With failed return to WWII, Call of Duty: Vanguard, potentially striking a major blow in the long-running competition with Battlefield. Now that Infinity Ward is bringing updates to the IW engine and making significant changes to CoD’s multiplayer gameplay, MW2 looks to bring a more hardcore experience back to the franchise - but it could also serve as a definitive win in the long-running FPS rivalry between CoD and the Battlefield franchise.
When Battlefield 2042 released in November 2021, the internet was awash with criticism of the game’s unfinished and buggy nature, its abandonment of long-running Battlefield staples, and its confused post-launch . Unfortunately for FPS players, CoD: Vanguard didn’t set the world on fire either, even if its own criticisms were overshadowed by 2042’s disastrous launch. 2042 continues to flounder a year after launch, though moderate improvements have been made, while the beta period for Modern Warfare 2 has players discussing and feeding criticism back to Infinity Ward over aspects like MW2's minimap changes.
Now that Modern Warfare 2 plans to bring the Ground War multiplayer mode from 2019’s Modern Warfare back, the stage is set for CoD to finally reclaim the FPS space and deliver on what 2042 couldn’t. Ground War, a game mode present in many CoD titles, became a 32 versus 32 playlist in Modern Warfare where competing teams battle across a large map, using land, sea, and air vehicles to capture and defend zones. ittedly, it directly apes the main Conquest mode of Battlefield, but its interesting innovations (and the mountains of content that the MW2 package plans to deliver) means it could provide Battlefield fans a satisfying reprisal from just how bad Battlefield 2042 felt to play.
Ground War Brings Conquest Back To Its Roots
Although Ground War doesn’t utilize the class-based system that DICE abandoned in 2042’s All-Out War modes, it does allow for a level of player freedom not seen in CoD’s non-Warzone outings, potentially influenced by the ways that players have used vehicles in Warzone since 2020. One new addition that should pique some interest is the inclusion of a chopper air vehicle that can be piloted and used to ferry large amounts of players from zone-to-zone, adding a dynamic and immersive offensive tool into a team’s arsenal.
The 32 versus 32 nature of Ground War might also sound slightly underwhelming, considering that Battlefield prided itself on its massive 64 versus 64 matches in 2042. However, it’s important to consider the state that Battlefield 2042 was left in when it was forced to remove the 128-player Breatkthrough game mode after experiencing intense criticism from the community. Call of Duty has, arguably, always offered a tighter multiplayer experience than Battlefield, but this may be exactly what’s needed when modes like Warzone can scratch those big battle itches.
With Warzone 2’s rumored DMZ mode on the table, Infinity Ward also threatens to outshine DICE’s infamous Hazard Zone mode from 2042, which promised to bring an Escape From Tarkov style experience to the masses but ended up hemorrhaging players within the first few weeks. All this points to Modern Warfare 2 gunning for the hearts and minds of Battlefield fans, hopefully filling the space that DICE were never able to with Battlefield 2042.
