Wow. Last night was quite a kickoff for the very first Call of Duty XP event here in Los Angeles.
After being taken to the enormous Call of Duty XP compound, press was lead into a large hanger that will be used for the largest gatherings at the event. First and foremost, the public will be treated to a similar multiplayer reveal that the press was privy to tonight.
When we took our seats and the welcome address started, we were treated to an epic compilation of exciting moments from nearly every Call of Duty game. When Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing took to the stage to thank us for coming, we were reminded that the proceeds from this weekend’s ticket sales will be used in support of the Call of Duty Endowment, which helps returning veterans find jobs after returning home.
The first thing that was confirmed for us was that all Modern Warfare 3 DLC will appear first on XBox 360. This didn’t come as any shock given history and the fact that Microsoft is co-sponsoring the event and the $1 million competition that will be taking place here.
We were told that the impetus for a lot of the festivities is coming straight from the fans, including a paintball course modeled after the Modern Warfare 2 map, Scrapyard; The Pit training ground time trial (also from Modern Warfare 2); a 60 mph zipline; and a jeep driving mission (yes, real jeeps, real driving). In addition, the filmmakers behind the Find Makarov video have been sponsored by Activision to create a sequel entitled Operation Kingfish, which we got a sneak peak at. It’s intense and you should seek it out when it releases to the public during the event.
Before leading into the Modern Warfare 3 information we’ve all been waiting for, we were educated on the four principles that are behind the Call of Duty franchise:
1) Epic realism (walking the line between believability and blockbuster)
2) Creating an unparalleled adrenaline rush
3) Making a multiplayer experience that is easy to pick up, but difficult to master
4) Running at 60 frames per second
With that, the presentation became focused on Modern Warfare 3.