It's become trendy within the gaming community to be on a downer when it comes to Call of Duty. To talk about how every year we gamers look to pay our COD tax etc, cries of how the new game is "a bit shit" or "just like the others with a different character" always come up about this time of year.

Multiplayer feels wonderfully fresh, thanks to the added agility of Exo Suit boosting. Sadly, though, co-op is unimaginative, and the story fails to satisfy when compared to previous installments.

Massive multiplayer offering; Fresh gameplay mechanics in single and multiplayer; Outstanding visuals

Underwhelming campaign; Unimaginative co-op setting

Tasked with leading Call of Duty into the next generation, Sledgehammer Games is off to a cautious start. Advanced Warfare executes the formula competently while adding a handful of bells and whistles like mechs, laser cannons, and double jumps; but Sledgehammer Games seems reluctant to really cut...

Sledgehammer Game's Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is the next leap forward for the franchise as a whole. Besides getting a new team to design and develop the game, it has been fundamentally re-imagined to give players a completely evolved play style, but without losing what makes Call of Duty ,...

Perfectly balanced exo suit; Tons of content unlocks; Presentation - Story; Weapon diversity

AI can be unreliable; Later vehicle missions are underwhelming

For gamers, no franchise seems to encompass as much of the Madden -mentality as Call of Duty these days though that may prove an awkward double-entendre given the nature of both consumerism and both of those games.

Exoskeleton abilities; Sound and weapon design; A few explosive vehicle sequences; Engaging; fast-paced; highly vertical multiplayer modes and maps

Stumbling narrative campaign; Graphically hit or miss

"Ideas don't determine who's right," says Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare 's Jonathan Irons, in defense of his ruthless, genocidal solution to war. "Power does." But while it's true that simply throwing vast budgets at a first-person shooter can make it commercially, if not critically, successful...

…Or not. As the case may be with Advanced Warfare. There are two ways to look at Activision's (and Sledgehammer's) latest Call of Duty. They either know that the series needed a bit of a facelift and something different to the usual, or it has seen Titanfall and wanted some of that action.

In Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, you step into the shoes of U.S. Marine Jack Mitchell. He is a dedicated soldier and a loyal squad mate, traits which cost him dearly when a mission takes a tragic turn.

Meanwhile, first-person-shooter fans in need of more complex weaponry, level design, and mechanics may want to replay an old favorite, or at least check out this year's Wolfenstein: The New Order.

Responsive controls; Good sound design; Lots of options; Exo-suit adds layer of mobility, speed, and strategy

Regressive, scripted campaign; Unconvincing visual design and animation; Lifeless environments; Game-breaking perks; Peer-to-peer hosting means lots of online lag; No Share Play

Call of Duty hasn't been kind to the world in recent years. From global-spanning acts of terrorism to the mauling of the United States, players have had their work cut out for them.