It has been confirmed by a report published in Bloomberg that it took just sixteen months to develop Modern Warfare 3, which did start life as a piece of downloadable content to expand Modern Warfare 2 (2022). This news came following a slew of internal murmurings from Sledgehammer Games developers, some of whom were confused about the base nature of the ‘follow-up game’ and left exhausted by the crunch schedule to finish the game in such a short window following the transition from DLC to full release.
But We Knew All Along, Right?
Back in August, Insider Gaming covered the news that code had been found within Modern Warfare 3 that essentially proved it was originally planned as nothing more than a $70 expansion to Modern Warfare 2.
In the Bloomberg article, the negative feedback being lobbied at Modern Warfare 3 – which releases globally today, November 10th, was a core focus. Since 2021’s Call of Duty: Vanguard was released, we’ve seen a noticeable decline in the quality and the sentiment around Call of Duty, and perhaps even further back still. There’s a toxic fusion of a disappointed community, punishing SBMM elements, short stories, unbalanced weapons, and of course, a slew of cheaters, and all of that is creating one huge melting pot of concern.
That’s something that was touched upon by Kevin Tsao, a Bloomberg Intelligence Analyst:
I don’t see it having a lasting impact on the franchise or on any of Microsoft’s plans with the franchise even if it is universally panned. But a consistent drop in quality starting with this game might drive Microsoft to shift its strategy or cut back on the annual release schedule that Call of Duty has followed since 2005.
In the report, it’s also detailed how developers were run thin by the demanding schedule, and thanks to inefficient processes, there were blockers along the way that kept hampering progress. Inside out, it seems like Modern Warfare 3 was plagued from the beginning.
How will the consensus look following an embedding period as everyone catches up with the game?
Related: Is MW3’s Campaign The Worst One Ever?
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I’m disgusted; I bought the game because articles and videos on the internet proved that it was possible to play with 32 bots in private matches.
After a day of having a lot of fun with my friends thanks to this feature,
I came to understand, and especially noticed with disdain, that the latest update removed this option on PC, forcing us to play only with 16 bots instead of 32.
I sincerely hope that it’s a bug or that there will be a way to return to private lobbies with 32 bots.
Anyone with information on this? I know that Call of Duty is primarily focused on multiplayer, but it was an interesting proposition for people like me who just want to have fun and learn to shoot through PvE.