As someone who has played and enjoyed the Call of Duty franchise since the original COD came out in 2003 it is very disheartening to see the developers of the game abandon their PC customers for console gamers.  It is no secret that in recent releases of the COD franchise, mainly those without dedicated servers (especially the most recent release Modern Warfare 3) hacking has been prevalent throughout the game. Hacking ruins games, a frustration any true gamer shares.

The old system of having dedicated servers, and allowing admins to deal with hackers on their own was significantly better as they were able to create hack free zones so gamers could enjoy the game the way it was meant to be played. Modern Warfare 3’s (and other title’s) new system where they did away with dedicated servers and replaced it with a console-like version has significantly impacted the game in a negative way. Now all of the policing is in the hands of the developers, a job they seem to not want to do to their fullest ability.  

There are plenty of PC games out there that do not have this type of hacking problem.  EA Games’s Battlefield franchise is a great example.  A different genre of game but one with a large following, League of Legends, is another, and that game is 100% free-to-play. When speaking with Activision’s customer service, their rep said “anyone can hack any game if they put their mind to it” and “PC games are significantly easier to hack than console games” well that isn’t really the point now is it. And yes, PC games are easier to hack if you provide easy code with entries for hackers and refuse to do patch fixes to update your code regularly in an effort to flush out hacks. Clearly there are plenty of online multiplayer games out there that do not suffer the same hacking issues that Modern Warfare 3 and other recent COD titles are plagued with.  It seems to me that Activision, Infinity Ward, and Sledgehammer Games are just too lazy to really do anything about it since people still buy their games.

I love the COD franchise. I think their games are top notch and a lot of fun.  The only major downside is the hacking and server issues.  If we make our voices loud enough, maybe they will be willing to put the time and effort into fixing the issues in their current titles and working to prevent the problems from occurring in future titles. Black Ops 2 is rumored to be announced next month.  Let’s make sure the developers hear us loud and clear.  We want a hacker free experience!