Daryl Mault

On October 5, 2016, Activision launched the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare _ ® _ Remastered _ campaign mode for pre-purchasers of Legacy or Digital Deluxe Editions on PlayStation 4 console systems 30 days in advance of the broader launch. On November 4, 2016, Activision is expected to launch the highly anticipated Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare™

Everyone remembers the games that changed everything. Wolfenstein 3D brought the industry into the 3D era, Final Fantasy VII made the PlayStation a direct threat to Nintendo’s empire, and Halo 2 brought online multiplayer to consoles. However, there’s not a recent game that sticks in player’s minds like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Infinity Ward’s risky leap into a modern setting ended up not only being one of the best games of 2007 but one of the most groundbreaking. The Modern Warfare's intuitive create-a-class, killstreak, and progression system forever changed multiplayer. To this day, recent Call of Duty titles still incorporates a version of this system. Now, in 2016, Activision and Raven Software are re-releasing a remastered version of the classic, but does it remain the ultimate Call of Duty experience, or has it aged horribly?

Voting started on December 24th, and ended on January 21st. Each voter was asked to give ten preferences in order, with the first game scoring four points, second and third scoring three, ranks from four to six scoring two points, and the rest only one. Two honorable mentions were also allowed, but scored no points.

If there’s one thing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered proves it’s how to remaster a game's visuals properly. Modern Warfare Remastered is the most extensive visual upgrade any remaster has ever received yet, being more in line with a remake than an actual remaster. Character models and textures have been completely redone, the lighting engine has been replaced, and the environments have been overhauled to show extra details. An empty street and field in the training mission is now littered with tanks, soldiers jogging, jets flying overhead, and even the addition of a grenade training playground. It’s a stunning overhaul, and Modern Warfare Remastered raises the bar for all future remasters.

While I had several experiences to get me through months at a time throughout the year, Overwatch is the title that I kept coming back to all year long. Even in a year where shooters reigned supreme -- between it, DOOM , Titanfall 2 , Battlefield 1 , Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare , and so many others -- Overwatch surpassed not only my expectations of the experience it would offer as a competitive shooter, but genuinely came as a surprise in becoming my favorite gaming experience of the entire y

Despite being an old game, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered feels fresh. After years of over-the-top killstreaks, wall-running, and other crazy antics, it’s nice to get back to the basics. Boots-on-the-ground can be just as engrossing as crazy movement systems, so hopefully Modern Warfare Remastered can remind Activision that modern times can be just as fun as the future.

From December 16 through December 18, 2016, Major League Gaming will host its first MLG Vegas event, an esports and digital culture festival at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. The 3 day event will feature the first competition of the Call of Duty World League _ 2017 _ and an _Overwatch Invitational

Aside from the complete visual overhaul, Raven Software has left the campaign intact as is, with all the same content, mechanics, and bonus modes. The same can be said about extra content, although now PlayStation users can collect trophies, something that wasn't patched in the original version. For those who’ve played the Call of Duty 4 campaign a lot over the past nine years, there’s nothing new for you in the remaster. The fact that nothing has changed is both refreshing, and a hindrance. Playing an old-school boots-on-the-ground, non-set piece oriented Call of Duty campaign puts things in perspective. A grounded Call of Duty game is entertaining, and, in hindsight, makes a lot of the recent games look out of control.

The main highlight of the new patch is addition of the Horizon Lunar Colony . As the name suggests, this new map takes place on the moon, and is available to play in both quick play and competitive modes. This map was previously announced back in May with a trai

The recent Call of Duty games, however, managed to fix a lot of issues found in Call of Duty 4. The infinitely respawning enemies are a hassle, and it’s never clear how far forward the player has to push before they stop coming. Likewise, weapons found on the ground are the barebones version. If you like using attachments, then you better hope you don’t run out of ammo with the weapons you start the level with. Both of these should have been easy fixes, but Raven Software’s strict dedication to preserving the original game means critical alterations couldn’t be implemented. They aren’t FPS game tips breaking, but they show off just how old Modern Warfare really is.