Ghosts – NoobTubeTV

Call of Duty Advanced Warfare Vs. Battlefield Hardline – Is The Battle Over Before It Begins?

Over the past couple years I have been eager to buy-in when it came to Battlefield over Call of Duty.

That has changed.

Say what you want about hating Call of Duty, but this rendering of Kevin Spacey alone made me want to buy the game months ago.

Now that Call of Duty has started to go in a direction that looks closer to Halo multiplayer gameplay than ever I have to give credit where credit is due. They are at least going in a slightly different direction. They have continued to tweak the perk system and showcase the same solid gameplay – albeit arcade(ish). Is there bullet-drop? No. Then again, there aren’t many maps in the history of Call of Duty that would really need to account for that type of simulation. Then again, you should know that going into the annual release of this title.

If you consider the fact that Call of Duty has been able to consistently deliver a blockbuster movie quality story mode since the release of COD4 in 2007 – there aren’t many shooter games that compare. Advanced Warfare looks like it will continue this amazing success with the inclusion of Kevin Spacey as the primary antagonist. As much as I wanted to hate on this game after the disappointment that was Ghosts, I have to admit – Advanced Warfare has made me a believer.

On the other hand, Battlefield Hardline has lost me. I have been a huge fan of Battlefield since Bad Company 2 (especially the Vietnam Map Pack). Battlefield 3 and 4 had me rather addicted to solid relative simulation gameplay (it really isn’t much different from Call of Duty if you are honest with yourself). The problem with Battlefield is that it has become progressively worse in terms of single player campaign and server issues (especially at release).

What are the issues with Hardline?

First – they are trying to make this game feel like Rainbow 6 or Counterstrike. The problem with that is that it is a game called BATTLEFIELD… not Battlezone or Battlebuilding.

Second – The idea that plastering the monicker of ‘Battlefield’ onto this game in order sell units is insulting – albeit, probably true.

Be honest – if this were called Medal of Honor – Hardline would you (or anyone else) buy it? Hell no.

EA has pushed the Battlefield series to become more and more focused on online multiplayer rather than single player and that is fine and good. However, we are now going into our third iteration of a Battlefield title that doesn’t pick up on the intriguing story of the guys in Bad Company. You have to start wondering if Hardline is going to be another throw-away title like Medal of Honor – Advanced Warfighter.

The problem with that is they are now connecting the ‘Battlefield’ name with presumed failure – and that could spell the end for whatever they gained from a terrible year for Call of Duty with Ghosts in 2013/14.

I have bought in when it comes to Call of Duty Advanced Warfare. So much so that I traded in Destiny towards the pre-order (that is a different discussion altogether). Mark my words – Call of Duty Advanced Warfare is going to dominate FPS sales this fall and you are getting ready to see the fall of Battlefield as a respectable series. I don’t wish COD to fall on it’s face, but I do wish Battlefield would actually return to the Bad Company storyline rather than another half-assed Medal of Honor game masquerading as a Battlefield title.

How Call of Duty and Battlefield Have Turned Off FPS Gamers

Over the last generation of console gaming we have seen a dramatic increase in online gaming. The primary gain in this user-base has been in first person shooter (FPS) games like Call of Duty, Halo and Battlefield. Call of Duty 4 seemed to fill a void for gamers that weren’t fans of Halo. They wanted a shooter that was military based with more customization and depth in the online arena. What COD4 brought to the table was a game that still ranks among my personal favorites in the series, surpassed only by Modern Warfare 2.

The biggest issue that started the downfall of Call of Duty was the annual release to the lemmings that can’t seem to get rid of their money fast enough. Call of Duty has become the Madden of shooter games. The one thing you are guaranteed with the annual online experience is the large population of gamers screaming obscenities in your ears. While that isn’t the primary downside, it is one of the more common complaints when it comes to online gaming. (This is even with the ability to mute players… it shouldn’t have to be an issue but it is often on the edge of infuriating to have to deal with such nonsense.)

After the relative annoying of gamers you are going to start seeing where Call of Duty is really starting to fall off. It is actually in the repetitive nature of the game and how predictable every round will unfold. Team Deathmatch is what it has always been – a hunt for the perfect camping spot or some sort of search for a bottleneck. Domination is still the wonderful spawn-camping disaster it has always been. Now there are numerous clans that seem to stalk the public lobbies and destroy players that are trying to enjoy some casual gaming. It has become a self-destructive game in how it is constantly building itself to be dominated by people that dedicate obscene amounts of time to leveling up and figuring out every nuance to making the casual gamers rage quit and sell their games on eBay or even trade it for pennies at GameStop.

This isn’t to say that there aren’t talented gamers out there in every genre. However, it seems that FPS games are starting to try and copy many aspects of Call of Duty because of the monetary success the game has seen every year since COD4 was released. This isn’t a good thing for gamers that would like to have something that feels and plays different from COD titles. Battlefield was once that bastion of hope that FPS fans could look to when thinking about the shortcomings of Call of Duty. The problem is that with maps like Operation Metro (BF3) and Operation Locker (BF4) it seems as if EA/DICE is trying to emulate Call of Duty in death-fests that are less tactical and more deathmatch-like. While these are relatively small segments of the map population it is discouraging to feel like you can’t escape this apparent necessity of slaughterhouse maps in a game that many purchase as an escape from that.

We have been fortunate to see many gains made in graphics and even physics (at times). However, the common devolution of
almost every game ends up turning the shooter game into some sort of Call of Duty-esque bloodbath of reflex/twitch-based shooting. It starting to become wash, rinse, repeat with shooter games – especially online shooter games.

Where do you stand? Are you ready to move on from FPS online gaming… or maybe from FPS gaming altogether?

Battlefield 4 – Choosing Your Class

It is that time of year again; when the first person shooters (FPS) games come out of the woodwork just in time for you to add them to your Christmas list or kill people while eating Halloween candy and drinking energy drinks. Maybe it is now a Thanksgiving tradition at this point for some people to chase killstreaks over left-over turkey and stuffing when Turkey Day rolls around.

Either way you slice it, it is time to play some Battlefield 4 this weekend before Call of Duty Ghosts tries to take your attention on November 5. The best part about Battlefield is that you get to assume the role of a class rather than simply choosing weapons in Call of Duty. Sure, COD has its own twist on this, but right now the focus is on BF4.

Assault – This isn’t just some wimpy ‘Medic Class’. You have the power to revive teammates if they are downed in the field, sure. You also start out with the ability to throw first-aid packs to bring up the health of yourself or teammates if they are getting hti by enemy fire. However, you are also equipped with a slew of weapons that can kick some ass in the process. Don’t think that the ability to revive teammates is your specialty, you can also have (by default, I might add) a grenade launcher as a secondary weapon instead of a defibrillator. Depending on the map and your play-style – this might be one of the most popular classes early in the BF4 play-cycle.

Engineer – This class isn’t just some sort of ‘Repair Man’ ability for teams that use vehicles. You are also in the business of destroying tanks, shooting down helicopters and sure, on occasion – fixing your team’s vehicles. The nice part about this class is that you get to build up from having a simple rocket launcher to do damage to enemy vehicles to having laser guided rockets and even the often overlooked anti-tank mines.

Support – One of the classes that is most useful if you are in a squad that communicates. The support class is best used with an engineer when trying to deal with enemy vehicles such as helicopters, jets and tanks. Why? Simply put, it is easy for an engineer to run out of ammo (rockets, etc) to deal with vehicles. However, if you are there as a support class you can re-up their arsenal and use any number of weapons to light up the enemies as they run for cover. You start out with a heavy machine gun but eventually you will have the ability and choice to switch it up to something lighter. All that said, this is the ultimate ‘team first, victory first’ class.

Recon – The most misunderstood class in Battlefield. This is NOT a Call of Duty ‘quick scoping’ class. This is a class designed around providing an eye from a distance and letting your teammates know where there are enemies and other important factors on the battlefield. This doesn’t mean that you can’t kill enemies, it just means that you shouldn’t expect to end up with 30 kills every match if you are actually being a ‘recon’ class. The nice change from Battlefield 3 is that this class isn’t without protection from heavy enemy vehicles. You actually start with C4 as an auxiliary weapon that you can place on or around enemy vehicles to destroy or disable them. Also, keep in mind that there is ‘bullet-drop’ and ‘gravity’ in Battlefield… this means that you have to aim above the head of an enemy if they are far away and you are trying to snipe them from a distance.

There will be much more to come in NoobTubeTV’s coverage of Battlefield 4. Stay tuned to our YouTube Channel as well.

Happy Hunting

Call of Duty: Ghosts Live Feed

It is a Call of Duty game. You know what to expect.

Call of Duty Ghosts – Coming November 5, 2013

Remember, remember the fifth of November

It’s COD season is it not?

I can think of no reason why COD season should ever be forgot.

You can start pre-ordering Call of Duty: Ghosts soon

Are you excited by the news of a new name for the Call of Duty series or are you convinced that it is merely a first person shooter version of Madden NFL?