Review
Played on: PlayStation 4
Released: 2014
Released: 2014
I'd forgive you if you've lost track of which Call of Duty was the last in the series. This is the first COD, in the long shooter series, that's made by Activison's Sledgehammer department. It has a future setting. It has mechssuits. It has guns you have never heard of. Technology you've never seen. And Kevin Spacey.
This is the first COD which truly is made for the current generation, with some experience under the belt of the PS4 & XB1 hardware, a seemingly strong visual upgrade to the engine, how does it fare?
Let's take a look!
You may be thinking: the guy writing this clearly doesn't like it. Well, you'd be right before I got a hands-on, and you'd be wrong after I finally played it! You see, I liked the previous COD, named Ghosts. I enjoyed the setting, the graphical upgrade on my new PS4, and I felt it was fairly varied. I just didn't get the hate. Sure, it did nothing new, but I've felt that way with many COD releases.
So, when Advanced Warfare emerged, I was struck with awe when everybody started praising it. The same people that hated Ghosts. I just didn't understand why, for me it was just another COD. Luckily, when I dug into AW, it felt fresh and renewed.
AW feels more current gen than before, the graphics have had a big bump, especially when it comes to character faces, details in the environments and lighting. While keeping the famous smooth and responsive 60fps. AW dares to go an extra few yards by slightly opening up the levels too, though it still feels like a corridor shooter. It really should've dared to put a few free roaming levels into the mix, but hey, it's a small step in the right direction.
The story is about a huge company, industrialising war and giving the player a second chance after being wounded in a war against North Korea in the great looking opening level. What you get from the company Atlas, run by Kevin Spacey whom looks just like the real actor, is a mechsuit. This suit lets you have abilities that go far beyond human nature. You can slow everything down in typical Matrix fashion, jump from huge heights, lift incredibly heavy things, climb metal surfaces etc.
After each mission you even receive points to upgrade the suit, based on kills, headshots, grenade kills and intel items you've found. It's nice to see these innovative ideas and I always enjoy being able to upgrade my character.
I would've enjoyed the game even more if it let me choose the types of mechsuits I wanted for each mission, thus letting me find a route through a map that suited the particular suit I choose. But I guess we'll have to wait before they make such drastic changes to the formula.
Luckily though, each mission varies a lot in both mechsuit abilities and visual environments, as well as tasks you must perform. I would've enjoyed a few missions playing all on my own, without the chatty soldiers fighting by my side. Regardless, the mission variety is, as usual in a COD title, incredibly good.
I've also played the multiplayer to a small degree, though no extensive testing at all. I would say it's definitely one of the more difficult COD games to compete with online. Well trained players take benefit of the mechsuits and keep jumping around and attacking you from every possible angle.
Beginners to the series may want to try another title in the franchise before this one, as it's easier to play without the danger of enemies jumping in from anywhere above and benefiting from the "supernatural" powers.
With such a huge list of titles released in the series, it's getting more difficult to recommend one specific COD over the other. It succeeds at coming off as more tech heavy than Ghosts, taking full benefit of the current gen consoles. The visuals and environments are stunning, as is the lighting and usage of special effects onscreen. It comes together as an incredible solid package with the graphics and the added mechsuit abilities give the overall impression that extra spark needed for variety in the COD formula.
It's a purchase best suited for the current generation and not the last-gen version, I've heard they downgraded it quite extensively. PC owners can of course take benefit of cranking it up further!
Overall, it's the best COD for either your PS4 or Xbox One. If you want a cheaper alternative, and a more "down to earth" setting then last year's COD Ghosts still is good purchase in my opinion. Although the latter is a little rougher looking in its appearance.
Advanced Warfare is a safe bet for a fun playthrough in singleplayer with fast and responsive controls and its proven gameplay that delivers once again. Another quality COD release, that at least tries to turn the tables on the formula which becomes a little too familiar with each year passing.
