Call Of Duty: Black Ops Cold War gives fans of the series an espionage thriller with content for each type of Call of Duty fan. Whether consumers are fans of the narrative of the campaign, the survival gauntlet that is zombies mode, or the wildly popular Warzone, introduced in last year's Modern Warfare, there is plenty to explore and enjoy.
Veterans of the series will know that the multiplayer in Call of Duty is a staple of the franchise, one that is ever-evolving. Each entry offers innovations, and while they are more than often than not appreciated, some changes do rub players the wrong way. This is doubly so for the Prestige experience in Black Ops: Cold War, which is plagued by a few irritating aspects.
10 Experience Rate Doesn't Reset
In older iterations of the Call of Duty franchise, Prestige mode resets the experience for players back to level one while giving a few select benefits. When this happened in the past, the experience necessary for players to level up was also reverted. This is not the case in Cold War, which sees an experience bar that requires sizeable earnings for each level. This means that the feeling of rapid early-stage progression has effectively been removed, and the Prestige grind feels much slower than in other installments.
9 Timed Season Levels
Cold War has what is known as a season leveling system. This means that each time a new season starts, players are reset to the first level of the last Prestige they reached. In this system, certain rewards are only available for a limited time. One such example is Nightfall, a shotgun blueprint for the Hauer 77. If season level isn't hit before the end of December, this blueprint is forever out of reach. With experience accumulating at a slower rate, players are ushered towards more consistent play to obtain these rewards.
8 Only 3 Prestiges At Launch
With the launch of the most recent Call of Duty entry, the Prestige system continues to evolve. One such evolution sees the Prestige system taking a new approach to progression. Instead of all Prestiges being available upon release, the developers of Cold War have decided to release Prestiges in line with seasons over time.
Only three Prestige levels are currently available to Cold War players. While more content is promised with the arrival of Season 1 content, this level cap has already halted more dedicated users from progressing as far as in previous games.
7 Lack Of Maps
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War launched with only eight different maps. With the addition of Nuketown '84, there are currently nine. This gives players very little variation regardless of what game mode is chosen. Some modes only allow for several specific maps as well. Combined Arms players, for example, only have access to three maps when playing. When last year's Modern Warfare has over triple the maps, it can be jarring upon entry. Even with gameplay as tight and addictive as Cold War's more content is needed to retain user attention.
6 Prestige is Automatic
In the previous Call of Duty games, Prestiging was completely optional. If someone was content hitting max level, the game allowed them to stay there. This tradition is removed in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. Once the experience bar is filled at max level, players automatically Prestige. While the game doesn't take away guns, perks, or equipment for doing so, removing the option seems unwarranted. This change forces players to continue leveling up indefinitely. For those who don't care for the Prestige system, this is a bit puzzling.
5 Weapons Take Too Long To Level Up
Player level is not the only aspect of multiplayer impacted by experience points. One of the biggest complaints from the player base in Cold War is the rate at which gun levels progress. During the double experience event earlier this month, fans flocked to share frustrations with the leveling slog.
Some guns need 55 experience levels to unlock all attachments and camo challenges, meaning players are in for a grind. With almost 30 unique weapons in the game at launch and more to be added, these weapons need some tuning for the system to feel rewarding.
4 Glitched Gun Camos
After reaching Prestige, players can focus on earning all camos. With so many gun camo challenges tied to the weapon level, working toward the gold camo can be time-consuming. When five gold camos for a weapon class are unlocked, a diamond camo can be unlocked. That is how it is supposed to work, anyway. Some users are reporting that after completing all weapon challenges, either the gold or diamond camos remain locked. This can be incredibly frustrating for those who worked towards these rewards.
3 Skill Based Matchmaking (In Casual Playlists)
One major fix Cold War needs is the removal of skill-based matchmaking in casual playlists. While matchmaking based on skill is important for competitive play, those who wish to enjoy a regular game are pitted against those most likely to push a close match. This change was made to make the Call of Duty Experience more enjoyable for everyone but has, unfortunately, had the opposite effect. Activision needs to create dedicated modes for more serious play. Changes have not yet been announced, but players are hopeful.
2 Calling Card Challenges
When the max level is achieved, players can focus on earning Calling Cards. These graphics are displayed when the user gets a kill, and some are animated. Earning them can be time-consuming, however. With the most appealing cards exhibiting five tiers, some will spend dozens of hours working towards earning their favorite. Those who want to earn the Dark Ops cards will have to play until they happen upon the criteria for unlocks as well. While it does incentivize consistent play, several of these challenges are excessive.
1 The Exploitation of Overpowered Guns
Nothing is more important than the weapon balance in Call of Duty. Right now, that balance is shaky at best. Currently, the MP5 and the M16 are the biggest problems in Cold War. Far outclassing other guns in terms of range, damage, and accessibility. These guns have become dominant online, and after spending so much time playing, it can be disheartening to die to the same weapon repeatedly. After fan outcry, the developers have responded to the community. Patches are coming to balance out these weapons but Activision needs to double down and ensure weapons don't become as problematic as these two are.