Itchy Fingers #11 - This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race

There’s one last score to settle before the world gets its first taste of next-gen gaming. In a conflict that has lasted for more than a decade and cost the gaming community billions, two superpowers will collide one final time on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 this November. As the hoo-rah US Marine of first person shooters, will Battlefield 4 be able to outgun the SAS disciplined Call of Duty: Ghosts before this generation of consoles becomes an empty no man’s land?

The war began back in 2002 when Swedish developer Digital Illusions CE (or DICE for short) teamed up with EA to bring PC gamers Battlefield 1942. Of course, World War II games were nothing new, especially if you consider Wolfenstein 3D as not only kick-starting the trend but indeed the FPS genre entirely. EA themselves had piggybacked off the success of the Oscar-winning Saving Private Ryan to inject WWII games with a much needed dose of Hollywood pizazz, resulting in the memorable Medal of Honour series.

Battlefield 1942 was praised for its addictive multiplayer, but that wasn’t enough to hold off the oncoming blitzkrieg at the hands of Activision. Developed by Infinity Ward, Call of Duty was released in 2003 and was showered with praise for being a much grittier experience, highlighting the perils of war at a time when the genre was succumbing to trench foot. 

After a barrage of sequels from the COD camp, the tides of war eventually entered a new theatre of conflict. At this point, 2005’s Battlefield 2 took the upper hand by upgrading its armoury to accommodate the familiar post 9/11 war on terror that the world was exposed to on a daily basis. Armed to the teeth with a hanger full of military vehicles, the PC exclusive title appeared to have enough firepower to ward off incoming strikes from other FPS titles. However, EA grossly underestimated the console market and with online gaming becoming an integral part of the console artillery, they left the back door open for Call of Duty to make a critical strike.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare may not have shattered sales records, but Activision managed to establish their flagship shooter as the number one online game throughout 2007 and 2008. By giving players the opportunity to earn their rank, customise their load out and achieve the hugely coveted “prestige” title, COD4 redefined not only the FPS genre but multiplayer games in general.

Even after many of Infinity Ward’s key players were discharged from duty back in 2010, Battlefield 3 wasn’t strong enough to hold off the might of the Modern Warfare sequels, or the various other COD spin offs that would be released during the interim years. The bill was paid for by consumers thanks to the emergence of new “war economy” that included downloadable content, state of the art headsets and even video capture equipment, all designed to give players the upper hand against their rivals in brutally addictive online battles.

As the tenth instalment in the series, Call of Duty: Ghosts managed to make $1 billion in revenue in just one day, but not all’s fair in love and war. The game has been described as the weakest entry yet, particularly for not adding anything ground-breaking to the series.  The battle for FPS glory is far from over but will Ghosts be one to deter even the most hardened Call of Duty veterans? Semper Fidelis - as long as brand loyalty is top priority for gamers, the war will only grow hotter as it rages on into the next generation. 

Originally featured in The Big List #241