The highly anticipated release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has left fans disappointed and frustrated. Critics are calling it the worst Call of Duty campaign to date, with many claiming that the multiplayer experience is essentially the same as its predecessor, Modern Warfare 2.
Campaign Gets Thumbs Down
Players are expressing their dissatisfaction with the single-player campaign, labeling it as one of the worst in the series. The game has received "Mixed" reviews on Steam, with less than 60% of players recommending it. One player even went as far as saying, "Game adds less than 20 new guns, reuses all the old MW2 assets, and looks the same. Waste of money. Campaign was garbage and zombies isn't even worth talking about."
Short Development Time to Blame
While it's easy to place the blame on the development team for these issues, it seems that the real problem lies higher up. According to a report by Bloomberg, developers were given a mere 16 months to complete the new campaign, making it the shortest development time for a Call of Duty game in years. Typically, development on recent Call of Duty games spans around three years, with multiple teams working to maintain an annual release schedule.
Contrary to Activision Blizzard's official statement that Modern Warfare 3 was always intended to be a "premium game," some developers have come forward to share a different story. Over a dozen staff members have claimed that the purpose of the game was ambiguous, leaving them unsure whether it was meant to be an expansion or a sequel. Some even assert that they were explicitly told that Modern Warfare 3 was merely an expansion for Modern Warfare 2.
Inefficiency and Lack of Autonomy
In addition to the tight production time, developers have also revealed that they had to run most of their progress past Infinity Ward, another Call of Duty studio. This led to inefficiency and delays, as they often had to wait for feedback or make changes that they didn't believe were necessary.
Overall, the combination of a short development cycle, unclear direction, and limited autonomy seems to have resulted in the lackluster reception of Modern Warfare 3. Fans were expecting a groundbreaking addition to the franchise, but instead, they were left with a game that felt more like an expansion than a full-fledged sequel.
If you want to learn more about the game and our thoughts, be sure to check out our Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 review.
Written by Georgina Young on behalf of GLHF.
