While the initial Black Ops Cold War multiplayer reveal will likely impress some and disappoint others, there is a fraction of the community that is more interested in what multiplayer will become over time. Whether it is implemented upon release or phased in slowly over time, there are several core lessons that Black Ops Cold War can take from Modern Warfare’s multiplayer reception.
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Fans love the boots on the ground action found in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. It would be easy to call the game’s multiplayer experience a success, double so after several updates improve the action and balancing of each weapon. It is a long journey to perfect a multiplayer game mode, and Black Ops Cold War has just started that journey.
The Multiplayer Experience
When fans enter a Call of Duty match, there are several core expectations they have when it comes to gameplay. First is a standard run and gun experience that favor fast reflexes, rapid respawns, and quick game modes. When a match gets lengthy in Call of Duty, fans tend to shy away from it, leaving the game mode reserved for a select group of the community. It is the constant fast-paced action that makes multiplayer successful, with some occasional exceptions scattered throughout the series.
The second thing that fans expect is loadout creation. Pre-built loadouts are usually considered secondary to anything that a player could create. With each fan having their own unique preference when it comes to sights, skins, secondaries, and equipment, it becomes necessary for a game to allow as much customization as possible. Modern Warfare did an amazing job by introducing Gunsmith to players and taking advantage of the already massive customization options that players have with each weapon.
The third expectation is that tactics will matter in each match. Although maps like Shipment are great for grinding out kills and completing challenges, there is a segment of the Call of Duty community that prefers more tactical deployments. With squads, clans, and entire regiments fielding players, there becomes an intrinsic need within the game’s development for maps to facilitate good squad play. This builds upon the fact that most players in Call of Duty tend to bring friends along making it a more social experience rather than a competitive grind. There is something to be said about playing together rather than simply existing in the same lobby.
Lessons Learned From Updating
There is no game in existence that could be called perfect upon launch. With thousands of players investigating every combination and exploring every inch of the maps, something will no doubt break. From gun balancing to invisible walls leftover from development, fans will find every problem existing in a new title. If it is an abusable system, then many players will most likely abuse it for their own advantage. The fact is, every game gets better after the first round of updates.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War has the luxury of being build using a similar system to Modern Warfare. This means that the development team at Treyarch and Raven Software can take lessons from Infinity Ward’s patch notes and preemptively fix problems within the upcoming title. Although this will not fix everything for the new multiplayer experience, it can easily cut down on negative fan feedback and help present a positive and enlightening experience to the multiplayer audience.
Modern Warfare really started to shine in multiplayer game mode after the third update implemented the first set of weapon balances. As fans started to feel out the meta, Infinity Ward quickly patched overpowered guns and helped add in features to make enemies more visible to players. Although there are segments of the game community that still discuss the graphical downgrade, in many ways simplifying the game’s visuals made multiplayer a much better experience.
If nothing else, Black Ops Cold War needs to learn from the mistakes of its predecessor and ensure that the same problems do not reoccur in the new title. This becomes extremely important when connected with the evolution of Warzone that is expected upon Black OpsCold War’s launch.
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Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s Multiplayer Evolution
The Black Ops Cold War reveal will inform fans of everything they need to know for the next multiplayer experience. Still, it is important to remember that although the graphics look nice, the action looks epic, and the soldiers look real the priority of the game’s community still lies in the enjoyability of the title itself. Realistic graphics and high paced action can not make up for bad design and horrible gun balancing. The developers need to make sure that the game is ready for production on a far-reaching test level. Fans will quickly find the flaws in the game, and with many coming from Modern Warfare, they will be keen to see if old tactics work in new battlefields.
One main concern of the community itself is the implementation of SBMM in the new multiplayer experience. There will no doubt need to be adjustments made to the overall matchmaking experience for fans of all skill levels as to not cause reoccurring problems from the Modern Warfare franchise.
It is too early to tell exactly what in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War needs to be fixed. While there are several things fans want to see in Cold War’s multiplayer, there are just as many concerns to match. Without all the information, fans simply can not craft a full picture of the upcoming game and must rely on developer foresight to fix high-profile problems before the community has a chance to discover them.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is set to release on November 13th for PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. PS5 version is also in development.
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