Another year, another COD game, another satisfying, fast paced, on- the-rails campaign.
Story: Like the name would suggest, the game takes place somewhat in the future with more advance weaponry and tech. IT is a time where private military corporations are common. Our hero, after suffering a loss while being marine, gets a second chance in one of the top private corporation called ATLAS. And of course, there are terrorists who should be stopped, so that's our job. While the premise is clichéd and all, it was fine by me. What I liked about it was how they kinda targeted USA for current world situation in the game. I'm still looking for a character like Captain Price in COD campaigns, still no luck. But there were some decent characters in this game. One of them is voiced by Kevin Spacey himself, so he was obviously awesome.
Where this game really excels is the pacing of the story and how it presents it. It honestly felt like watching a Hollywood action/war movie. The cutscenes between mission were top notch. Probably the best paced COD I have played so far.
Gameplay: While the gameplay retains the same COD run and gun mechanics and feel, there are some nice new additions. The exo-suit adds a bunch of new movements techniques or other tactical advantages which are fun to use and kinda makes the gameplay feel fresh. I loved jumping high and killing enemies, then burst dodging and repeating, so much fun. There were some new future tech grenades too, which added more fun to the game, BUT I didn't like how you had to cycle through their types considering how fast paced the fights are. Would have been better if you could dedicate keys to different types instead.
There are a lot of different levels in the game too, where you either control a drone, a vehicle or something similar, and they are spread out finely enough that the whole game feels just right. There are no dragged out fights, like I said earlier, great pacing in this game. And of course, COD isn't COD without their signature blockbuster destruction set pieces, there were plenty in this game but my favourite was definitely the destruction of Golden Gate bridge, SO AWESOME.
Graphics: Finally they ditched that old engine and created something new. The game looks totally refreshing, finally feels like a next gen COD. Pretty good textures, lighting, animations etc. For a COD game, this looks beautiful no doubt. Outdoor areas definitely look better than some indoor scenes though maybe because I played Crysis trilogy before it and was spoiled by their awesome indoor lighting.
Sound: The sound effects are great, I guess compliments of a new engine. The destruction, the blasts etc feel punchy and powerful. I was disappointed by the gun sounds though, most of them sounded very similar and well lame.
Overall: I think this is one of the best COD campaign I have played so far. I always enjoy playing COD, and this was no different. They definitely know how to do a campaign.
8.7/10
