sun 08/12/2024

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare | reviews, news & interviews

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare

Infinite warfare but finite fun

'Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare': Once more into the breach

The annual Call of Duty instalment once again steps into future warfare, but this time in a far-flung age where off-world colonies have sprung up, thrived and now threaten the order of things.

In the single-player campaign, you play as Captain Reyes, an elite soldier who takes the helm of the Retribution, one of Earth’s last remaining warships. You take to the stars after a Pearl Harbor-style attack on your homeworld that serves up a typically spectacular opening set piece where much of your fleet ends up crashing and burning in the city streets below.

Reyes must defend his home against this relentless enemy force. Along with the boots on the ground, and duck-and-cover gunplay, a hallmark of the series, this outing lets you pilot your own jet fighter known as the Jackal, in free-flying aerial battles both on Earth and in space.Call of Duty: Infinite WarfareThere’s lots of jet packs, anti-gravity grenades, portable spider bombs that chase after targets, heavy air support from patrolling jet fighters and space combat, whether that’s racing across a lunar landscape on the back of a jeep or spaceship battles amongst the stars. There’s even wall-running as found in Titanfall 2, just no way near as satisfying to execute.

And that’s the problem with this iteration; yes, we still have a robust online multiplayer and the zombie survival mode, which includes a new four-player cooperative feature is still great fun, but for all the futuristic-style combat it feels very much like old ground is being retrod.

Part of this is down to the handling. Boots never feel fully on the ground, instead you just sort of drift along as you push the thumbstick forward. This isn’t a depiction of low gravity, those sequences work well within the physics engine; instead it’s the normal running along that just feels unrealistic.

This is still a polished shooter, at times bordering on very good

Likewise the firepower feels lightweight, especially as you’re often fighting robots or heavily armoured personnel that take forever to bite the dust. And the story spread over a typically short six hours never properly sucks you in – no matter how many set pieces and "big ideas" the developers throw at you.

But let’s reign in the criticisms for a minute. This is still a polished shooter, at times bordering on very good. Blowing out windows in a space station and watching half a dozen bad guys get sucked out to infinity and beyond is undoubted fun. But in the same release window as the likes of Titanfall 2 and Battlefield 1, this Call of Duty offering stands in shadows.

There’s just far too much "more of the same" even down to the pithy quotes and blurred screen when you get killed – an effect that has been in the series for generations. Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare is a jaunt into the distant future complete with creaky gameplay from yesteryear – fun but forgettable.

For all the futuristic-style combat it feels very much like old ground is being retread

rating

Editor Rating: 
3
Average: 3 (1 vote)

Explore topics

Share this article

Add comment

The future of Arts Journalism

 

You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!

We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d

And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.

Subscribe to theartsdesk.com

Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.

To take a subscription now simply click here.

And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?

newsletter

Get a weekly digest of our critical highlights in your inbox each Thursday!

Simply enter your email address in the box below

View previous newsletters