Since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, the series has become something of a virtual sports title. Each year, we get a new campaign, new maps, some tweaks to the progression system and a couple new game modes. And each year gamers across the world eat it up.
The latest Call of Duty title, Ghosts, feels very much like I’ve been there and done that before. So much of it feels like a safe retread, and that has effects on the overall quality of the game. Still, when it comes to fast paced first person shooters, there is none bigger than Call of Duty, and Ghosts is still fun at its core.
I enjoy Call of Duty, however I am not a good player. I sport anywhere from a 0.50 to a 0.75 kill/death ratio. I’ll have my moments of brilliance, getting a match here or there with a K/D over 1, but those matches are few and far between. As such I am often a detriment to my team, and being a detriment to your team (especially if you play with randoms on a regular basis) means your teammates hate you. When your teammates hate you, they hurl all sorts of insults at you, and it makes the game considerably less fun. Enter Squad Mode, an AI-based multiplayer mode that gives you the CoD Experience without the name calling. Here are three reasons why Squad Modes might be the best thing to happen to CoD since the original Modern Warfare.
True Simulated Multiplayer
Bot matches have been around first person shooters forever, and Squad mode in Ghosts is just a refinement of those old bot matches. The difference here is that the bots are outfitted and modeled based on you and other Squad Mode players. You outfit your team how you want by buying equipment from squad points and others do the same. When you chose Squad Assault, you play against an AI team set up by another player and take them on. What I’ve found, though, is that the AI isn’t dumb; they’ll pull the same tricks that real life players do, and my current experience after 70 matches of Squads is that I do slightly better against the AI, but I still suck. Still, no one is yelling at me telling me how much I suck, which makes for a more enjoyable experience.
Progression Counts
In the past, playing “offline” meant forfeiting your core progression. Forget that with Squad Mode, because Squad matches count. Playing in Squad Mode gives you XP that is applied to your squad members across both Squads and traditional multiplayer. The caveat here is that unlike in traditional multiplayer, XP in Squad Assault is capped at 1500XP. However, playing Squad mode and having your AI squad compete when you aren’t playing grants you time towards additional XP bonuses in the core multiplayer mode, making it worthwhile to play Squads but also enticing you to try your hand against real people.
The XCOM Effect
One of the coolest things about last year’s XCOM: Enemy Unknown was the ability to rename and redesign your team, giving you a feeling of attachment. Naming squad members after friends and family made losing them harder to handle but also made the game a ton more engaging. Squad Mode in Ghosts lets you do the same thing, and it makes the bot experience highly engaging. While the nature of Call of Duty doesn’t offer you the same level of emotional attachment associated with permadeath, there is nothing better than getting gunned down by a bot, only to see the bot of your buddy, son, daughter, what-have-you avenge your death. Likewise, competing against a friend’s squad and one-upping them in a match is exhilarating. Simply seeing my friends’ names on the screen gives the experience a more real sensation, and that makes the mode highly enjoyable.
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