Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare

Lore & Background

Development for Advanced Warfare began in late 2011, shortly before the release of Modern Warfare 3. Sledgehammer had originally been working on a game set during the Vietnam War before shifting to this title. The game became the first entry in the series since Call of Duty 2 to feature a heavily modified version of the IW engine, not a completely new engine built from scratch. The single-player campaign employed veteran actors Troy Baker and Kevin Spacey in lead roles.

Reader's Guide

Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare introduced significant gameplay changes, including Exo movements (boost, dash, sky jump) and a holographic HUD projected from the weapon. It was the first Call of Duty to let players choose between conventional firearms and laser or directed energy weapons. The campaign follows Jack Mitchell of the U.S. Marine Corps and his involvement with Atlas, a private military corporation. The multiplayer retained the Pick 10 system as Pick 13 and introduced weapon variants, totaling over 350 weapons. Exo Survival and Exo Zombies provided cooperative modes. The game received positive critical reception, praised for visuals, voice acting, and fast-paced gameplay, though some found the plot predictable. It won several awards and was a commercial success.

Did You Know?

• The game was Sledgehammer Games' first Call of Duty title as primary developer.
• The Exo-Zombies mode was teased at the end of the Exo Survival map 'Riot' and officially announced with the Havoc DLC pack.
• The single-player campaign does not feature only one playable character; the player also briefly controls other characters in certain missions.

Development & Creative Direction

Sledgehammer Games entered the Call of Duty franchise as the primary developer for the eleventh major installment, marking a significant milestone for the studio. Interestingly, before Advanced Warfare took shape, the team had been developing a project set during the Vietnam War era. The pivot to a new direction saw development kick off in late 2011, just before Modern Warfare 3 hit shelves. This title also represented a technical leap: it was the first entry in the series since Call of Duty 2 to feature a game engine that was largely rebuilt from the ground up. The narrative takes place between 2054 and 2061, following United States Marine Jack Mitchell as he becomes entangled with Atlas, a private military corporation that sells its services to the highest bidder. For the single-player campaign, Sledgehammer brought in veteran voice actors Troy Baker and Kevin Spacey to headline the story. Beyond Sledgehammer's lead role, High Moon Studios handled the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 ports, while Raven Software contributed the multiplayer and Exo-Zombies components, creating a collaborative development effort spanning multiple studios.

Gameplay & Exo Mechanics

Advanced Warfare redefined the Call of Duty formula by stripping away the traditional heads-up display entirely. Instead of a fixed screen overlay, all tactical information is delivered through holographic projections emanating from the player's equipped weapon, immersing the player more deeply in the sci-fi world. The centerpiece of the new movement system is the Exoskeleton, which grants players the ability to boost, dash, and execute sky jumps, fundamentally altering how they navigate arenas and engage enemies. The game also made history as the first in the franchise to let players select between different categories of conventional weaponry, including standard firearms alongside laser and directed energy options, each with distinct attributes. Additional Exo abilities like Exo Cloak let players turn transparent for a limited window, adding a stealth layer to the fast-paced combat. In the single-player campaign, the player controls only Jack Mitchell, with pre-rendered cinematic cut scenes carrying the narrative. After each mission, performance-based upgrade points unlock improvements across a wide range of Exo suit and weapon stats, from armor and sprint to recoil and quick aim, while collectible Intel and side objectives provide extra points to spend.

Multiplayer & Cooperative Modes

The multiplayer experience builds on familiar Call of Duty foundations while introducing new layers. The loadout system, evolved from Black Ops II's Pick 10, becomes Pick 13, giving players 13 allocation points to distribute across weapons, attachments, perks, and score-streaks. Score-streaks can be enhanced with modules that add extra abilities at an additional point cost. A standout addition is the weapon variant system, introducing modified versions of base guns with altered statistics, pushing the total arsenal past 350 options. Supply drops, earned through daily challenges, deliver randomized rewards ranging from weapon variants to cosmetic items and bonus experience time. On the cooperative side, Exo Survival reimagines the wave-based Survival mode from Modern Warfare 3 for up to four players, offering four distinct Exo classes with unique abilities and score-streaks. After set intervals, players face objectives like defending a position or retrieving intel, with failure triggering penalties such as temporary Exo suit shutdowns or hostile turret activation. The mode spans 13 maps organized into four progressively unlocked tiers. Exo Zombies, announced with the Havoc DLC, brings the classic endless-wave zombie formula to the franchise with five new characters, exo-suit-wearing undead, and the option to acquire exo suits mid-match for enhanced mobility.

Reception & Legacy

Upon its 2014 release, Advanced Warfare was met with broadly positive critical reception, with many reviewers declaring it a clear step forward from its predecessor, Call of Duty: Ghosts. Critics consistently highlighted the game's striking visuals, the quality of its voice acting, the strength of its single-player campaign, and the exhilarating pace of its gunplay. The primary area of criticism centered on the campaign's narrative, which several reviewers found predictable in its plot progression. Despite that single recurring complaint, the game collected multiple industry awards and was regarded as a commercial success. In the years since release, retrospective assessments have largely held the title in high regard, with Advanced Warfare generally placing within the top ten of lists that rank the Call of Duty series' entries. As the first title in the series since Call of Duty 2 to ship with a largely re-written engine, the first to introduce Exo-based movement, and the first to give players a choice between conventional and energy-based weaponry, Advanced Warfare stands as one of the more technically ambitious and critically celebrated entries in a franchise defined by its rapid annual release cycle.