Call of Duty: Vanguard is the latest game in the Call of Duty Series. Call of Duty is one of the longest running FPS multiplayer game and has cemented their place in the world of FPS multiplayer. In this next iteration of the game, we experience what it was like fighting in the frontlines of World War II.
Call of Duty: Vanguard is a game that is broken down into three different parts: the Campaign Mode, the Multiplayer Mode and Zombies. Let’s talk about the Campaign Mode first. The Campaign Mode is a single-player story about a group of ragtag soldiers who calls themselves the Vanguard. We experience the game through the eyes of 5 soldiers, Nick, Arthur, Polina, Wade and Lucas.
Nick’s story basically is the tutorial of the game. Letting you experience the controls of the game first-hand. It’s a very short but very informative gameplay as it teaches you the basic controls of the game. From shooting the gun, throwing an incendiary and movement. Of course if you have been a long-time COD player, this is not new to you.
The other characters in the game have their own unique skill that you get to experience while playing their story in the campaign. Arthur who is the leader of the group has the ability to command others to focus fire on an enemy. This is very useful if you want to take out a particular enemy that’s preventing you to move forward.
Polina’s missions are really fun. Being the sniper assassin of the group, her special skill allows her to distract snipers so that they give away their position and you will able to shoot at them. She also has a climbing ability allowing her to scale walls. The boss fight in Polina’s mission actually reminded me of the boss fights from Last of Us and Last of Us Par II where it’s basically a hide and seek game and you’d need to ambush the boss to defeat them. It was a very fun boss fight and it’s something that really made the game stand out.
Wade is the pilot of the group. His missions revolve around maneuvering a fighter plane in a battle in the sky. I actually like the controls here compared to other plane combat controls in other games. The default sensitivity is just right that you won’t go full barrel into infinity. Wade also has the ability to “focus”. When he focuses, he can sense the location of enemies, even if they are hidden behind anything.
Lucas is the demolitions expert of the group. His missions revolve around making the most chaos out of the situation. He can carry 4 different types of incendiary making him a deadly force to be reckoned with. His missions were also fun as you can just let loose and throw bombs all day at the enemies.
The final chapter of the story lets you control each of the four characters with abilities. It was so fun watching them shine on their specific talents and how they are very valuable to the group. Seeing them work together and being assigned tasks at what they do best made for an exciting and action-packed finale.
Overall, the campaign story of Call of Duty: Vanguard was very well-written and I loved every moment of it. From the beginning chapter to the riveting and exhilarating end chapter, there was never a dull moment in the game. It was such a delight to play and I would say one of the best campaign stories I’ve ever played.
The multiplayer mode allows you to play against other players online in a variety of ways. There are seven game types for you to play which includes Team Deathmatch, Domination, Kill Confirmed, Search and Destroy, Patrol, Free-for-All, Hardpoint. There are also filters for the number of players you get to play with in the game. I’m such an OG type of guy that I would always prefer Team Deathmatch over anything else.
There are so many different types of customization that you can do to get the most out of your gaming experience. You can choose and customize your weapons and choose an operator. All of these items can be unlocked for free if you just play the game. But if you’d like to get exclusive and legendary items, you can always purchase a Battlepass. There are hundreds of weapons to choose from and customizing the weapons adds improvements to the gun. The details that Call of Duty has allocated in ensuring you get the most out of your gameplay experience is definitely great. I can truly say that even a newcomer to COD like me, was a very enjoyable experience. I’ve had as much fun as any veteran player would be.
I didn’t even really have any problems with connecting to a game. I think that the game is established enough that you know you’d always can count on its playerbase. And an established name like Call of Duty has definitely prepared for the influx of players playing their game so something like a server issue is really nonexistent.
The Zombies mode is a nice break from all the player to player killings in the Multiplayer mode. Instead, you are fighting coop with other players to defeat hordes and hordes of zombies. I must say Zombies is as equally as fun as Multiplayer mode. Zombies also has its own set of unlockables and I guess that’s what I can say would be the downside of this game. Because unlocking operators in Multiplayer and Zombies mode have different challenges. So that means if you have unlocked an operator in Multiplayer, you’d still need to unlock the same operator in Zombies mode in a different way. Good thing the weapons are tied to your level so you can actually use weapons across any of the modes.
The Zombies mode is also a fun mode to play. You get to this place called Der Anfang and you clear out missions by going through warp points. Each time a mission gets completed, the difficulty level rises up until you unlock the escape route. Going through the escape route completes a round of Zombies mode, basically letting you win the game and gain experience points to level up your account.
Either mode is really fun and I enjoyed my time while playing them. Overall, Call of Duty: Vanguard is a must-have if you have been a long-time fan of the series. It’s also a good entry point for those who are just beginning to find their way into the series. With all the content you are getting with the game and the fact that it will have seasons, makes this game worth it to buy.