Editorial: Call of Duty kills competitive gaming

I like Call of Duty, in a sense, it's a fun and fast paced game. Sadly, it isn't competitive at all. If it isn't the ridiculous perks system that rewards people for sucking (see "Deathstreaks") or the heinous magnetism that you experience when firing your gun this game offers no challenge to the player. Of course this is all well and fine when you are just going out there to have fun but the fact that gaming leagues like Gamebattles/MLG actually like and promote Call of Duty 4 (and World at War) as a "competitive" game makes me throw up in my mouth.

Of course no one will agree with my opinion because they are too blind to see that the game offers nothing original to the genre and if anything takes leaps backwards in areas that games like Goldeneye, Counter Strike, and even Halo have strive to innovate in. As you can tell I am a huge fan of competitive gaming and I wish to see the "scene" grow but to see Call of Duty be the reason for it makes me wish this wasn't the case.

The reason I wrote this article is due to a little forum thread on the Official PS Forums where a poster stated:

yea I already have a team set up there although once MW2 hits shelves don't
expect the UC2 ladder to be around too much longer - CHAOTIC-

This thread was pertaining to Uncharted 2 players signing up for Gamebattles ladder for the game. It kind of brought to light everything that I see wrong with competitive gaming right now and I hope that a game like Uncharted 2 can prove to developers that if you do make a game that is actually good (and competitive out of the box) people will buy it.

Like I stated before I enjoy playing the Call of Duty games but to see this game being considered "competitive" makes me question what does competition really mean anymore.

Midnight launches and why they rule!

MGS4 Midnight Launch at the Virgin Megastore (NYC)

Tonight I am going to a midnight launch for Uncharted 2 and Brutal Legend, courtesy of GameStop. Yes, I will be buying both games, and yes I will enjoy the living crap out of them. Although this article is about those two games it's more about the midnight launch I will be attending.

The joy of the line:
I have been to 2 midnight launches for Halo 2 and Metal Gear Solid 4. While both were enjoyable, MGS4 being downtown provided the most excitement. Having joined a group of folks from the PS Forums I found myself sharing in an experience with some rather cool people. If I had a choice I would do it all again. Not only was I in the best spot on the line (corner of the block) I was also right in front of the giant billboard showing the MGS4 trailer so I had a bunch of folks coming up to me and asking me "What is this line for?"After responding with Hello Kitty Island Adventure 3 I would then tell them that it's MGS4 for the PS3. Although they didn't know what the game was (some of them did) they all seemed interested and liked our dedication to the franchise. As for the Halo 2 launch I was smack in the middle of the ghetto (where I lived at the time) so it was more about survival then enjoyment!

In the end it's all about the games:
With all midnight launches they all end with one thing; a game in your hand. The feeling of knowing you stood on a line in the blistering cold (or sweltering heat) and endured the elements, all for the joy of going home and popping in that disc and enjoying your game. There is nothing better then that, trust me

So if your going to the midnight launch for Uncharted 2 and Brutal Legend, just make sure you enjoy yourself. It's worth every second.