TheCall of Dutyfranchise has been a fairly unstoppable force in the competitive world of first-person shooters for some time now, with it being a momentous task for other IPs to compete against its relentless annual release schedule. Only a few other franchises have really been able to go toe-to-toe withCall of Dutyover the years, with theBattlefieldIP arguably being the only other grounded military shooter to come close to competing with the Activision series.
Over the years, bothCall of DutyandBattlefieldhave been able to thrive side-by-side thanks to some core differences in terms of themes and gameplay.Call of Dutyusually occupies the more claustrophobic and high-octane experiences of a rapid arena shooter, whereasBattlefieldhas largely contrasted this with more grounded combat portrayals within massive maps and an added focus on vehicle combat. This has changed in recent years, however, withCall of Dutyemulating a lot of what has madeBattlefieldstand out historically, butCoD’s decision to seemingly abandon its Ground War mode plays perfectly into the hands of the nextBattlefieldtitle.
Call of Duty May Have Allowed Battlefield to Maintain its Unique Multiplayer Approach
Whilethe rivalry betweenCall of DutyandBattlefieldhas been somewhat lively in the past, the gulf between the two franchises is quite sizable as things stand. Not only didCall of Dutyrecently experience its largest opening weekend ever withBlack Ops 6’s release, but it has also been quite difficult for DICE to shake the lingering controversies that have surroundedBattlefield 2042since the game launched in 2021.
Dedicated fans of eitherCall of DutyorBattlefieldcan be quite loyal to their chosen franchise, but there is still a significant overlap of playerbase between the two FPS giants. With abrand-newBattlefieldtitle reportedly being slated for release in 2025, alongside the predictable annual release of a newCall of Dutygame, both franchises will need to stress every unique gameplay approach and experience that they have to offer to earn the attention of this overlapping demographic.
Call of Dutyrecently threw down the gauntlet toBattlefieldwithin the campaign ofBlack Ops 6, with the game featuring a very well-received open-world mission that seemingly shows thatCoDis starting to find its feet in the kind of large-scale experiences thatBattlefieldis usually better known for. This development was made all the worse forBattlefieldthanks to2042’s complete lack of a single-player campaign, yet there is still room forBFto maintain a large portion of its identity.
A Lack of Ground War in Call of Duty’s Future Puts the Ball Back in Battlefield’s Court
TheCoDseries has slowly been encroaching on larger-scale multiplayer experiences in recent years, with this culminating in the recent presence of the Ground War mode as a part of the franchise’s core multiplayer offerings. Ground War took on a more official identity starting in 2019’sModern Warfare, going on to also appear inthe subsequentMW2andMW3. This mode sees two teams totaling 64 players face off in purpose-made large maps, befit with squad spawning systems and vehicular combat.
Many fans instantly recognized thesimilarities between Ground War and the core multiplayer experience ofBattlefield, withCoDsimultaneously occupying both brands of gameplay that itself and its largest competitor are known for. This has seemingly changed withBlack Ops 6, however, with there being no talk of Ground War or any other modes of similar scale being planned for the title. This suggests that the mode will also not be present in the rumoredBlack Opssetting of 2025’sCall of Duty, presenting next year’sBattlefieldrelease with an even better opportunity to hone its craft of large-scale experiences without the worry ofCall of Dutyoffering the same brand of gameplay.
