Will you be buying COD Ghosts?

Sad to say I won't be spending money on any Call of Duty product this year or for the foreseeable future. It's not that the franchise are bad games in and of themselves, they're not. They're decent and you know what your getting when you hand your money over. But therein lies the problem. I won't be spending money on it because I already own it. They're good and I'm sure Ghosts will satisfy millions, however it's nothing we've not been playing for the last seven years.

I just don't see the practicality or financially savvy aspect of parting with 60Euro for, what I consider, a glamorized map-pack. I don't dislike the series for the sake of it. But I do want to see improvement, creativity and innovation in the video games industry. The bottom line is, I'm bored. I'm bored with Call of Duty. Had my fill. It simply doesn't entertain me anymore which is a shame because I have some fond memories and laughs shared with mates over a few beers during the years. Forget about the name. It doesn't matter what it's called. If TitanFall was renamed Call of Duty Ghosts, then I'd have had it pre-ordered from Day 1. Why? Because it's different. It's the next "step-up". The next level. And it looks extremely enjoyable. That's what I want CoD to be. But it's not. It's simply the same tried and tested formula which is becoming more and more stale with each passing episode.

COD4 was a masterpiece. Yes, it had it's flaws and so too did MW2. I'd even include BO1 in that. But these games felt like they were made with "passion". It felt like the developers really tried, no matter what, to bring us the very best game they potentially and possibly could. The last two installments (MW3 and BO2) felt like, for all intents and purposes, cash-in's. Like they were just "going through the motions". We've come from a game-changer in COD4 to a product designed to appeal to the lowest common denominator in search of a quick buck and while I applaud and congratulate Activision for making their billions of dollars, it's just not me (not that they care about one sale of course). It's just my genuine feeling. Everybody is entitled to their own opinion and this is mine.

I was, honestly, pumped up for BLOPS2 last year. Couldn't wait to get my hands on Zombies which is primarily why I bought the game in the first place. I have that feeling again this year but it's not for Call of Duty - it's for the unbelievable array of fantastic games that are just on the horizon. There are some genuine distractions coming - GTA5 (we've waited five years and the "real" hype; not that "manufactured" sort is almost palpable), Battlefield 4, Killzone, Destiny as well as TitanFall. And that's not even considering the release of the new consoles along with the plethora of new non-FPS titles they'll bring to the table in the coming months.

When I finally got my head around the beginning of this new era, Call of Duty: Ghosts just doesn't seem.....well, worth it. There are a couple of things that grinds my gears about the CoD series, not least this - why don't they open the gates to the community and do more to get us involved in their product? After all, we're the consumers. We should have input as to what's in the game and what's not in the game. I can guarantee that BLOPS2 and MW3 would have been far better games on the whole had they done this. There is never even a BETA - what exactly are they trying to hide?

If memory serves me correctly, MW3 was a hell of a buggy game upon release. BLOPS2 remains bug filled with injustices and dodgy events. The MW3 problems weren't even ironed out by the time BLOPS2 dropped which says to me that these games are not fit for release and should have never been given the go ahead for GOLD STATUS. I believe the developers need more time to work on these games. If COD is indeed breaking sales records left, right and centre, then why is the posterboy for the videogames industry not flaunting the best money can buy in terms of mechanics, graphical aspects, etc.

I wish Call of Duty well and I hope it improves and becomes enjoyable for me again. If that occurs and they bring something new to the table further down the line then rest assured I'll be first in line to buy it. Until that day comes I'll be trying new things and investing in other companies products.