Why Does Call of Duty Appeal To Everybody? (Almost)

Sounds a stupid question, and the answer may end up being far beyond any of our comprehension of psychology and so on. But it begs to be asked, why does Call of Duty appeal to more people than a game such as Enslaved, or Splinter Cell?

I know FPS' are a very popular genre of gaming at the moment, but then again, why's that? Let's start questioning things, instead of just accepting them. I love to delve into the reasons behind things, and discuss why things are the way they are.

So c'mon guys, you're all pretty damn intelligent; what makes Call of Duty the must have game?

» Go to SexyJams's original post

It's well marketed and it's a fairly simple shooter with a production value of a Hollywood blockbuster, set in a modern world (sometimes past) with our physics that we can relate to and feel engrosed in the action.

» Go to rbevanx's original post

Sounds a stupid question, and the answer may end up being far beyond any of our comprehension of psychology and so on. But it begs to be asked, why does Call of Duty appeal to more people than a game such as Enslaved, or Splinter Cell?

I know FPS' are a very popular genre of gaming at the moment, but then again, why's that? Let's start questioning things, instead of just accepting them. I love to delve into the reasons behind things, and discuss why things are the way they are.

So c'mon guys, you're all pretty damn intelligent; what makes Call of Duty the must have game?

» Go to SexyJams's original post

Sounds a stupid question, and the answer may end up being far beyond any of our comprehension of psychology and so on. But it begs to be asked, why does Call of Duty appeal to more people than a game such as Enslaved, or Splinter Cell?

I know FPS' are a very popular genre of gaming at the moment, but then again, why's that? Let's start questioning things, instead of just accepting them. I love to delve into the reasons behind things, and discuss why things are the way they are.

So c'mon guys, you're all pretty damn intelligent; what makes Call of Duty the must have game?

» Go to SexyJams's original post

Sounds a stupid question, and the answer may end up being far beyond any of our comprehension of psychology and so on. But it begs to be asked, why does Call of Duty appeal to more people than a game such as Enslaved, or Splinter Cell?

I know FPS' are a very popular genre of gaming at the moment, but then again, why's that? Let's start questioning things, instead of just accepting them. I love to delve into the reasons behind things, and discuss why things are the way they are.

So c'mon guys, you're all pretty damn intelligent; what makes Call of Duty the must have game?

» Go to SexyJams's original post

Okay, so why isn't Uncharted's multiplayer bigger?
Fairly simple, exciting, Hollywood blockbuster.
Is it because it's not an FPS?

» Go to SexyJams's original post

(I will get my Biology done at some point, rather than replying to threads -_-)

This is quite a big question and one that can be split into multiple parts:

1. Anticpation. For the past 4 games, Call of Duty have been (arguably) at the top of the class of the FPS genre, which is the most popular genre. So, people want to play the best that there is, due to, time restraints wanting to experience the game for yourself for example.

2. Others that have the game. This is perhaps one of the main reasons why it 'appeals' so much. For example, if I have BlOps and my friend (in this case it can be SexyJams) and I say 'Have you played BlOps Jams?' 'No?!' 'What's wrong with you, you have to get it' This, most commonly is called Peer pressure, where Jams is almost being forced into getting it. Also, if one of your friends, or a reviewer (such as Martin Gaston) says that you should get this game, then you generally will, which might be explained by Milgram's agency theory, which states that, if someone in an authoritive position [in this case the reviewer, Martin) tells you to do something then you generally will, do it, because then you're giving your own authority away to someone else and possibly because being obedient is genetic

Also, the fact that 20 million copies (I think) of Modern Warfare 2 have been sold and they wouldn't have sold that much if it was a bad, or mediocre game. And now, just 6 days after the release I haven't seen less that 400,000 players online at any one time.

3. The amount of social interaction. This kind of relates to my above point. If I say Call of Duty to you, then chances are, you'll say, online multiplayer (or stories that make no sense) and this has a big impact. You can get 100s of hours of multiplayer time with this game, so people feel that they will get their monies (sp?) worth.

» Go to Neon-Soldier32's original post

(I will get my Biology done at some point, rather than replying to threads -_-)

This is quite a big question and one that can be split into multiple parts:

1. Anticpation. For the past 4 games, Call of Duty have been (arguably) at the top of the class of the FPS genre, which is the most popular genre. So, people want to play the best that there is, due to, time restraints wanting to experience the game for yourself for example.

2. Others that have the game. This is perhaps one of the main reasons why it 'appeals' so much. For example, if I have BlOps and my friend (in this case it can be SexyJams) and I say 'Have you played BlOps Jams?' 'No?!' 'What's wrong with you, you have to get it' This, most commonly is called Peer pressure, where Jams is almost being forced into getting it. Also, if one of your friends, or a reviewer (such as Martin Gaston) says that you should get this game, then you generally will, which might be explained by Milgram's agency theory, which states that, if someone in an authoritive position [in this case the reviewer, Martin) tells you to do something then you generally will, do it, because then you're giving your own authority away to someone else and possibly because being obedient is genetic

Also, the fact that 20 million copies (I think) of Modern Warfare 2 have been sold and they wouldn't have sold that much if it was a bad, or mediocre game. And now, just 6 days after the release I haven't seen less that 400,000 players online at any one time.

3. The amount of social interaction. This kind of relates to my above point. If I say Call of Duty to you, then chances are, you'll say, online multiplayer (or stories that make no sense) and this has a big impact. You can get 100s of hours of multiplayer time with this game, so people feel that they will get their monies (sp?) worth.

» Go to Neon-Soldier32's original post

Loved reading through that. Also really enjoyed the old podcast reference, OWW! I know about psychology! Haha, a brilliant and well thought out answer.

I guess the reasons are fairly obvious then, as well all seem to be echoing the same points.

Are the reasons the same for why FPS' are so popular as well? Because they're simply point and shoot? Seems a shame if the only reason people won't play other games is because there's a bit of a barrier to entry; but it does definitely make sense. It's up to the developers to sort that out I guess.

» Go to SexyJams's original post