Call of Duty: Vanguard Reviews
Call of Duty: Vanguard continues the high standard set by 2019's Modern Warfare, providing a grounded, classic Call of Duty campaign, coupled with a deep multiplayer experience rich with progression and an inviting Zombies mode that welcomes all skill levels.
This culmination of all things Call Of Duty has resulted in something the entire series can look to, a blueprint on how to build a meaty and superb first person shooter experience.
Sledgehammer Games clearly had high ambitions when approaching their third solo Call of Duty project.
Vanguard is an overall solid pick with a lackluster campaign, a nascent but incredibly promising zombies experience, and multiplayer with a few critical new aspects.
Call of Duty: Vanguard is a balanced game across the vectors of historical interest, good gameplay, variety, and a strong narrative. It ties everything together in a competent way that makes sense. That doesn’t mean it’s a spectacular game on the order of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, which was a breakthrough game for the franchise because of its thoughtfulness and disturbing material.
Vanguard doesn’t stray too far away from the classic Call of Duty formula we have come to expect from the franchise over the past several years. In many ways, it’s a little more of the same. That said, Call of Duty: Vanguard is an incredibly robust package offering up tons of content for the buck. Zombies mode is far more enjoyable and varied, the single-player campaign is a visual stunner, and 20 MP maps at launch is nothing to sneeze at. If you have passed over Call of Duty over the last several years, it might be time to come back.
Tweaks in multiplayer and Zombies advance the Call of Duty franchise overall, and an emphasis on distinct characters makes Vanguard's story fun, but it doesn't always mix well with the series' gameplay.
Opting for pulp fantasy over Spielbergian reverence for the era, Vanguard reinvigorates the World War II setting and charts a new path forward.
Vanguard won't join the pantheon of Call of Duty games, but it's a decent stop-gap for those waiting for Modern Warfare's return.
As a complete package, from a Call of Duty developer that hasn't yet established its own Modern Warfare or Black Ops sub-franchise, Vanguard feels like it could end up being Sledgehammer's tentpole. Iconic characters, unique multiplayer and map design, and overall integration into the wider Call of Duty experience set the pace for not only the next year, but whatever comes next from Sledgehammer.
Call of Duty Vanguard isn't the part of the revolution, but clearly does the job, offering a title that will hold up for the year ahead.
Review in French | Read full review
Even failing at "showing World Wart Two like never before", Call of Duty Vanguard is a great FPS. Campaign is full of epic (and some dramatic) moments, multiplayer is fun and fast, and includes 16 maps (twice as the previous Call of Duty game) with plenty of modes and progression elements, and the new zombies mode is incredibly fun.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
All in all, Call of Duty: Vanguard is a solid yet unremarkable entry into the long-running franchise. On a technical level, it's one of the most impressive games out there right now. On a gameplay level, it's nothing you haven't seen before.
Call of Duty: Vanguard offers us a mix of interesting stories, very fun group play phases and much-welcomed zombie innovations, already an experience not to be missed for fans of the series and first-perspective shooting games.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
If gaming industry was a family reunion, Rockstar would be unbearable neoliberal patriarch. Hideo Kojima would go as a pretentious cousin with film school diploma and degree in philosophy. „Call of Duty: Vanguard” on the other hand would be a heavy-drinking, wisecracking, jovial uncle who reminisces good ol’ war times, tells dad jokes and eventually makes a flatus ignition show with his zippo. It’s good to talk about virtues of art and have strong pacifistic beliefs. But parties without uncle are just boring.
Review in Polish | Read full review
At launch, Call of Duty Vanguard feels like a solid step-up from Black Ops Cold War, but falls short of the benchmark that was Modern Warfare 2019.
The latest Call of Duty: Vanguard is a correct shooter in single and a replay of entertainment in multi. It does not surprise either on the plus or on the minus, which makes it a slightly pale, easy to forget scene.
Review in Polish | Read full review
But does it sound like the next great “Call of Duty” title? That question is a lot like asking about the latest version of the iPhone. The early signs are promising, but the answer to that question really depends on whether the carnival rides that the game offers continue to be entertaining weeks or months from now. However, if you’re looking for what “Call of Duty” offers at its core — big explosions and endless hours of multiplayer — this first experience shows “Vanguard” is off to a strong start.
Call of Duty Vanguard's highly polished campaign provides a healthy amount of fun, even if its brief length and lack of variety lead it to fall short of the classic pieces of war cinema it's trying to emulate.
Having spent several hours playing all three modes, I can safely say that it's definitely worth buying, specifically for the multiplayer which is surprisingly good for a change.