14 DAY TRIAL // This year promises to be a big one for the Call of Duty franchise, as the new installment – Advanced Warfare – is coming from new studio Sledgehammer Games and has taken advantage of the bigger three-year development cycle.
After a single-player story campaign reveal at E3 2014 back in June, Activision and Sledgehammer brought forth the multiplayer mode to Gamescom 2014, showing off the major additions made to arguably the most important and popular aspect of any Call of Duty game – the online play.
As was already announced, the exoskeleton mech suit takes the trademark speedy pace of a Call of Duty multiplayer match and augments it into a brand new way, allowing players to execute jet-powered jumps, blazing dodges, and plenty of other new things.
Besides the jumps, which make the whole gameplay more vertical and allow players to occupy building roofs and other such things, the exoskeleton also enables grenades to be launched via the armlets and other smaller tweaks to the actual gameplay.
The whole movement mechanic is quite reminiscent of Titanfall, Respawn Entertainment's futuristic shooter, although wallrunning and parkour moves aren't possible.
The customization system has also been augmented. There are way more cosmetic items available and the already classic Pick 10 create-a-class system has been enhanced into a Pick-13 one. Players can choose their weapons, attachments, killstreak rewards, and perks easily.
What's more, quite a few fresh weapons are present, including energy ones that overheat instead of running out of bullets. Right from the customization menu players can jump into a virtual firing range and see just how their guns handle.
Plenty of fan favorite modes are present, such as Capture the Flag or Harpoint, while others like Uplink have been augmented to make full use of the exoskeleton jet jumps.
The maps look really good and range from sci-fi factories and facilities to good old ravaged ruins and other such environments that are filled with all sorts of areas to delight players who want wide open areas but also those who favor close quarters combat.
At least from the hands-on time, it's become clear that snipers and players who are used to slower movement and a gentler pace won't have a good time with Advanced Warfare. The jet jumps and dodges ensure that players won't stay put all that much, so it might be good idea to grab speedy weapons like SMGs and augment them with accessories that accelerate the scoping time.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is set to debut this fall on PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.