Call of Duty: Ghosts Reviews
Ghosts is by no means the most creative or flawless game in this series, but it nails its core competency better than any Call of Duty before it. The immediate, uncluttered return of a successful shot paired with the rubric of near-future warfare and an inviting warehouse of unlockables still commands the attention of millions of gamers worldwide. The tightly-balanced nuance of competitive online play and its endless variables continue to draw attention, even devotion. Ghosts is my biggest supporter when I play Ghosts, and that feeling is mostly, though not entirely, mutual.
But there is plenty of it, and it is delivered to a high standard and it is fun to play. And this should really be the yardstick, right? If you think it should be changing and improving in new ways then you know what to do, but for now you will get more of that CoD formula that the world craves so much. Activision have a billion dollars on day one that says they know what they are doing.
Call of Duty: Ghosts is a safe and familiar entry in the franchise that won't win any new fans with derivative design
Ghosts, in and of itself, is a fine game. It ticks all the boxes and then blows the boxes up in glorious 1080p resolution (on PS4 at least). Those who only ever play COD will be more than happy with it, but those who have grown weary of the series will see more of their ambivalence justified this time around. Infinity Ward had a chance here to throw down the gauntlet for the next hardware generation, to set the new standard, to show that this hugely popular, much derided behemoth can dance to a different tune. It's chosen to play a Greatest Hits package instead.
This is a series that once redefined first-person shooters with the seminal Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, but Ghosts has little interest in change. If you're looking for more of the same you'll get it, but not much else.
Diminishing with every return, Ghosts' addictive nature is tempered by over-familiarity.
Ghosts will disappoint those only in it for the singleplayer, although – Extinction aside – the multiplayer feels like just more of the same. Those who play online will still get their money's worth, but a proper evolution of the series' mechanics is now desperately needed.
Though not the AAA blockbuster that it once was, Call of Duty: Ghosts is saved by a robust and extensive online offering, one in which players will find endless hours of fun.
For the first time in years, a Call of Duty game actually feels like it's more of the same. Infinity Ward's additions to the formula don't always hit the desired mark, and the single-player is a spectacular disaster. The franchise has been derided in the past for its repetitiveness and lack of innovation, but Ghosts is the first entry that lives down to that reputation. Where once Infinity Ward forged ahead with new ideas and bold narrative execution, Ghosts walks down a path we've been down countless times before.
As someone that doesn't spend an exorbitant amount of time in Call of Duty multiplayer, Ghosts feels like a weekend rental at best. If you are one of the millions that play the multiplayer daily, Ghosts provides plenty of entertainment in the alien based Extinction mode and the new Squads mode. The rest of the multiplayer plays like Call of Duty, fans of the multiplayer will know exactly what I mean. I do have my concerns as specific existing game modes are missing, but the inclusion of dedicated servers should alleviate most of the issues with lag.
Call of Duty defined the first-person shooter genre and while Ghosts doesn't take the next step forward, it's at least on par with what we've already played.
Enjoyable but highly flawed. Replace South Americans with Russians and it's every other entry in the series. Call of Duty Ghosts won't win over new fans, but neither will it loose the faithful. Parody runs high, but I doubt my words will sway you either way: you know if you're going to buy this piece of software, regardless of any review.
Call of Duty: Ghosts does not tamper with the formula, fans will receive what they expect yet, with the world moving on to the next generation of consoles, many could perhaps be wanting more and Call of Duty: Ghosts is too formulaic to offer this. It is a victim of its own institution in a world that is quickly moving forwards.
All in all, Call of Duty is exactly what it has been before. Multiplayer is still twitchy, frustrating when things are going bad and glorious when on a run. The single player is kind of an afterthought but an interesting experience. The overall experience is going to be centered around whether or not you like the changes that have been made. It is worth noting that the PC version has known to have problems with frame rate and optimization even some of the heavy hitting rigs around.
This might not be the most interesting experience in the franchise, but at least, it once again, offers an impressive multiplayer offering for the Wii U.
I personally thought that this the worst Call Of Duty since it's popularity explosion with Call Of Duty 4. Although I feel "worst" is a harsh word to use because the game isn't horrible, the multiplayer will still be loved by many, many fans because it doesn't change how addictive it can be for players but fans looking for a real change may have to wait a little while longer.
Enough time, energy and money has been spent on creating Ghosts that it's still a decent game in its own right, but eight games on from COD4, this series seriously needs a revolution to get it back on track as the FPS king.
The shortform point in all of this is "if you love Call of Duty, you'll find some value here, but not nearly as bolstered as it ought to be at this point", if you're on the fence though, it's a hard stretch for me to recommend this fully.
The campaign is exciting but only passively entertaining, and the multiplayer tweaks the knobs of established Call of Duty games to little effect.
Call of Duty Ghosts fires some rounds, hits the target, just not a bullseye