Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War (hereafter Cold War) was not well-received because of its poor multiplayer setup, despite a great storyline and one of the funniest zombie modes of all time. It seemed to have collected the shortcomings of the Call of Duty series, such as a system and sound that were degenerate from previous works, and a monotonous map composition and high color difficulty.
Is that so? The Call of Duty: Vanguard (hereafter, Vanguard) multiplayer experience I experienced on the last 3 days was much closer to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (hereafter referred to as Modern Warfare) rather than Cold War. The freewheeling map composition and UI, as well as overall elements such as stamina and mini-map, seemed to have returned to Modern Warfare. Of course, detailed elements such as loading motion and sound showed an advanced look like the latest work.
Missing Health Bars and Returning Tactics Runs
Call of Duty: Vanguard takes place in World War II and the birth of a special forces unit. You will be able to engage in PvP using multiplayer special forces members, and you can enjoy 20 maps that reproduce the existing Western and Eastern fronts and African fronts as they are. Of these, 16 are mods previously found in Call of Duty, such as deathmatch, confirmed kill, capture the flag, and reconnaissance. In this test, I was able to experience this familiar multiplayer mode.
As mentioned above, the multiplayer in this work is closer to Modern Warfare than Cold War. Once the health bar disappeared, the health was reduced to 100. A decrease in stamina can be understood as blurring around the field of vision, and the decreased stamina returned to a gradually filling method over time. However, it was difficult to feel that the TTK (Time To Kill) was drastically reduced compared to Cold War. It is presumed that this is because the damage of guns has decreased in accordance with the historical background of World War II. As a result, TTK felt halfway between Cold War and Modern Warfare.
In addition, tactical running, door systems, and gun mounts that were missing from the previous work are back. These are motions that first appeared in Modern Warfare, but were boldly removed from Cold War because they complicated the game. However, many players thought that these movements were an important difference between the past series and the modern series, and it was eventually revived through this Vanguard. However, since there was no underwater battle in this test, it was not possible to confirm whether the swimming motion in Cold War was inherited.
The minimap system has also been changed to be the same as in Modern Warfare. In Cold War, as in the Call of Duty series in the past, when a gunshot was heard, the location was accurately displayed on the minimap, so a silencer attachment was essential, and beginners who did not know this did nothing and were often killed by an enemy that suddenly appeared. However, in Vanguard, the location of the enemy does not appear on the minimap unless team members directly check it with their own eyes, and even if a silencer is installed, the location where the sound is generated spreads like a sound wave. A directional indicator is also returned to pinpoint the player’s location.
The map composition has also been changed more freely from the traditional 3-lane map design of Call of Duty. In the case of maintaining the 3-lane system, a separate 2nd floor is provided to make a total of 6 lanes, or in the map where you can enjoy the occupation mode, you can install several buildings and entrances to fight and run around. Overall, the tempo of the game was maintained, but it felt like a large-scale battle was prepared and various routes were additionally prepared.
Fire a bullet at a penetrable wall first.
There were many characteristics unique to Vanguard. Once in battle, most of the thin walls that can penetrate bullets can be broken or penetrated directly. It also has to do with the door system. Most of the doors that can be opened and closed by the player in the game can be penetrated or broken directly into the game. The iron rule of special warfare, ‘If you stand in front of the door, you die’ is being followed to some extent. Players also need to be aware of this and take tactical actions, such as closing open doors on purpose, in order to win.
In addition, the reloading motion and sound are much more realistic. In particular, in the case of the reloading motion, the reloading time varies greatly depending on the gun or magazine, and the division action is thoroughly followed so that it can be regarded as a textbook. As for the sound, it’s not as loud as the old guns, but it’s much more sophisticated and neat.
On the other hand, the level required to acquire a new weapon or gun attachment is higher. Basically, in order to attach all attachments to optics, anti-flame, silencer, stock, handle, and magazine, you must be well above weapon level 10. Even this requires a level of over 60 to equip a useful attachment. The item unlock level is also on the higher side compared to previous works. In fact, it is a little strange considering that it was criticized for the high level required for attachments in Cold War.
The type of kill streak has been greatly modified to suit the times. Intelligence and bombing are still there, but predators and drones have disappeared. Instead, the training dog, which appeared occasionally in the past series, appears as the best kill streak, boasting incredible power. As it is not a score streak like its predecessor, it requires more careful use. Special abilities include armor that tracks down enemies or increases stamina, and a mini-tank that can self-destruct. The number of perks has been greatly reduced to 12, but it is highly likely that the number will increase significantly in the actual release stage.
The final result is on the 5th of November.
In summary, the overall concept of multiplayer in this work was focused on Modern Warfare rather than Cold War. If you think about it, Modern Warfare’s multiplayer was rated a bit unfavorable in the early days of Call of Duty, but as a result, the general consensus was that it succeeded in making a difference from its predecessors. There were many. This is proof that many users have already become familiar with Modern Warfare’s colorful system, and this Vanguard is also understood to have borrowed that system a lot.
Of course, since it is only in the testing stage, it may be seen as a completely new game rather than Modern Warfare in the actual release stage. In mods like Champions Hill, you might find Vanguard’s own system. This part will be confirmed with the official release on November 5th.
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