Training Simulations: Call of Duty Advanced Warfare (Single Player) Review

By now you might be familiar with the new Call of Duty Advanced Warfare from all the advertisement and hype around its release. This is a new form of Call of Duty, specifically dealing with futuristic combat situations and the evolution of equipment that could be available in that future and headlined with the voice acting talents of Kevin Spacey. Activision themselves are also boasting that their new plan is to have one developer work on  a new Call of Duty title in three year cycles improving the quality of their games. If true to their word, it will only bring forth big things.  I can honestly say that this plan has succeeded with Call of Duty Advanced Warfare, for the most part that is.  The single player and multiplayer portions of this Call of Duty are so different in quality and production values that they deserve separate reviews.

For the single player campaign in Call of Duty Advanced Warfare, Sledgehammer games was passed the torch after their last foray into the Call of Duty series with Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3.  Sledgehammer games was responsible for picking up the pieces left behind from when then famed developer Infinity Ward imploded due to conflict between Infinity Ward heads and Activision Executives. In Call of Duty Advanced Warfare we are thrown directly into a military conflict where squads of soldiers rush forward to eliminate an enemy threat.  There are some exceptionally cool moments in the beginning sequences as well as glimpses into future tech like a literal swarm of robot drones that need to be dealt with.  Our soldiers are ill equipped to deal with the threats they face and although they are successful in completing the mission, it comes at a great cost.   Enter Kevin Spacey’s character, Jonathan Irons, with a solution.  Join Atlas Corporation, one of a new trend of privatized mercenary armies that are outpacing national militaries in technology and strength.

This wealth of new technology and gadgets provided by joining Atlas gives the player access to advanced exo suits, hover bikes, energy weapons, tactical grenades and even devices that let you see through walls, paint targets identifying them as threats, and eliminate them without endangering the squad or hostages in a firefight.  And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

Like all of the other installments of the Call of Duty series, Advanced Warfare plays the exact same way save for the introduction of the new player boosting exo suits.  The exo suits themselves are just one great example of technology we could have available in the near future.  With enhanced strength, stealth capabilities with active camouflage, a hyper mode that seems to slow down time while simultaneously speeding up your reflexes and actions, the exo suit makes every soldier a super hero.  You’ll play follow the leader, kill everything that is shooting at you from all directions and execute quick time events that lead the player through sweet cinematic action sequences. 

The downside to this is that it is easy to get caught in a quick time event loop.  With only a few seconds to push the correct pattern of buttons that is briefly flashed at you, you will be forced to repeat the same action segment until you get it correct.  And heaven forbid you get lost during a follow the leader segment or take the time to explore the excellently crafted environments to search for collectable items to get trophies or achievements.  Your commanding officer will yell at you relentlessly or the game will reset itself to the last checkpoint if you fail to follow orders appropriately. Other than the occasional bug or glitch that isn’t game breaking, Advanced Warfare is an excellent game experience.

The Call of Duty Advances Warfare single player campaign only gets better if you have managed to snag a new Playstation 4 or Xbox One system.  Sledgehammer games has spared no expense bringing this fast paced action first person shooter up to cinematic quality.  Gameplay truly looks as good as it does in the commercials and then some.  The fidelity and character detail in the game is so well done that it is hard to tell the difference between what is shot in live action and what is computer generated.  I will give you a hint though; nothing of the game was actually filmed.

Despite Kevin Spacey lending his acting talents, Call of Duty Advanced Warfare is more of a cinematic action movie than an emotionally charged drama.  The story falls a bit short as timing and pacing could have been a little better.  The same can be said about the replay value of the single player portion of the game itself.  The only other options to extend gameplay in Call of Duty Advanced Warfare are increased difficulty levels and an extended exo suit survival mode.  The ever popular zombie mode that was announced won’t see the light of day until the first batch of downloadable content is released and that means you will have to fork over an additional fifteen dollars just to get access to it.

THE BOTTOM LINE:

Call of Duty Advanced Warfare single player is a great game overall.  High production values, stunning visuals, and advancement in the series is hard to pull off but Sledgehammer games has succeeded.  The game only really falls short on replay value with the distinct lack of the ever popular zombie mode but will be available with the first batch of downloadable content.  The online multiplayer portion of the game is a completely different beast and thusly is being given its own review.

Game rating (4.4) [Great] Game type 🙁 First Person Shooter) Game System :(PS3, Xbox 360, PS4, PC, Xbox One) By: (Activision) Developed By: (Sledgehammer Games)

Game Score System: Overall Total Value: (Trash) =0-1.74 (Meh) =1.75-2.49 (Average) =2.5-3.49 (Great) =3.5-4.49 (Outstanding) =4.5+

Rating Suggestions:

(Trash): Don’t bother with any form of purchase. This product isn’t worth the effort to purchase it.

(Meh): Not at all impressive. This product isn’t something that should be recommended for most people to enjoy. Flawed or incomplete.

(Average): An average score this product does what it is intended to do and will be worth at least a rent if you are interested in it. A solid item that will be enjoyed if gotten for the right price, usually cheap.

(Great): This product is highly recommended. It is well worth the investment if you are interested in it. You will not be disappointed in a purchase of this item.

(Outstanding): You needed to own two of this product yesterday. Superior quality, going beyond what it was intended to do.

-Nate Biller