2. The Campaign/Multiplayer Imbalance
This is probably the only point in this article that really holds some weight. Unfortunately, the compromise in the quality of the campaign, which should by rights be the key mode of the entire package (based on conventional wisdom anyway) is disappointing, and for someone who doesn't buy COD games in order to play online, it feels a little like Treyarch have focused too much on the other modes and lost something from what should have been their main concern. But does buying and enjoying a game that has too much focus on the online portion make its fans idiotic? Are they somehow stupid for investing $50 a year in a glorified online game that comes with limited maps and a comparatively tiny level of depth compared to MMORPGs? Well, not really. For me, it is a shame that Treyarch have put so much focus in the online mode, to the detriment of the campaign, which will always be the first thing I look for - but the campaign is still engaging enough, and I can recognise the general appeal of the online mode to those who are fans of that side of the game. The simple truth is that Call of Duty's online element is a massive part of the industry - it can rightly be considered a phenomenon, and the sheer number of players who continue to play online well after other games (even the most commercially successful) have lost their appeal and the majority of their dedicated fanbase. Catering for that strong community is just a good decision, and the voices of discontent that would greet a lighter-weight online side of the game would have been a lot louder than my own disappointment in the game's current imbalance.
Verdict: Activision are creating a supply for a huge demand, and just because they and Treyarch may have focused this time more on online play rather than campaign doesn't necessarily mean they are feeding the needs of idiots. The burgeoning E-Sports community proves that that sort of competitive gaming is a big deal, and simply dismissing something as similar as the online COD gaming as somehow low-brow is just foolish bluster.