Highlights
- Sledgehammer Games, the developer of Call of Duty: WW2, has had a rocky history with the franchise, with previous titles receiving mixed receptions.
- Despite being one of the most disappointing games in the Call of Duty series, Call of Duty: WW2 still had top-tier audio design and graphics. It also had an interesting game mode that focused on objective play and storytelling called War.
- War making a return in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is hugely exciting, as it is set to feature in a multiplayer experience that already seems more popular, though the mode may face challenges with just one map at launch.
Arguably, the Call of Duty franchise has never actually had a truly bad game before. While it's definitely had some very disappointing entries, even at its very worst, every Call of Duty entry still feels pretty good in the mechanics department, and its presentation is usually some of the best in the AAA industry, at least at the time of their original release. Call of Duty: WW2 is a perfect example of this, with it being one of the most disappointing games in the entire franchise, but it still has excellent moment-to-moment gameplay and some top-tier audio design and graphics.
Sledgehammer Games has not had the best of luck when it comes to the Call of Duty franchise. Since as a bit of a black sheep among Infinity Ward and Treyarch, Sledgehammer Games began working on the franchise all the way back in 2011, assisting Infinity Ward with the original Modern Warfare 3. Soon after, Sledgehammer was granted its own game, and while fans remember Advanced Warfare fondly now, that wasn't quite the case upon its initial release. Then Call of Duty: WW2 had a similar reception, as did the more recent Vanguard. That being said, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 looks much more promising, and in a better position, it seems as though Sledgehammer is trying to redeem its past, with a long-forgotten WW2 game mode called War up first.
Call of Duty: WW2's War Mode Gets Another Shot in Modern Warfare 3
As alluded to up top, Call of Duty: WW2 didn't quite hit the mark upon its initial release back in 2017. While its Metacritic is sitting at a fairly healthy 79 for its PS4 version and 80 for its Xbox One port, Call of Duty: WW2 is largely remembered for its very troubled launch, which saw many early adopters unable to even get in an online match due to server issues. On top of that, WW2 had some pretty egregious loot boxes, and that caused a pretty big stir back in the day. But Call of Duty: WW2 wasn't all bad, and those who could look past its pretty infamous issues actually found a lot to enjoy.
The first game in the franchise to venture back to the past setting since World at War, Call of Duty: WW2 was heralded by many as a sort of return to form for the series, coming hot off the heels of the futuristic Infinite Warfare, which itself was the third title in a long line of exosuit-dominated entries that began with Advanced Warfare back in 2014. Call of Duty: WW2 was also viewed as quite a bold new entry for the franchise, with Sledgehammer not being too afraid to take some risks and add in a few new modes, one of which became a real fan-favorite.
Simply titled "War," this Call of Duty: WW2 multiplayer mode saw two teams of six battle it out in a more narrative-led competitive match. Taking inspiration from bigger game modes in titles like Battlefield, War had one team play as the attackers, and one team act as the defenders. The goal of the attackers was to keep advancing, completing various unique objectives along the way like setting up mounted turrets, planting explosives, and capturing strongholds. Call of Duty: WW2 had three of these War maps on launch, each of which came with its own set of unique objectives.
Call of Duty: WW2's War mode ended up being one of the best additions in the game, and thankfully, it's making its triumphant return in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. However, Sledgehammer doesn't seem to be fully confident of the mode. Launching with just one map, it seems as though Sledgehammer is testing the waters before it leans into the unique mode more, and while that's completely understandable, with it presumably requiring a lot of effort to create a map for just one mode, it might end up ironically dooming the mode in the process, with players likely getting bored with it quickly if there's just one map available.
Call of Duty: WW2 is available now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
