Today, Activision unveiled the latest iteration in their long-standing Call of Duty franchise: Black Ops 4. The rumors are true: Black Ops 4 is ditching their campaign mode for a Battle Royale mode called ‘Blackout’. Its’ map will be 1,500 times larger than Nuketown and is the largest map that Treyarch has ever developed. This isn’t necessarily a good thing though. Not by a long shot. In fact, it’s a huge mistake. The Black Ops overarching story is one of the best in the series, behind Modern Warfare. In fact, it’s better. Why ditch a campaign for a battle royale mode in Black Ops 4? I’ll tell you: to capitalize on the success of PUBG and more recently Fortnite. That’s it. Battle Royale is a fad and the Black Ops 4 battle royale mode is a mistake.
Campaigns Aren’t Dead
If anything last year showed us that campaigns are not dead in shooters. Battlefront 2, Call of Duty: WWII, and Wolfenstein II showed us that. All were critically acclaimed and very enjoyable. WWII and Wolfenstein II were two of the best campaigns we’ve played in a very long time, and EA listened to fans and added an excellent campaign to Battlefront 2 after the backlash it received for not including one in the first game. Wolfenstein II didn’t even have a multiplayer mode yet it was still a huge success.
There are a lot of gamers out there who prefer the single-player experience over the multiplayer experience. Not offering any type of single-player experience in a franchise renowned for its excellent campaigns is a terrible oversight. Treyarch and Amazon are underestimating just how important single-player campaigns are to gamers. They are shoving a multiplayer experience down our throats that many don’t care for, despite the success of other battle royale games.
Battle Royale Games are a Fad
Another reason why the battle royale mode on Black Ops 4 is a mistake is because battle royale games themselves are a fad. A few months ago PUBG was the battle royale game everyone was playing; now everyone is playing Fortnite. Next it may be another game, then Black Ops 4, and then ultimately people will move on to another battle royale game. With ditching a campaign mode Activision is alienating a fair amount of their consumers who either don’t want battle royale or want a single-player campaign.
Battlefield V is rumored to be in the prototype stages of a battle royale mode, yet they are committed to delivering a high-quality single-player experience as well, in addition to traditional multiplayer. Why can’t Call of Duty do this as well? They are merely jumping on the bandwagon of the newest “cool” thing on the block. What happens when people get bored of it? At this point, Battlefield V looks like a much better buy, regardless of what you think of EA, who have had their share of mishaps.
Black Ops 4 Battle Royale Mode is a Mistake
Activision and Treyarch are taking a huge gamble here. The Black Ops 4 reveal was lackluster and many were already disillusioned with Call of Duty to begin with. Yes, they are doing something “new”, but cutting out an integral part of the Call of Duty experience isn’t the way to go about it. There are already dedicated Battle Royale games. What can Black Ops 4 offer the genre that these other games can’t? Can it be more enjoyable than PUBG or Fortnite? And will people eventually pass over Black Ops 4 for the next battle royale game, like they did with PUBG over to Fortnite?
The answer to the last question is a definite yes. Neglecting to include a single-player campaign, which has distinguished the Black Ops franchise, is a huge slap in the face to gamers. Battle Royale is just a fad and it’s a shame to see Call of Duty merely trying to cash in on it.
Honestly, though, should anyone be surprised?