Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War released on November 13th, 2020, coming packed in with a tight single-player campaign. Given the incredible critical and commercial success of last year’s Modern Warfare reboot, fans are already comparing this year’s Call of Duty to it, weighing whether or not it stacks up to Infinity Ward’s game.
Speaking solely about the campaign, Black Ops Cold War has a lot of of unique advantages, but some elements of the story mode do not stack up to the contemporary narrative and levels offered by Modern Warfare. At the end of the day, however, they are both great campaigns.
10 Better: Side Missions
In several ways, Black Ops Cold War resembles Black Ops II in many ways. The game offers several side missions which the player can completely ignore. While optional, it is highly recommended every player do these side quests. Modern Warfare, on the other hand, takes the player from level to level with no room for bonus missions. Only two optional missions exist in Black Ops Cold War, however.
9 Worse: Shorter
No one expects a campaign on par with The Last of Us Part II or a Metal Gear Solid game when starting up the story mode of a Call of Duty title. Even considering this, Black Ops Cold War’s campaign is particularly short. It helps that each level progresses the story and lacks filler, but a few more missions would have been appreciated. Modern Warfare edges it out in terms length by about two hours.
8 Better: Branching Paths
In addition to side missions, the main levels include numerous bonus objectives and multiple decisions. These have some pretty big impacts on the later parts of the same level, encouraging multiple playthroughs. It is cool to see what changes come with different choices and what remains the same. Most of other campaigns from the series are extremely linear, so seeing any sort of decision making is fun.
7 Worse: Slower-Paced
Compared to Modern Warfare, Black Ops Cold War is a little slower-paced, even though the overall campaign is shorter. Where last year’s game shuffles players from level to level all over the world following several different characters, the recent title generally sticks with one character, save for a few exceptions.
Additionally, a hub area gives the player some room to breath and speak to NPCs, not making every moment of gameplay about shooting people.
6 Better: Multiple Endings
It is worth playing through Modern Warfare several times simply because of how fun the missions are. Black Ops Cold War encourages multiple play throughs because of the multiple endings. Without spoiling too much, the endings are radically different, changing the last level entirely. One conclusion could obviously be considered worse than the other, but even the bad ending is fully fleshed out, and does not punish the player for doing it, even if it is morally questionable. Then again, the whole nature of Black Ops Cold War is based on moral ambiguity.
5 Worse: Fewer Locations
Modern Warfare’s story mode spans the globe from London to St. Petersburg and several locations in the Middle East. Black Ops Cold War: on the other hand, stays more focused on several areas within the Soviet Union. Players also go to Cuba and the United States, to shake things up. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but for those who want a larger variety of locations Modern Warfare takes the cake.
4 Better: Licensed Music
Licensed music always helps better immerse players in an atmosphere or setting. Black Ops Cold War mainly takes place in the early ’80s, with a flashback to 1968. Several popular songs are used to both help hype players up for the game and to help the time period feel more realistic.
Those who know the classic tunes like Billy Squier’s “The Stroke” or Steppenwolf’s “Magic Carpet Ride” will be extremely pleased to hear them ring out loud during missions.
3 Worse: Shooting Isn’t As Tight
Games take make than a year to make, so Black Ops Cold War was in development while Modern Warfare was still in the works. It also runs on a different engine, so the advancements made to shooting and movement are not included in the new game. It still plays well enough, and better than most other FPS games on the market, but Modern Warfare is extremely tight and quick.
2 Better: Is A Sequel And Not A Reboot
In some ways it was positive for Modern Warfare to reboot the franchise. It grounds the action and story after the original trilogy’s conclusion left the world in a drastically changed state. On the other hand, it is better for Black Ops Cold War to be a sequel to the original Black Ops than a reboot, since it gives players an opportunity to see their favorite characters again. Stories should always push forward instead of simply pressing the reset button. Look at long-running franchises like Resident Evil, which has seen significant changes in the gameplay, but always continues the narrative.
1 Worse: Graphics
Modern Warfare is one of the best looking FPS games out there. One less knowledgeable on the medium could be fooled into thinking it was a next-gen game. Oddly enough, Black Ops Cold War does not look quite as pristine, something especially weird considering its release on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. However, the game does have a slightly stylized look to it versus Modern Warfare’s extreme realism. It is not cartoony, but characters’ faces are slightly more exaggerated and the colors are brighter.
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