-New Game, New Ideas

While Call of Duty 4 laid a great foundation, future games added their own flair to further increase the addictive nature of the series.

 

World at War started the Zombie craze for the Call of Duty franchise. This was a huge feature that the player base would accept with open arms. This survival mode became a major selling point for the title become almost as popular as the competitive multiplayer.

 

Modern Warfare 2’s addition might be the most important. For the first time, players were given a choice of what three Killstreaks to use. Gone were the days of being forced to use the 3-5-7 set of old. This added a whole new dimension to the already deep customization the game offered. Modern Warfare 2 also was the first game to offer incentive to enter Prestige Mode other than redo everything you’ve done. Players start with 5 slots for their Custom Class, but, from Modern Warfare 2 on, you received extra Custom Classes every other Prestige. Yet another reward the game offers.

 

Black Ops continued to introduce many new concepts. In an attempt to reduce the grind of unlocking weapon attachments, Treyarch introduced a monetary system to the standard level progression. COD Points was essentially Call of Duty money that was also awarded for getting kills, doing challenges, etc. and was used to buy weapons, attachments, etc. once you ranked up enough to have the item unlocked. COD Points were also a major factor in new game modes called “Wager Matches”. In four different game types, players could wager their COD Points to win big or loose it all. These game types added a whole new dimension to the addictive nature of the series. Not only do you get money for all your work in game, you can now gamble it out for an even bigger reward. This new level of high risk, high reward kept people playing. Player avatar customization made its debut in Black Ops as well. Players were able to use COD Points to buy face paint, weapon cameo, and emblems pieces to create your own emblem to show off in the player card as well as on your primary gun. Zombies also made a return with bigger and more complicated maps.

 

Last, but certainly not least, is Modern Warfare 3. Yet again attempting to reduce the grind of unlocking weapon attachments, Infinity Ward gave guns their own XP system separate to your player rank progression. Ranking up your gun to a certain level gave you cameos and attachments. Modern Warfare 3 expanded the Prestige System by giving players a Prestige Token after every Prestige. These tokens could be used for a variety of different rewards like 2 hours of Double XP, extra custom classes, exclusive titles and emblems, unlocking gear early, and more. This gave players even more of an incentive to reset themselves and rank up all over again. One of the token options is unlocked at the 10th and final Prestige rank allowing you to go all the way back to Rank 1 Prestige 0 as well as resetting every stat you have. It was the ultimate solution to those that want the rank up incentive at all times to play. Modern Warfare 3 also split up Killstreaks into three different types: Assault, Support, and Specialist. Assault catered to those looking for tons of kills with Killstreaks that focused on getting more kills. Support offered Killstreaks that helped the team in different ways. Specialist rewarded players with extra perks the more kills they got. Each set offered new ways for players to customize their class to cater to their play style. With the success of the Zombie mode, Infinity Ward offered their own take on survival mode as well. Instead of Zombies, players would go up against enemies with guns and air support.

 

The Call of Duty series has taken control of the entertainment industry. Infinity Ward and Treyarch have found and expanded upon a format that is extremely addictive. A format that rewards players for what they do adding a true sense of satisfaction. A format that gives the player tons of control. They have created a format that people cannot get enough of. That people come back for more of every day, and every year with a new release.  There are even factors outside of the actual games that contribute to the success like marketing campaigns with celeberties, Call of Duty Elite, the YouTube community, and so much more.  Call of Duty shows no signs of slowing down because of its fantastic formula that millions of people identify with. It is going to be a long time before this behemoth can be stopped and someone can find another winning formula.