It's Activision versus EA once again. These two mega-publishers really have a lot of history between them, don't they? When it comes to online multiplayer competitive first-person shooters, the Call Of Duty VS. Battlefield saga has to be the battle which has defined the last console generation. In a number of ways Battlefield is the lesser of the two - neither game has a particularly strong singleplayer campaign, but the far-fetched Hollywood narratives which Treyarch, Infinity Ward and now Sledgehammer Games have tossed together for Call Of Duty have been notably superior to the lacklustre efforts from EA DICE. Call Of Duty also sells in huge numbers, pouring cash into Bobby Kotick's swollen wallet, while Battlefield is lagging significantly. The gameplay itself tells a different story. In action, there is a sense that Battlefield has emerged as the more mature shooter - it's focus on squad unity and cohesion in battle makes it a game for friends to play together, work together and win together. Call Of Duty is undeniably more flashy, but it's more of a peeing contest than Battlefield, following a gaming model which has stagnated in recent years too. The franchise seems almost bulletproof though, because regardless of flagging critical ratings the kids keep lining up to buy each incrementally updated version year after year.
Game-obsessed since the moment I could twiddle both thumbs independently. Equally enthralled by all the genres of music that your parents warned you about.
