Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Can Be a Classic Comeback Story for Sledgehammer Games After a Failure Like Vanguard, but Will It Deliver?

The release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Activision’s upcoming FPS, is almost here. And it is set to be a huge step up from its predecessor. But how? Well, what makes it different from recent titles is the major involvement of Sledgehammer Games. Yes, it’s the same studio that brought a World War II-themed Vanguard, two years ago.

When the news first broke out that Sledgehammer would be the leading developer on Modern Warfare 3, majority of the fans started mocking the series. Social media was filled with people calling out Activision for taking a backward decision for Modern Warfare sub-series; it was already struggling with the underwhelming response received by MWII last year. However, now it looks like Sledgehammer has learned from the forgettable blunder it made two years ago with Vanguard. But how?

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is looking mostly solid ahead of release, giving players what they want

COD lovers welcomed 2023 for many reasons. They had previously witnessed a lackluster title in Vanguard that simply failed to impress. And the eventual release of Modern Warfare II, helmed by Infinity Ward, further escalated the angst among hardcore franchise lovers.

It happened because Modern Warfare II, although bringing back a modern-day setting, tried to do unexpected innovations. Fans didn’t want any of the unnecessary additions – they just wanted to enjoy classic COD gameplay experience. Sadly, Infinity Ward’s team remained stubborn on its approach to delivering content. In short, it didn’t bring any fan-favorite modes, movement mechanics, or even more maps. It was only in 2023 that the studio began to realize the mistake. And lately, it’s been offering updates that should have been a part of the game upon the official launch itself.

Now considering what Sledgehammer has done with its own take on the Modern Warfare sub-series, there’s a day and night difference, to say the least. Despite facing early backlash on its involvement with MW3, the studio decided to bring back everything fans wanted last year in MWII. From faster movement mechanics and captivating gunplay to features like map voting, an effective perks system, and classic mini map, the studio has added back all the beloved aspects.

The biggest reason why Sledgehammer can win over the fans in 2023, after Vanguard

The major difference between Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer is that the former tried to do what wasn’t required. Plus, it didn’t actually acknowledge most of the important feedbacks from the community, barring a few. On the contrary, Sledgehammer’s plan has been the complete opposite – to embrace fans’ response and complaints while offering them a stunning and polished experience.

It’s been a major reason why a lot of COD players have now actually started backing Sledgehammer’s team as one of the finest to be under Activision – after Treyarch of course. The ongoing Modern Warfare 3 Beta is the perfect example of Sledgehammer’s efforts to win over the fans. Especially those who were skeptical after seeing a game like Vanguard.

Just a few days after the Beta went live, the studio didn’t take long to address all the glaring issues highlighted by players. Which shows its commitment towards the objective of proving itself as a dependable studio – one that can also lead from the front. So far, only Treyarch has accomplished this status. It hardly misses the mark when it comes to giving a phenomenal gameplay experience to the fans. With Modern Warfare 3, Sledgehammer has now got a big opportunity to emerge onto a similar level in the future.

Modern Warfare 3 can help Sledgehammer in leaving behind the Vanguard nightmare

It’s not that the studio isn’t capable of presenting a good Call of Duty game. For the uninitiated, it was a co-developer, alongside Infinity Ward, on 2011’s original Modern Warfare 3. The latter turned out to be massively successful game in the end. In fact, it’s still considered being among the top five COD titles of all time.

Read More: Opinion: Is Call of Duty Back to Being Good With Modern Warfare 3?

Taking a look back into the past, it looks like the only problem with Sledgehammer has been its approach to the timeline in its own games. For example, in 2017’s WWII and 2021’s Vanguard, the story was based in the same era of World War. Yes, 2014’s Advanced Warfare had some potential, but it was, maybe, too ahead of its time.

However, Modern Warfare 3 appears to be ticking all the boxes, in the right manner, for Sledgehammer. The setting is something fans already adore while the changes made by the studio are getting positive reactions ahead of the full release. If the studio manages to fix all the remaining issues by the time Beta ends, we are already looking at a great comeback next month.

After a gap of two years, MW3’s success can provide a much-needed boost to the developer’s future projects. Not to mention that it will bring back hardcore fans to enjoying COD, once again – just like they used to, several years ago.

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