name of fun, if that is your thing… I don't care how many CoD's Activision release… as long as you can pick it up and have a blast with it and throw it away afterwards.
Q!
"please don't hack me… I'm innocent"
Last edited by Qubex on 11/9/2010 10:12:11 PM
if anyone wants to read my black ops user review feel free. https://temp.psxextreme.com/user-reviews/117.html
back on topic. i'm not sure COD mania is a good thing for the industry as COD is becoming an industry unto it's self and unlike warcraft it has a modern trendy image. Its already having a major impact on the way many developer think at the moment and has indirectly been responsible for many medicore titles.
No.
Could you substantiate your answer with a reason, it would be interesting to hear it?
Q!
"please don't hack me… I'm innocent"
I have to agree (with kokoro's initial post, that is).
I agree with all 3 of you. lol
I relent… I agree with all you CoD nutters as well… who cars about reasons… lol!
Q!
"please don't hack me… i'm innocent"
I guess the real pickle is if there were no CoD, would the rabid fans even be gaming at all? That's a Chinese riddle for you. On a side note, Black Ops single campaign is so amazing. Even with little tech hiccups here and there, it's the absolute best of the series. Treyarch really put everything into this one, now they have been loosed from their WW2 shackles. From now on, I'll skip the mute, faceless, short, non vehicle operating campaigns from IW and stick with Trey.
i would take cod media hype over the wii publicity anyday.
Except Nintendo's first hand creations are loads better and more imaginative than any CoD on the market.
Yeah, Nintendo's NEVER made a cash-in game with only minor upgrades. Okay.
Pokemon anyone?
cough pokemon with the same story game in game out.
cough mario with the same story game in game out.
cough zelda with the same story game in game out.
hey, im finding a trend here………
tis the problem with ninty, they rely on established series and done innovate on anything they just take a N64 version of it or whatever, port it to wii and hey presto we have a new game!
I never said they didn't porkchop, read my comment again. I'm simply pointing out that Nintendo's games tend to get better reviews and higher marks. Their games are loads more imaginative and fun even though they do at times rehash stuff.
Nintendo's First Party > Everything else.
Of course, my opinion may be sqewed because I am an old man…
Last edited by Rings0fUranus on 11/10/2010 4:32:53 PM
this ones actually not to shabby. Although online on the ps3 is really laggy. Maybe due to overloaded servers?
There are no servers, it's like in MW2 where one person hosts.
the BO commerical with Kobe Bryant is hilarious. I'm a big Lakers fan. Go Lakers!
No, for the same reason Highlander listed. This has indeed become the Hana MontanaEA Sports of hardcore games.
As with all Call of Duty games, I'm getting BO used and cheap. Only wish they can bring COD: UO to the PS3 remastered.
Last edited by AcHiLLiA on 11/9/2010 11:26:29 PM
Like I mentioned before, in terms of quality, CoD games are "OK". But I think what pisses off some people is that it has the potential to be great, but instead it settles in the safe zone.
Well, I don't think "mania" for anything at all is a good thing(not just for COD).
For a few of those that are already wacked-out head-cases, "Mania" just seems to lead to "Obsession", bringing out the worst or the worst, even more so.
But, I'll probably pick this up used after the next COD has released….. seeing how I'm not obsessed over all this mania.
Last edited by BikerSaint on 11/9/2010 11:39:13 PM
CoD is a great franchise but I just hope that with the addition of Sledgehammer, all the studio will now have 3 years of development time instead of 2.
That and more budget.
im sure it will still be two studios. infinity ward is done for, and unless theres another studio i havent heard about working on call of duty that only leaves two sledghammer and treyarch
IW still exists. It just has very different staff now.
Call of Duty to be 'Halo-ized' Next Year?
The Sledgehammer title may or may not be a traditional first-person shooter, and now industry sources, according to Gamasutra, are indicating that the next Call of Duty could have a radically different setting from previous games too. The sources have noted that it'll be set in the future and will feature space marines.
More here:
http://www.industrygamers.com/news/call-of-duty-to-be-halo-ized-next-year/
i dont see why everybody hates call of duty its a great franchise ive played every one of em and have been pretty satisfied. and the graphics on black ops are comparable to killzone 2 and even better on the pc
those graphics are nowhere near KZ2 quality, hell they are not even as good as MW2's graphics
"the graphics on black ops are comparable to killzone 2"
Yea, I'll never take anything you say seriously again. Mind boggling ludicrous.
lol comparable to killzone 2 no they are not!
@madmike
Dude… there are arguments you can make in favor of Black Ops, but graphical quality is not one. Killzone 2 is in an entirely different league.
If you had said CoD's multiplayer is damn fun I might agree but graphic is not the highlight of CoD.
Well, at least you didn't even try to compare it to uncharted 2 in any way whatsoever.
Last edited by NoOneSpecial on 11/10/2010 12:57:20 PM
MadMike,
Could one of the reasons be that all their recent "WAY TOO SHORT" Single Player campaigns have been sacrificed, in order to grab all of the multi-players?
As a dissatisfied single mode player, I know so.
double edged sword, yea its a good thing to get peoples attention to games helps bring more money into the industry.
but than its also a bad thing because then you end up with, well, COD.
where everyone and his dog buys it and nothing but it, i know countless people who play COD and nothing but COD, trying to convince them to try something else is like trying to convince a old lady out of her ways!
IMPOSSIBLE!
than theres the other thing, where developers try to copy the game because its so popular.
if i want COD ill go buy COD, so developers FOR THE LOVE OF GOD STOP TRYING TO BE COD!!!!!!!
honestly i cant think of one shooter that has not been changed to try and appeal to the COD masses, i mean even KZ3 changed!
KZ2 had great controls, i actually found it allot easier to aim in KZ2 than other games i loved they heavy controls.
so they change it for KZ3 so they can be more like the sheep.
for once can we have a Sheppard, instead of a flock of sheep?
Is it a good thing? Does the pope $hit in the woods?