For many, 2019’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare was their first foray into Activision’s first-person shooter franchise in years. Many players who fell in love with the series back with the original Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2 had begun to trickle away. Swathes of bad reviews for Call of Duty Ghosts and a shift to futuristic settings in later games had alienated a lot of players and there was a marked decline in popularity. The franchise didn’t feel like the headliner it once was.
All that changed with the Modern Warfare reboot. Players who had previously abandoned the series returned hoping for a revitalised take on the classic Modern Warfare games. And for the most part, they got it. Reviews were good and sales hit $1 billion dollars in December 2019. It proved to be the highest selling CoD game of the eighth console generation.
With significant buzz surrounding the series once again, anticipation for the reveal of the next entry in the series was off the charts. On 26th August, Activision and Treyarch revealed Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (sub-subheadings FTW!). Set in the 1980s, the game is a direct sequel to the original Black Ops game from 2010. Amid much speculation, the multiplayer mode was then revealed earlier this week. It promises a return to some of Treyarch’s staple and popular features as well as exciting new ones. However, it’s clear not all the changes will be for everyone, and there are a few casualties from Modern Warfare that have been lost along the way.
Let’s check out 15 ways Black Ops Cold War is changing Call of Duty multiplayer:
1 – Boats
Vehicles are commonplace in Modern Warfare. The popular Ground War mode (more like classic Battlefield than CoD) implemented them well and with great variety. Quad bikes, tac rovers, trucks, armoured military vehicles, helicopters. They almost had it all. One type of terrain that couldn’t be traversed, however, was water. Black Ops Cold War has put an end to that with the introduction of boats.
Ranging from jet skis to attack boats, whether you need to zip across open water quickly or lay waste to floundering enemies, there are lots of ways they can give you the upper hand. Most importantly, they look like great fun!
2 – Swimming
If there are boats and explosions, it’s almost certain you’ll be going overboard. That’s why it’s a good thing Treyarch have reintroduced swimming in the next game. Not a feature many would expect due to its limited history in the series, but it should provide an interesting and stealthy alternative to the usual land-based traversal.
3 – Suppressors hide you on the mini-map
Controversially, Infinity Ward removed the mini-map from Modern Warfare for the beta last year. Due to backlash from fans, it was quickly put back in. What didn’t return, though, was dots on the map when enemies shot an unsuppressed weapon. To the relief of many, they will make a return in this year’s game. Thanks to that, suppressors now have the additional tactical benefit of hiding you on the map when engaging enemies.
4 – No mounting
It’s great fun in Modern Warfare to mount up with a high-powered LMG and mow down an on coming horde of enemies. Unfortunately, it’s one feature that won’t be returning in Cold War. Maybe they couldn’t do it in the 80s?
5 – Time-to-kill is longer
Call of Duty is a notoriously fast-paced game thanks to its quick time-to-kill when compared to FPS rivals. TtK can be sped up further if players jump into the Hardcore mode. With Black Ops Cold War, early access players are reporting a longer time-to-kill than in MW. This reportedly gives the gameplay a slightly different feel. It might mean many players need to practise their aim!
6 – Shotguns can be secondaries without a perk
In Modern Warfare, you need Overkill if you want to run a shotgun alongside any other primary weapon, such as an assault rifle. Now, shotguns join launchers and pistols as default secondaries without the need to equip a perk. If players do want two primaries, they now must equip the Law Breaker wildcard (more on those later).
7 – No tactical sprint
The extra speedy but short tactical sprint from last year’s game has been removed. This will certainly impact the speed of play in multiplayer. Instead, players now have unlimited sprint that starts with a short boost before slowing slightly to a standard speed. Better get used to not double tapping the left analogue at every opportunity.
8 – No doors
It seems like a strange decision. They seem like an inherently obvious choice in map design. Not only that, but along with footsteps and broken glass, players barging through doors was one of the dead giveaways of nearby enemies.
9 – Less parkour
While not necessarily a fully-fledged feature in Modern Warfare, the maps certainly enabled a speedy, elevated play style. Those who’ve played Black Ops Cold War describe the maps as more like ‘classic CoD’. Presumably, that means blocky and with three distinct lanes of travel. This sounds like it could be a step backward for the series.
10 – Post-game performance graph
For those stat-obsessed players out there, Treyarch have introduced a post-game performance graph with a range of metrics to measure your performance. It shows score per minute, score, damage, elimination/damage ratio, eliminations, and win/loss ratio. Yet another way to remind me what a noob I am.
11 – Gunsmith returns but is simplified
The wildly popular Gunsmith returns in this year’s game. It’s UI design, however, has been simplified to make it more accessible. Admittedly, it was daunting and difficult to navigate in last year’s game, so this isn’t a bad thing. Now allowing up to eight attachments (if players use the Gunfighter wildcard) and a choice of up to 54 attachments per weapon, it looks to be deeper than ever. What’s more, attachment changes now show a percentage difference rather than the simple +/-. This will have you stewing over those loadouts for longer than ever.
12 – Sound design changes
Those who’ve played Black Ops Cold War have reported that the game’s sound design differs significantly from Modern Warfare. Guns now sound cartoon-ish compared to MW’s booming and realistic sounding firearms. It’s also been reported that maps sound less ambient – that is, less like a real, living world – than those found in MW. One thing that has been improved, however, is the footsteps. They now sound clearer and more consistent.
13 – Wildcards
Appearing in many CoD games but not Modern Warfare, wildcards are set to make a return in Cold War. With four to choose from, they offer an additional perk-like ability that will give you a special edge on the battlefield. They are:
Danger Close – Extra lethal and tactical equipment, as well as max starting ammo.
Law Breaker – Basically Overkill from Modern Warfare. Carry two primary weapons.
Gunfighter – Three additional attachment slots for your primary weapon.
Perk Greed – Three additional perk slots, giving you six in total.
14 – Scorestreaks replace killstreaks
Gamers who left Call of Duty back with Modern Warfare 2 may be unaware that killstreaks were in the process of being phased out until last year’s game. The idea was to put more emphasis on objective-based team play than hording kills. Modern Warfare reversed that trend and put killstreaks back at the fore. The Pointman perk allowed players to gain those coveted killstreaks by completing objectives as well as kills, but many chose to go with the default. Now, killstreaks are gone and scorestreaks are back to make us all better team players. The following scoresteaks are available:
RC-XD (Cost: 600 pts) – a remote controlled bomb
Spyplane (Cost: 800 pts) – basically a UAV
Artillery (Cost: 1900 pts) – an airstrike
Napalm Strike (Cost: 2400 pts) – a napalm carpet bomb
Air Patrol (Cost: 2750 pts) – jets attack enemy air streaks
War Machine (Cost: 3150) – grenade launcher
Attack Helicopter (Cost: 3750) – automated support helicopter
Chopper Gunner (Cost: 6000) – the classic
15 – Dead Silence has been renamed and is now a perk
In last year’s game, Dead Silence was a useful, but limited, field upgrade that muffled your footsteps. In Black Ops Cold War, it’s been renamed Ninja (like in MW2 and the original Black Ops) and returns as a perk. One of the more useful abilities in the series, many will be glad for the change as it means the ability no longer needs a cool-down after use.
Are there any other key features you’re excited or disappointed about? Let us know in the comments below!
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War releases on 13th November 2020.
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Featured Image Credit: Activision (fair use)
