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reader discussion
Rants 'N Raves: Call Of Duty: Black Ops
Not everyone has the time to read or write a full review of every game that hits the market. Rants 'n Raves is your chance to read a quick breakdown of a game's strengths and weaknesses, as well as provide your own analysis. The concept is simple: put your pros and cons in a bullet point format, and make your critique of each bullet point as concise as you can. This time, we take a look at Treyarch's impressive Call of Duty: Black Ops.
RAVES
- Best storyline of any Call of Duty game thus far
- Direction and cinematography on par with Hollywood films
- Great voice acting, especially Sam Worthington
- JFK, Castro, Tricky Dick, and Robert McNamara in Zombies mode!
- Good multiplayer map variety; not as many sniper friendly venues which should be the case for Call of Duty-style maps
- Improved kill streaks. Since players control most of the bonus attacks, it eliminates the feeling that the game is killing you rather than competitors
- New unlock system gives you the freedom to choose your upgrade path
- Toned down the quick scoping exploit
- Wager matches provide a good change of pace from other mutliplayer modes
- Theater tools let players share multiplayer highlights more easily
RANTS
- Lacked the memorable set-piece moments of the Infinity Ward games
- Brain dead enemy AI doesn't offer much of a challenge
- Checkpoint system can still screw you over
- Broken matchmaking doesn't let new players join matches in progress, which results in uneven teams
- Poor sound design makes it hard to tell where the bullets are coming from
- Leaderboard hacking still prevalent
What's your take?