Call of Duty Ghosts

Introduction

Since 2003 the Call of Duty series has been entertaining players around the world. Beginning with the "Second World War" the series has sent us into multiple conflicts in different periods of warfare. From fictionalized conflicts in our own time to running through the dark jungles of Vietnam, the call of duty franchise has brought us to the front lines of wars around the world. The newest installment "Call of Duty: Ghosts" takes players into the future instead of the past for the first time, dropping players into a dark futuristic setting where the USA is losing a war against the so called federation, a union of south American states that has decided to put an end to the hegemonies of the US. In a last ditch effort, the once powerful US sends in two highly skilled brothers in an attempt to turn the tides.

Story

Does anyone remember the 80’s action flick Commando? Compared to Call of Duty: Ghosts, Schwarzenegger might as well of been starring in a Shakespearian tragedy. After being introduced to the new futuristic setting, you meet your war-hero father for a few words of doom and gloom, then are whisked into a tunnel run on a shooting farm. You quickly realize that your character is truly his father’s son, and the intro rapidly devolves into semi-mindless shooting, which of course, the hero is amazing at. Despite the cheesy premise (or perhaps because of it), the game absolutely has that “Call of Duty feeling”. Love it or hate it, Call of Duty is back.

Staying true to the series, there are no really compelling story elements. There is yelling and shooting, characters come and go, and the plot meanders towards the inevitable set-piece conclusion. The story itself revolves around hunting down an old comrade of your fathers’ who has turned to the dark side. Other than that, the plot takes a far backseat to the near constant gunfire. There is a reason to go into space and defend a satellite, and surely there is a reason we are diving beneath a super battle ship to take it down, but the reasons are mostly obstacles to the next set piece. The premise makes for a good setting, but a pretty dull story, and as usual, your only real problem is where to find your next magazine. Long-time Call of Duty fans will expect no less.

 

Gameplay

Shoot, shoot, shoot, reload, throw grenade, shoot, reload, repeat. There isn’t a whole lot else to say about the game play. The claustrophobic tunnel levels are good at pumping up your adrenaline, but extremely limited in tactics and ingenuity. Your teammate yelling in your ear and gunfire ringing through the tunnels will keep your heart rate up, but the “friendly” AI quickly becomes irritating. On top of that, the game often tries to manufacture thrills that feel inauthentic. For example, in one situation you are supposed to toss a grenade into an enemy truck before they take you down with a rocket launcher. Your comrades are screaming in your ear, and it seems like a very high pressure situation, until you don’t do anything. Everyone keeps screaming how dire the situation is and how you have to act, and act now! In reality, you can simply sit, or maybe use the toilet while your allies take out the enemies they insist only you can save them from. Or, you can calmly shoot each one, then approach the guy with the rocket launcher and execute him. Obviously the game is trying to ratchet up the tension, but a lot of screaming doesn’t necessarily equal thrills.

A new “feature” of sorts in Ghosts is your constant companion Riley. Man’s best friend really comes through for you here, and the animal seems oddly super powered for the most part. He has bullet proof fur for some reason, and is inexplicably immune to poison gas. A few sections have you steering Riley behind enemy lines, killing your enemies and completing small tasks. A few times the game makes Riley the center of the action, which is hit and miss, although these sequences break up the monotony of the constant shooting. Overall, the use of Riley seems a bit over the top, and feels a little tacked on.

The AI of your team acts on its own with the exception of Riley. This makes sense in the context of the “story” but it can be pretty irritating when your partners are supposed to be flanking the enemy and instead are screaming insults and blasting a stone pillar while you take on an entire enemy company by yourself. Obviously this is CoD, not Rainbow Six, but a bit better AI would have been appreciated, and you’ll wish you could control them more at times.

Graphics

Call of Duty wants to be a hard-core shooter, which is fine, but we wish it wasn’t so hard-core with its hardware requirements. Without 6GB Ram and a DirectX 11 supported graphic card the game won't even start. Once it does, it’s a bit disappointing. It doesn't look bad, especially if you have the hardware, but overall it looks a little rough around the edges. Rough textures, and outdated looking NPC’s are the most obvious graphical problems you will see. On the other hand, the game balances light and darkness perfectly, and the scenery makes great use of this interplay. If you don't have the latest hardware at home, you may want to think about upgrading to get the full experience.

Sound

The sound is fine, not extraordinary but not bad. The scripted events are punctuated by great sounds; choppers thrum overhead, grenades explode with satisfying “whumps”, reloading and firing sounds are crisp and convincing. The sound definitely goes a long way towards the overall immersion, and makes you feel like you are truly in the heat of battle.