Video games: “Call of Duty: Vanguard”, an effective return to the front without daring – Franceinfo

Call of Duty is known for its competitive multiplayer mode but also for its campaigns in solo looking like action movie. This episode is no exception to the rule and continuesis the neat cutscenes but the story of these international special forces hardly make us vibrate. Recruited to investigate a secret German project who seek to rise from their ashes after the fall of Hitler, the members of this commando are supposed to be the cream of the elite soldiers. Phelicopter, demolition expert or sniper, chnone in his specialty and a gameplay slightly different. Dare sequences in flashback will allow us to follow past exploits that allowed them to get there and learn more about them.

The idea is rather original and allows to travel on all fronts. From the desert of El Alamein to the beaches of the Pacific via Stalingrad, the player can relive significant episodes of the conflict. But this variety of battlefield comes at the expense of immersion. The campaign only lasts a handful of hours and the characters lack depth. Only Polina, the Russian sniper with a strong character stands out. Inspired by a real character, her story is the only one that elicits real empathy towards one of the members of the group. The sequences where we see her struggling in Stalingrad are the strongest, those which we will keep the most memories at the end.

For the rest, the story is quite disappointing and the characters rather nags. The breathless sequences that are the brand of the series have lost their luster and give an impression of déjà vu. Those who have shivered on Call of Duty World War II risk to be disillusioned because here the breath epic is not there. Artificial intelligence shines through its shortcomings, a pathology that is unfortunately recurrent in many shooting games.

Call of Duty is also a very popular multiplayer game. With twenty cards from its release and its ton of weapons and customizable elements, this latest opus is particularly provided. The clashes are as nervous as ever and two new modes are emerging: a “Patrol” mode which forces you to defend a moving area and a “Hill Champion” mode, a sort of mini tournament for teams of 2 or 3, which promises to to be both fun and fast and could find its audience among veterans. A little new therefore to forget the aging graphics and maps without great originality. Those who prefer cooperation will have to be content with a sample of the “Zombies” mode whose scenario can be folded in less than 15 minutes.

This last Call of Duty back to WWII feels like playing through a game you’ve already made, over and over again. Efficient but lacking in daring, he has good ideas but struggles to fully exploit them. His “Zombie” mode who had there an ideal historical straitjacket is almost stillborn and devrto wait a serious update to emerge from the grave. The multiplayer competitive is thereaspect of the game qui’m doing the best with its few noveltiess. Syears to be a truly rout, Call of Duty: Vanguard is in any case really not avant-garde, it appears on the contrary very traditional and may not leave many traces in the history of the series.

The Call of Duty: Vanguard game has been available since November 5 on PS4 and PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series and PC.