Sequels and franchises dominate the entire entertainment industry. From books to movies, it’s almost impossible to escape long-running series that seem to have new installments every few years. Video games aren’t immune to this trend, and it seems that players only grow more enamored with certain titles with each subsequent release.
“Call of Duty: Black Ops 2” and “Halo 4” are already on track to become two of the best-selling games this year, and possibly of all time. Microsoft reported that the latest installment of the “Halo” franchise earned over $220 million on its release day. Meanwhile, “Call of Duty: Black Ops 2” follows a game that shattered sales records only a few years ago.
While Microsoft and Activision, the titles’ publishers, are interested in how the sales battle plays out, gamers simply want to know which game is the best.
Story
Few fans would said they buy “Halo” or “Call of Duty” for a detailed story, but the campaigns are still part of the games. However, in Halo 4, some gamers felt the single-player mode is a bit simple, and almost feels more like target practice for multiplayer mode.
In “Black Ops 2”, the game actually allows players to have a bigger impact on the game by allowing them to make choices that affect the conclusion.
Graphics
Gamers expect hyper-detailed worlds and characters, which is exactly what both sequels deliver. “Halo 4” puts gamers on alien planets with deadly enemies that look almost realistic. “Call of Duty: Black Ops 2” drops players into a futuristic war zone that is a theoretically accurate representation of destroyed cities.
Multiplayer
When fans play first-person action titles, they spend most of their time online fighting against and alongside friends and strangers. The team behind “Black Ops 2” may have included too many web features in the game they produced. The mini-games, zombies and battle modes can be fun, but some reviews indicate that the game could have benefited from focusing on fewer concepts.
“Halo 4” borrows some of features from “Call of Duty” and seeks to improve on them. Gamers now have access to new weapons and perks for reaching certain accomplishments. There are also “Spartan Ops,” which are essentially small campaigns players can complete with the help of an online team.
While both titles have loyal fans that will champion one game over the other, do you think “Call of Duty: Black Ops 2” or “Halo 4” was the better first-person action game? Why or why not?
