It's by no means an achievement in dramatic storytelling - it's more about dumb fun - and it lacks the player-choice element introduced with Call of Duty: Black Ops II, but when given time to breathe Ghosts actually offers some interesting human drama. It’s there, on the front lines, that much of the plot progression is presented and oftentimes lost. Narrated loading sequences with stylized story animations push the campaign forward, but only last for one or two minutes before launching back into the action. I felt genuine dread as the ground and buildings collapsed around me during orbital weapons strikes, the zero-gravity spectacle of the Federation’s space station ambush is awe-inspiring, and bursting through a highrise window as the entire building crumbles during the Federation Day mission is exhilarating.īut like previous CoDs, the story of Ghosts struggles to remain in focus amidst the fray of explosive cinematic moments and relentless firefights. Each requires new strategy, acute situational awareness, and – in the case of the space and water missions – special consideration for verticality and physics.Of course, it wouldn’t be a Call of Duty game without elaborate setpieces, fierce shootouts, and tense stealth missions, and Ghosts delivers some of the most memorable experiences in the series. Instead of just fighting waves of enemies through a linear stage at ground level, you’ll find yourself rappelling down skyscrapers, flying helicopters, having firefights in space, commanding tanks, scuba diving through shipwrecks, playing as a dog, and evading shark attacks. Those might lack to familiarity, but the variety of environments keeps the campaign fresh, not only in terms of visuals, but in gameplay as well. But ultimately, time on the poignant homefront is short lived as the story goes behind enemy lines in Caracas, the Andes mountains, and other exotic locales. It’s a space not often explored by modern shooters, and its mood is heightened by missions set in a besieged Santa Monica and the wasted remains of San Diego, to the tune of an excellent, somber score from David Buckley (The Town, Metal Gear Solid 4). The prelude establishes a harrowing vision of a United States homeland that's broken but not beaten – not quite Red Dawn, but not Fallout 3, either.
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