Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2019 is one of the most controversial titles in the franchise’s history. While it did extremely well in terms of sales and overall player count, many veterans of the series had major issues with the game. The consensus among this crowd is that Modern Warfare catered far too much to “campers,” had too many annoying features and took the series down a path that veered away from multiplayer. OpTic Texas player Brandon “Dashy” Otell recently spoke out against MW2019, going so far as to say that the game ruined Call of Duty in the long run.
Competitive players were arguably the most vocal about their hatred for Modern Warfare. The game simply didn’t cater to competitive players in any fashion. There was no Ranked Play mode, a plethora of features that counteracted traditional competitive gameplay and the introduction of Warzone diverted the developer’s attention away from multiplayer. All of this combined for a rough year in the competitive scene, which also coincided with the Call of Duty League’s inaugural season.
Dashy certainly recalls all of Modern Warfare’s shortcomings well. In a recent live stream, while playing VALORANT, the OpTic player explained his gripes with the game.
“I think Modern Warfare, the one that came out two years ago, literally ruined CoD,” Dashy said. “I was talking to Matt [OpTic FormaL] about this. Think about how much s*** that game introduced, like doors, f****** tac sprint, f****** sh**** a*s maps, killing in a bullet, Warzone, bloom, 40 million attachments on your gun… That game f****** ruined it now.”
While Dashy certainly seems biased, he makes some valid points from a competitive standpoint. The introduction of doors on multiplayer maps, which were huge themselves, auto-tac sprint, the gunsmith and a high time-to-kill were all a competitive player’s worst nightmare. Each feature made it more difficult to play at a high level. The doors on multiplayer maps added an element of randomness to the game and the maps themselves catered to campers.
Finally, even after Modern Warfare released, COD introduced Warzone. While the battle royale has revitalized the series, it has taken a large chunk of attention away from traditional multiplayer. For professional players who make their living on multiplayer, this has become frustrating. Activision and the developers have put more time and effort into Warzone in previous years due to its large popularity. This has left multiplayer behind in some respects.
What makes this matter so interesting is that there is still a hugely dedicated player base for Modern Warfare 2019. Thousands of players claim it’s the best COD title ever made and still play it to this day. It’s clear that the style of gameplay featured in that game is as divisive as it can get. Hopefully, with Modern Warfare II, Infinity Ward and Activision can help bridge the gap between the casual and competitive players as they were able to in the early 2010s.
