Call of Duty MWIII (2023)

Have they got HC TDM in from the start this game? And has anyone tried the MP yet and have any impressions?

Finished it tonight. Short but sweet I’d say. And possibly cheap and cheerful.

Definitely made on a budget and yes I now think it’s scaled up DLC. Approximately half of the game is based around Warzone maps and mechanics. That said, all but the first were actually totally enjoyable, if lacking some of the scripted thrills.

Lengthwise there are 15 missions I think. Around half of them seem to be the Warzone thing. And there’s a couple of very short story based missions that are more like interludes.

If you want to maintain stealth and uncover the map and goodies these Warzone missions can spin extra value as you can make them as long as you want.

But yeah, I can see that some of the Reddit criticisms are founded on truth but if you don’t have fun playing it you probably never were going to. I do think there is this phenomenon online where the hate is contagious and becomes subjective and hysterical.

That said there are some missions I think might be minor classics, along with a couple of misses again.

I think for one COD needs to get over the gunship/AC130 thing.

If there was an ‘effort’ category it would be fair but it plays better than that.

I’m trying to think of an equivalent. Maybe Ghosts or WW2. Will never be seen as one of the absolute classics but is maybe underrated and is absolutely really fun during.

IMO, the only ones to meet the standards of the classic Xbox360/PS3 era CODs are 2019, Cold War, and I absolutely put Infinite Warfare in there.

I'm still on the fence with this one.

I do love a COD, and played a lot of Cold War and MW2, especially for DMZ. Not played that much of the current season, as I've been playing Forza and EAFC24 instead.

With the likelihood of it being free in the new year with Game Pass, I can sit on this one, and then jump into Warzone/DMZ for a COD fix until then.

I look forward to playing it on game pass

Cold War was matched only by Infinite Warfare for being immersive in the story stuff IMO. Horses/courses I guess.

I think the hate for this new campaign is people noting the lower effort feel of much of it. I do feel that’s actually really valid, but as you say you’ve essentially got a few big chunks of Ghost Recon in there which have their own kind of fun.

A lot of people are getting bugged that there is very little ‘battle’ stuff anymore. When you think of the original MW3 for instance, you had that whole giant battle with the tanks going through the parking lot and stuff. The invasion in MW2 with Burgertown and stuff.

Can confirm PlayStation controllers are always gash.

Apparently you can't play MW2 until you dl that update which is essentially MW3.

The campaign reviews are brutal atm. 1 of 11 reviews have scored it over 5 out of 10. The only positivity I’ve seen or heard for it so far is from the two people here.

There are scattered ‘mild positives’ through Reddit replies I’ve seen. Reports coming out that Acti did an Alien 3 to Sledgehammer, again.

Been on MP for an hour today. Mixed feelings.

Positives:

Feels great, looks good.
MW2 weapons carry over with their levelling intact.
Most of all, there are some CLASSIC maps that are a sheer nostalgia joy fest to play, and to boot show how dull and boring some modern maps are by contrast.

Negatives:
MW2 weapons carry over. Yes I’m putting this as pro and con. It feels really lazy that there is so much recycled content. I want a simple menu at the start with most stuff locked and clear paths and gains to progression. There’s that much bloat and ported content there is actually a filter option between stuff from the two games!

Kill streaks. There may be one or two new. There should be more new stuff here including a showstopper or two. This is basic new COD! Again, recycling of assets.

Unlocks and UI - clear as mud. I still think some MW2 weapons are possibly locked behind Battlepass. There’s also some sort of mechanic where stuff is unlocked through daily challenges AFTER reaching Level 55 I think. GTFO Acti, I paid my money, I have to do adult stuff too, let me play when I want.

A prevalence of cosmetic bulls**t. I always played CoD to play a casual war game. I don’t want to see purple weapons. I don’t want to see shiny shimmering silver suits. I don’t want to see people disappearing into plasma clouds when shot by lasers from an AK. I certainly don’t want to see f*cking Groot. Needs to have the Forza style option where you can turn off everybody’s visual customisation.

I just had a vague recollection of buying this when I got back from the pub last night.

And, yes. Yes I did.

I haven’t bought a CoD in years. Why did I decide this universally panned version was the one to drunkenly go for..?

The leveling of weapons carrying over is annoying. I'm happy that it resets each game and I have to level up again.

Some proper gaslighting right there.