Just this past week we here at COG had the opportunity to attend the Call of Duty: Ghosts Multiplayer Reveal. Activision was kind enough to fly us down to see what all the “hubbub” was about in regards to what should make Ghosts an improved multiplayer experience over previous CODs of past. The day started off with a bang as we all got to attend the live multiplayer reveal that was kicked off by a rocking trailer, with a brand new song from Eminem. Activision CEO Erich Hirshberg walked out to welcome the crowd, and then Executive Producer Mark Rubin came out and started going through much of what could be expected.
Now, I could bore you with a play by play of the actual press event, which was broadcast live over the web, but to I think that would just be plain silly. What I will do is highlight some of the features that caught my attention, given the fact that I have played all the console titles since the first release of Call of Duty 2 when the Xbox 360 launched. I will then give you my hands-on impressions and discuss how I viewed the new MP play.
Character customization has seen some key improvements. Instead of just picking a class with a generic character, you can now choose to make your character look the way you want, and for those die-hard female players you now have the option to play as a woman soldier. There are countless other options available, and there is no doubt you can make your character look the way you want, from face, hair, or colour of your skin to the uniform and gear you wear, your character is yours. You’ll also open up more and more options during your gameplay experience by leveling up, so the amount of customization is going to be mind-blowing to say the least.
Customization is further enhanced in Ghosts by the perks that you can pick. If anyone has been playing Black Ops II, you know changes were made to your inventory by limiting your loadout to 10 spots ‘for everything (perks, weapons, etc.). This pretty much carries over, but the big change is in the use of perks. There are a lot more perks this time around, and they are assigned point values, with the better more useful perks costing more points. The trick here is that you are allocated eight perk points to use at your discretion, so no matter what kind of perks you choose, and how many you want to use, you can only use up to eight points. This is interesting to say the least. It’s going to take quite a bit of experimentation to find your perfect perk combo, but even so, it will be fun trying to discover what works for you.
One of the bigger announcements during the reveal for me was the addition of two new modes, Cranked and Search & Rescue. Cranked is basically a high stakes, high intensity version of Team Deathmatch. Once you kill an opposing player, you have 30 seconds to kill another player. During this time you are “cranked”, and as you continue to rack up a kill count, you are given more and more perks that improve your speed, reloading, etc., making you somewhat of a super soldier. Should you not kill anyone within 30 seconds you explode, simple as that. This is not a mode for campers or those that like to take their time in a level. It is an all out adrenalin pumping mode. The other new mode, Search & Rescue, is a variant of Search & Destroy. When you are killed your dog tags are left behind, which is reminiscent of the Kill Confirmed mode which made its first appearance in Modern Warfare 3. If a teammate grabs your tags you are resurrected; however, should a foe nab your tag you become a spectator waiting to play the next round.
Along with the announcement of changes to the games visuals on next-gen hardware, the audio has also been re-vamped, for both current and next-gen hardware. There were a bunch of techno-jargon thrown around during the multiplayer reveal, but regardless of what was said it was clear that Infinity Ward has stepped it up in the audio department. From localizing sound effects, having certain sounds reverb through the environment around you, to having your teammates’ characters chatter about what was happening in the level, the sound design is more integral for the multiplayer this time around.
A final announcement that was highlighted at the reveal, and one that caught my attention, is the new running, jumping and prone system. From being able to jump over objects more smoothly to sliding on your knees or leaning around corners, there have been some changes in this area. As shown in the multiplayer reveal trailer, you can run with fluidity and not feel like jumping is a secondary action, as is the ability to slide on your knees, which is the first step to hitting prone from running. No more dolphin diving, something that just drove me nuts in all the CODs to date.
Ok, now you have a bit of a rundown of some the announcements from the hour long reveal that got my attention, but how does the gameplay fare? Well, luckily we got to find out. After the reveal we headed into a large area where we were treated to three multiplayer levels and various gameplay modes all running on Xbox One hardware (development kits no doubt). This included using the new Xbox One controller as well. We were not limited to just one play session either, as we had as much time as we wanted during the day as long as there was a station open for us to sit and try things out.
One of the first matches I got to play was the new Cranked Mode. Oh boy, is it ever crazy. It’s a match that progresses very quickly too. I found that wherever I turned there were lots of people out for blood, virtually speaking. Sure, many COD matches are already like this, but the new Cranked Mode amps this up. The need to find more people to kill within the 30-second time limit makes this mode that much more intense. There is a feeling of satisfaction when you’re down to your last few seconds only to kill an opposing player to reset the clock. This mode is meant for smaller maps that allow you to find opponents quick; larger maps just don’t play well with this mode given the need to find and dispose of others quickly. I have to say that this mode should easily become a fan favourite due to the intensity and speed required to succeed.
As for the new Search & Rescue mode, I found that although it can be enjoyable, it just wasn’t for me. Having to spectate has never been something I enjoy, and given that an untimely death can result in having to wait around, I tended to not want to play these matches. Don’t get me wrong, when you are on a roll and killing others more than dying, it can be fun, but in the end I found that I didn’t enjoy it as much as I anticipated. I think I can attribute this to my enjoyment of Kill Confirmed and how its action is non-stop. That being said, I am absolutely positive that many COD veterans will enjoy this new mode as much as they all the other modes from over the years.
As I played throughout the three levels we were given access to (Octane, Strikezone and Whiteout) it became very obvious to me that the new running and jumping mechanic factors into the core gameplay quite well. I found I was able to access areas that I may not have been able to in the past, and the fluidity of jumping over barriers, items, or up onto ledges made a difference. I am sure you’re questioning the validity of this claim, but trust me, after playing many matches on the three maps this couldn’t have been made clearer to me. Bottomline, the mechanic works like a charm and COD players will get a feel for it from their first match.
Level design plays a part in any multiplayer game, and Ghosts seems to have it down to an art. First and foremost, even by the end of the day I didn’t find spawn deaths as annoying as I usually do. Maybe it was because we were all new to the maps, but you’d think after a full day of playing, people would have it all figured out, but surprisingly it wasn’t too bad. The levels themselves are also quite impressive, with numerous paths to specific areas, and lots of room to explore. I found that as I became accustomed to a map I started to explore more and I discovered that the places you could go were more prevalent than ever before, from all buildings in each level to the outskirts of each zone, the ability to explore so much in each level was quite surprising to me.
New to the world of COD are destructible environments. I was chilling with a few other journalists for most of the day and a couple of us came to an agreement that the destructibility doesn’t quite stack up with Battlefield, but regardless, to see it in Ghosts was a nice change to say the least. From being able to blow out a wall or sign to actually destroying part of the level itself, this adds a bit more change to the traditional Call of Duty experience. You’ll add new cover, find new ways to take out an opposing player, or just destroy stuff. Simply put it’s fun.
A new feature to the multiplayer is the ability to undertake Field Orders. Every so often, a floating briefcase will be left behind after you take out an enemy opponent. Grab it and it will give you an objective for you to complete (e.g. kill an opponent with an explosive device, kill opponent with secondary weapon, etc.). Should you complete this objective you will be given a reward including some game changers such as hitting the level with a tactical missile or blowing up a gas station, all which change the landscape for the rest of the game (watch the trailer to see what I mean). If you don’t complete your objective and you die, you drop the briefcase upon your death leaving it for anyone else in the game to try to complete. I really enjoyed seeing the level changing events as this would change the way you play after it occurred. It adds a bit more spice to the gameplay so to speak.
Visually, the next-gen version of Ghosts looked good. If I can best explain it, it looks like your typical Call of Duty game, just better. We were told that Ghosts will benefit and improve visually on current-gen machines as well. The three levels we played looked great, with the best of the three, in my opinion, being the snow-covered tundra, winter cabins, and frozen waters of Whiteout. Many veterans of the franchise will feel right at home. I found that there is some good use of lighting and dynamic shadowing for sure, and the textures of each level (e.g. dust, garbage, debris, etc.) look a little more realistic and have more depth. I found that the weapons looked darn good too, with lots of attention to detail. All in all this is an enhanced looking version of COD and the game is not done yet, so there is still lots of time to optimize the new next-gen graphics engine.
If there is one area that I am really impressed with, it has to be in the audio department. I was not entirely sold on what was said in regards to the audio during the reveal, but after playing it I have to say that I’m a believer. The way that explosions affected areas around you (e.g. causing chain fences to rattle or the echoes in tight quarters) was impressive. Directionality and location also had a huge impact on the audio. If an explosion was off in the distance; you hear it as if it was off in the distance. We were using Turtle Beach headphones and if there was one complaint to levy against the sound during my time with the game it was that the directionality was not emphasized enough through the headphones ear speakers. I can’t wait to play this in my media room and the surround sound set-up that I am used too.
One area of the audio that really took me by surprise was the in-game chatter of my teammate’s characters and how it cued me in to what was going on. Many times they would say things that helped me figure out where to go or what what to do. From telling me “enemies are on the second floor of the club” to “enemies coming out into the open”, these contextual sayings really helped add a sense of teamwork to the multiplayer, as they gave me some lead on where to go. Well done indeed.
As I sit here and reflect on my time with Ghosts, I am sure there are other things for me to say, or I am missing some key point that just didn’t make it into my notes. Regardless, I have to say that the refinements that Infinity Ward has made in the multiplayer are noteworthy, and they make Ghosts a great title to play against others. I would venture that the tweaks are the best that the franchise has seen to date. That being said, if you are not a fan of COD this game will not change your opinion, but if you enjoyed the games in the past, or are currently playing the latest in the series right now, you’ll really dig what is being done for Ghosts multiplayer, plain and simple. For now check out the reveal trailer and a few screens/pics below and soak in what is coming this November
