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Call of Duty Elite Trailer is Like a Simile Wrapped in a Metaphor
Call of Duty Elite beta began a “staged launch” today and to kick it off, Activision unloaded this two minute trailer that spends one minute cracking jokes and another minute answering questions except for the biggie: How much is this damn thing going to cost? For now, it’s free; for now, it’s in beta. You…
By Owen Good Published July 14, 2011 -
Get Your Call of Duty Convention Tickets July 19
Tickets for Activision’s paintball-playing, Modern Warfare 3-sampling, fundraiser celebration of all things Call of Duty go on sale July 19, at 10 a.m. Tickets for the two-day event will sell for $150 with 100 percent of the proceeds going to the Call of Duty Endowment, a non-profit that helps returning veterans find employment. The Sept.…
By Brian Crecente Published July 14, 2011 -
Two Million People Signed Up to Test a Call of Duty Community Feature
The beta test for Call of Duty Elite kicks off tomorrow, with invitations to be sent out to those selected for the the first run. Does that mean you? Maybe. Depends if you signed up to test something that’s not even a game! The first emails for successful applicants (of which there were around two…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 14, 2011 -
Death Is the Perfect Time for In-Game Advertising
Dying in a video game pisses people off. In-games advertising pisses people off. Independent free-to-play browser-based online game developer Artix figures it might as well kill two angry birds with one annoying stone, merging death with in-game ads. Isn’t it just perfect? In-game advertising is a way for game developers to recoup a little of…
By Mike Fahey Published July 5, 2011 -
When Call of Duty’s Creators Left, They Took a LOT of People With Them
Last year, Vince Zampella and Jason West – heads of Infinity Ward and the creators of the Call of Duty franchise – abruptly resigned from the studio and formed a new company At the time, it became knowledge that a few of their former IW colleagues had joined them at their new studio, Respawn Entertainment.…
By Luke Plunkett Published July 1, 2011 -
Children Not Allowed at Call of Duty Fest
For those of you considering attendance at this fall’s 12-acre, $150-a-pop Call of Duty festival, but worried about an abundance of under-aged gamers spewing their obnoxious, curse-laden diatribes at you in person, don’t be. You have to be 18 or older to attend. Of course, that doesn’t stop obnoxious adults from showing up.
By Brian Crecente Published June 30, 2011 -
Real World Modern Warfare 2 Maps Highlight of Call of Duty Convention
This fall Call of Duty fans will be able to shoot up their friends in real-world, life-sized replicas of two of the game’s maps, grab a bite to eat at the game’s fictional burger joint and get their hands on Modern Warfare 3 months before its release as part of a video game convention designed…
By Brian Crecente Published June 30, 2011 -
Teen Who Tore Modern Warfare Mom a New One is Embarrassed and Sorry [Updated]
[Updated] Last night, the fury took over. The first time in three weeks he fired up the Xbox 360, and some little shit was griefing him in Modern Warfare 2. Hell, he normally plays Battlefield. As the two yelled at each other across Xbox Live, Cody, 17, heard the voice of his antagonist’s mother coming…
By Owen Good Published June 29, 2011 -
Video Games Make Lots of Money – But is That a Good Thing?
With juggernauts like the Call of Duty franchise set to make their annual sales record breaking splashes this fall, we don’t have to look far to be reminded that video games make heaps of money. However, SuperFLI wonders if this causes more harm than good to the industry as a whole. Have been thinking on…
By Joshua Rivera Published June 29, 2011 -
Aliens, Arcades, Pulsing Apples: These Are Call of Duty‘s Latest Multiplayer Maps
The Annihilation map pack for Call of Duty: Black Ops just hit the Xbox 360 bringing with it four new multiplayer maps and another zombie-killing cooperative adventure. Here’s a quick look at the multiplayer maps Drive-in, Hanger 18, Hazard and Silo. There’s some interesting little things in each of the maps. Hanger 18 seems to…
By Brian Crecente Published June 28, 2011 -
Annihilation Map Adds Five More Achievements to Black Ops
“Shangri-La” is the new zombies map in Call of Duty: Black Ops, and it is far from paradise, as that anthropomorphic s’more (above) will attest. Available in Annihilation, releasing next Tuesday for Xbox 360, it offers five more achievements worth a cool 150 Gamerscore. They are: • Time Travel Will Tell (75G)—In Shangri-La, acquire the…
By Owen Good Published June 23, 2011 -
Another Look at Call of Duty: Black Ops ‘Annihilation’ in Action
The third downloadable add-on for Call of Duty: Black Ops, “Annihilation,” hits next week (for Xbox 360, that is), bringing with it four new maps and one new zombie-slaughtering “experience.” Want to see? Watch that video. You’ll get a new peek at those maps—Hangar 18, set in a highly classified military base of Area 51;…
By Michael McWhertor Published June 22, 2011 -
What’s in the New Call of Duty: Black Ops Limited Edition Re-release?
The Call of Duty: Black Ops Limited Edition hits Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 next week at North American retailers, packing in one game and one token for “First Strike” downloadable content that originally hit in February. Cost? $59.99 USD.
By Michael McWhertor Published June 21, 2011 -
The Call of Duty Lawsuit Against Activision is Oscar Mike
The ongoing legal stoush between Activision and the creators of Call of Duty is set to hit the big time, with a California judge ruling that Jason West and Vince Zampella have grounds to sue their former publishers over unpaid royalties. [THR]
By Luke Plunkett Published June 20, 2011 -
Console Battlefield 3 is Half the FPS of Modern Warfare 3
Battlefield 3’s awe-inspiring tank battle demonstration at E3 was run on a PC, and it wasn’t to make a statement about mouse-and-keyboard superiority. The game, according to developer DICE, will run at 60 frames per second on the PC—but 30 fps on the Xbox 360 and PS3. Call of Duty‘s latest entries run at 60…
By Owen Good Published June 19, 2011 -
Is the Third Black Ops Map Pack Coming at the End of June?
A tipster sends along that picture of that GameStop poster, advertising Call of Duty: Black Ops‘ third map pack, titled “Annihilation.” June 28 appears to be the release date. The maps are Hangar, Hazard, Silo, Drive-In and another Zombie map. We’ve been hearing that GameStop is taking preorders for the pack. I called mine here…
By Owen Good Published June 15, 2011 -
In Defense of Duke Nukem Forever
Who is Duke Nukem, and why—after all of these years—are we still talking about him? One of our readers has described him as a “character that people actually love or hate. Or feel something about. As opposed to military personnel (1) and (1a).” In a sea of “blandness,” according to the reader, the Duke is…
By Drew Cohen Published June 13, 2011 -
Activision Boss Refused Sneak Peek of Competitor’s Battlefield 3
According to CVG, Activision CEO wandered by the E3 booth of Battlefield 3, the regicidal threat to his company’s own Call of Duty franchise, for a friendly look at the competition. He was denied. However, Activision says this didn’t happen.
By Joel Johnson Published June 9, 2011 -
Activision on Call of Duty Elite: ‘Even Haters Can Play for Free’
That is a direct quote from the FAQ Activision just released [.doc] for Call of Duty Elite, a final plea for you to not hate the shooter’s paid subscription service, and an argument that needs, oh, just six pages to summarize. That’s not to say they beat around the bush. The first set of bullet…
By Owen Good Published June 3, 2011 -
The Modern Warfare 3 Files: Team Perks, No Nukes, New Killstreaks
It’s a fair guess that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 will follow in the footsteps of last year’s Call of Duty: Black Ops, shattering sales records and bringing even more people to video games. But it’s typically not the single player campaign, detailed here, that draws in those record-breaking numbers. While many, including myself,…
By Brian Crecente Published June 1, 2011