When Glen Schofield and Michael Condrey, co-founders of Sledgehammer Games, took the stage last Wednesday night at an Advanced Warfare multiplayer preview event in San Francisco there was this overwhelming sense of anticipation from the press in attendance. It was a feeling as if we were all going to see something quite a bit different than what we had seen from every other Call of Duty game we have played over the past decade.
Condrey and Schofield are both risk takers, so it comes as no surprise they want to spice things up a bit this year. Sure they take risks but they also both push innovation. Having previously worked on Dead Space and Modern Warfare 3 there was no question in my mind that if this Call of Duty was going to muzzle those CoD naysayers, Sledgehammer is the team to do it. Coming off a somewhat disappointing Call of Duty: Ghosts game the table is set for Sledgehammer to knock one out of the park and in some ways Condrey and Schofield did just that.
After watching the 45-minute presentation from Condrey and Schofield and after getting some hands-on time with some of Advanced Warfare’s multiplayer maps, there is no question we are seeing a fundamental change to the way we play CoD online. Is it “revolutionary” like Condrey and Schofield claim it to be? No, but it is certainly a game changer for the franchise and it comes in the form of the much publicized “exoskeleton” suit we’ve seen in early trailers.
The power of the exoskeleton is where the development team built the Advanced Warfare multiplayer experience. According to Condrey, introducing the exoskeleton in the CoD multiplayer arena allowed the development team to experiment, take chances, get community feedback and actually bring in some e-sports CoD gamers to put this new player movement mechanic through its paces. The changes don’t stop with just the suit as the exoskeleton introduces new equipment, gameplay abilities and mechanics like boost jump, boost slam, boost dodge, boost slide, boost dash, grapple, cloak and more.
After having spent a couple of hours with four Advanced Warfare maps and the “game changing” exo suits there is no question this Call of Duty feels different. It’s fast and relentless. It’s Call of Duty on crystal meth! The pace of the game certainly caught me off guard and initially I was like “WTF, this is insane fast!” Granted I am not a hardcore Call of Duty online gamer. Heck I don’t even know if I would even consider myself a casual one as I never prestiged my character once with Ghosts; so you need to take my comments with a dash of salt. Yet for me, I found it harder to target the enemy given the boosting mechanics of the exo suit. It took me some time to adjust as I was also learning some new weapons with some new attachments.
Still, once I became more comfortable with the new mechanics, I was having a blast. It was hard to put down and clearly hard for others to put down as nobody, and I mean NOBODY, was getting off their chairs to take a break from playing. I have been to many Call of Duty events and this is the first time I actually had to fight to get on a console and play.
The exoskeleton is just plain fun and plays out in a similar fashion to the Titanfall multiplayer experience. I was reaching new heights as the exo gives the maps a new level of verticality. That signature run and gun combat is back. All those CoD dude bros will be happy but the exo suit mechanic has amped up the pace of the game, significantly.
The exo suit not only allows you to boost jump higher but it also brings with it new abilities and new way to launch your frags. Throwing a grenade for instance is accomplished with the same control scheme; however, instead of throwing it like a baseball your exo suit launches the grenade from the part of the exo that is attached to your arm. You can also exo cloak for a short period of time or deploy an exo shield. These abilities only last until your exo battery is depleted.
One of the main goals the development team had when designing the maps was to enhance the tactical combat. Additionally it was clear all the maps have a greater emphasis on verticality and more strategy. The maps played were Biolab, Defender, Riot, and Ascend.
“Biolab” takes place in part of a snowy secret base and is great for close quarter combat. “Riot” is set in a bombed out prison after a riot has shit-kicked the jail. Riot features the classic 3-lane approach offering two large open areas on both sides of the map along with a large cell block right in the center. “Ascend” takes place in a futuristic space elevator terminal and “Defender” takes place in an abandon bunker underneath the Golden Gate Bridge.
Of all the maps, Defender was my favorite as it features enjoyable open gameplay and was a perfect map that really showcased the new exoskeleton abilities. All the maps were colourful and sharp looking. I wasn’t exactly blown away with the visuals but I also don’t have any real complaints either and well, I highly doubt I was playing the final build. Is it in 1080p or anything like that? I have no clue but we did play it on the Xbox One which may be responsible for the less than dazzling graphics… if you buy into that sort of thing.
There will be 12-multiplayer modes on day one. CoD staples like team death match, kill confirmed and domination return; however, the exoskeleton does add a new element of strategy. Capture the Flag returns, as does Search and Destroy and Hardpoint. Advance Warfare also introduces some new modes like Momentum which is a new take on the classic mode War. There is also a new mode called Uplink where two teams fight for control of a satellite. Teams race to capture a drone and deliver it to a team’s uplink. This mode is blast but I highly doubt it will stick like Domination or Kill Confirmed has.
It goes without question Sledgehammer games have taken some big chances with Advance Warfare’s new multiplayer player movement mechanics. Only time will tell if it will be embraced by the CoD faithful. Based on my hands-on time, fans have nothing to worry about. Sure it’s faster than ever before and it will be difficult for newbies to compete but at a time when the franchise could use a nice swift kick in the ass and a jolt of new energy, the exoskeleton might just be exactly what the doctor ordered.
