Of all the Call Of Duty games over the years, Advanced Warfare has the closest feel to an action movie that drops you right in the middle of the mayhem.
You’ve got a huge Hollywood star as one of the main characters and an accomplished Hollywood writer penning the story.
And to top it all off some of the best cinematic action sequences ever seen in a game.
Yes, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is a blockbuster – and you’re the star of the show.
The franchise has always been a behemoth – cracking the billion dollar mark in a matter of days.
And now it can attract someone like two-time Oscar winner Kevin Spacey to play a starring role and writer Mark Boal whose work includes scripts for the films Zero Dark Thirty and The Hurt Locker.
So with all the pieces in place, the good news is they all come together with atomic force.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare kicks off with a bang with a mission in the hot zone of Korea in the year 2054.
The opening levels serve almost as a tutorial to help players get accustomed to the new equipment and its capabilities.
The biggest change is the exoskeleton that amplifies a soldier’s abilities and give them the power to leap higher into the air, dodge faster from side to side and exert enormous strength.
It’s not long before we’re introduced to Jonathan Irons (Kevin Spacey) who is the head of Atlas – a private military corporation that answers to no government but that are often used to intervene in conflicts around the world.
You assume the role of Jack Mitchell – a soldier who is seriously injured early in the game before being rehabilitated and taken into the Atlas ranks by Irons.
On the gameplay side, Advanced Warfare ticks all of the Call of Duty boxes with enough variety in each of the 15 missions that make up the campaign to offer a real rollercoaster ride.
And there is also a level of acting and character development to give the story an added dimension.
If you’re playing Advanced Warfare on a PlayStation 4 or Xbox One next generation console you’ll also admire the photo realistic graphics that has come closer to looking like real life than any game we can remember.
Without giving away the plot there is plenty to keep your interest in the storyline while you’re visiting more exotic and deadly locations than a James Bond film.
There is one particularly memorable level that takes place on the Golden Gate Bridge that climaxes – let’s just say – in a most explosive manner.
But the campaign is just one half of the game. The multi-player modes that pits you against other online players in 16 excellent maps is the part of Advanced Warfare that’s like a gift that keeps on giving.
You can dive as deep or as shallow as you want with the option to customise your uniform down to the gloves and boots you wear or simply hop straight into combat.
And with the aid of the exo suits that not only lets you leap tall buildings in a single bound but also earn powers like invisibility, added battery power for longer use of weapons and a shield to protect you from heavy fire.
The multi-player maps offer a nice variety of locations, designs and sizes to suit different types of players whether you’re a run-and-gunner, a close combat soldier or someone who feels right at home looking at their enemies through the scope of a sniper rifle.
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is the game we have loved for years – on steroids.
It is done something not many other game titles have achieved – combine the appeal of a Hollywood blockbuster with excellent gameplay and a compelling storyline.
