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Call of Duty 'Elite' service preview

Activision finally reveals its Call of Duty 'Elite' Online Service, launching in beta form for Black Ops before being added as a major part of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. Jump in to read all about it.
Garnett Lee
16
Call of Duty games reign as the most popular online shooters. Every day players log an unbelievable number of hours playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Call of Duty: Black Ops, and even some of the older titles in the franchise. But while individually the games provide an extensive system for following a player's career in the game, the tracking only covered performance in each game individually. That's where Call of Duty Elite, the new service being created by Beachhead Studios, comes in. It keeps up with all those stats and serves them up in one place. But Elite goes beyond simply creating a single character profile that works across all upcoming Call of Duty games. Its developers say they aim to create better ways for players to connect, compete, and improve. There will be a number of ways to get to Elite. It will be built into the games, of course, as well as being accessible directly from game consoles and off the Net with a browser. Mobile versions are also in the works for phones and tablets on both iOS and Android. It doesn't sound like being connected is likely to pose much of a problem.

The Call of Duty 'Elite' Online Service in action.

 With all that access, players will be able to interact with Elite much in the same way they would Facebook. Creating a sort of Call of Duty social network is certainly part of the goal for the service. Beachhead wants Elite to be the tool through which everyone shares their online progress, media like screens and videos, message each other, form clans, and create and play in organized tournaments. Changing the way players get together to play online is another important part of the service. Currently, playlists are the most common means of gathering people to play online. Elite will offer new ways to get games going, like by joining others with a shared interest for instance. The common ground could be something game related but it doesn't have to be. If all the fans of a sports team wanted to get together for a few matches, Elite would get them setup. The improvement tools are potentially the most valuable part of the package. A lot of people may play Call of Duty online, but a much smaller number of them form the skilled group that is always seen at the top of the leaderboard for a match. All the rest play less consistently, with plenty of opportunity to improve. Elite provides tools like heatmaps that show all a player's kills and deaths on a map to help them learn where they do and don't want to be the next time. From looking at tendencies and statistics, Elite can then recommend tutorials tailored to get better in related areas. These can cover things like the best way to employ a certain weapon, pros and cons for their attachments, or how to make the best use of different perks. Video tutorials will also be part of the package. Elite will launch in full alongside Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 this coming November, but a beta will come on line this summer to test the service running with Black Ops. Much of what it offers will be free but there will also be a premium paid membership option. What exactly that will entail and how much it will cost has not been determined yet. It will, though, be an all-inclusive subscription to content for Modern Warfare. Subscribers will receive every map pack at no additional cost as part of the deal. How Activision decides what features will be free versus for pay will potentially make of break Elite. I played a couple rounds of Black Ops with Elite running and can personally attest to the depth of post match information it provides. It's easy to get drawn into examining how every move on a map played out. But for the social network aspect to work, Elite needs to get a large number of Call of Duty players using the service. To get that, I think they need to give players the parts they most want, like the advanced stat keeping, so everyone is in there everyday checking out their reports. If you'd like to get in on the upcoming Elite beta, hit their official site, where sign ups are set to begin.
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  • Shacknews legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
    reply
    May 31, 2011 10:15 AM

    Garnett Lee posted a new article, Call of Duty 'Elite' service preview.

    Activision finally reveals its Call of Duty 'Elite' Online Service, launching in beta form for Black Ops before being added as a major part of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. Jump in to read all about it.

    • LoioshDwaggie legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
      reply
      May 31, 2011 10:22 AM

      So it matches what Bungie does, except it costs money?

      The only value above what Bungie offers for free is setting up the play-date groups.

      • Pneum0 legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
        reply
        May 31, 2011 10:41 AM

        These are things that add value to a title, but a monthly sub? There are ways to bring these features to a game, especially one as popular as Call of duty. It's not like they're some indie developer on the verge of collapse.

        • dedgecko legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
          reply
          May 31, 2011 10:46 AM

          Given the methods in which Activision abuses their developers (blizzard excluded), I'd say nearly all of their existing developers are 12-18 months from collapse, and any recently acquired talent is 24-36 months from the same fate.

      • mancide legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
        reply
        May 31, 2011 11:23 AM

        Most of the extra service is free.

        • thejay247 legacy 10 years
          reply
          May 31, 2011 12:40 PM

          Yeah, the paid portion of this hasn't been revealed yet.

    • Fhaze legacy 10 years
      reply
      May 31, 2011 10:53 AM

      Maybe this will appeal to some people, but there was nothing in that trailer that peaked my interest at all.

    • 3dchipset legacy 10 years
      reply
      May 31, 2011 11:42 AM

      lol! Pay per month service for a shooter? Good luck with that business model Activision! You'll get the console kiddies to bend to your will, but good luck with PC gamers who have brains and not this stuff won't jive!

      • PCsupremacist legacy 10 years
        reply
        May 31, 2011 12:38 PM

        lolz, Actitards! hero derp! Sure they can get the console kiddies to pay $8 a month or something like that but what are they gonna do when they lose the PC gamers with brains market! Didn't they learn from the MW2 boycott?!?! They will learn to fear the wrath of PC Gamers with brains!!!!@111!

        • Rohugh legacy 10 years
          reply
          May 31, 2011 12:44 PM

          What they learned from the MW2 boycott is that people will still buy their product, even the boycott participants. Also, as a supposed "console kiddie" they will never see my subscription money.

        • burningpantsman legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
          reply
          May 31, 2011 1:39 PM

          this guy is racist

          • 3dchipset legacy 10 years
            reply
            May 31, 2011 2:09 PM

            You obviously don't even know what the word racist is... Look up racist, then get back to me.. Stupidness isn't racism moron... Which apparently you fall in line with considering you don't even know what racist means.

            • Neural Imbalance legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
              reply
              May 31, 2011 3:43 PM

              -_- I think he was going for the user name joke... just saying.

              • 3dchipset legacy 10 years
                reply
                May 31, 2011 4:09 PM

                Oh shit!! You're right! My bad... The grey lines are so thin on my screen. I get the pun now that you bring up the user name joke.

                I'm a dumbass! I'll admit it. It pays to read closely!

            • opengl128 legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
              reply
              May 31, 2011 4:10 PM

              are you for real y/n

            • Wolfanoz legacy 10 years legacy 20 years
              reply
              June 1, 2011 7:12 AM

              He was using sarcasm, and you fell for it. Try being a Shacker more often, it pays off.

    • anbilow legacy 10 years
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      May 31, 2011 12:13 PM

      Man, screw these guys for making a service available that people can choose to pay for! What assholes!

      • jeffmoeller legacy 10 years
        reply
        May 31, 2011 12:44 PM

        I know right? As much as I dislike Activision, I don't mind them coming out with something like this. While I don't play CoD enough for it to be worth it to me I'm sure there are plenty of others who will be happy to fork over a few bucks a month (they said it will be less than Netflix which is only $8 a month).

    • [deleted] 596928900 legacy 10 years
      reply
      May 31, 2011 2:13 PM

      [deleted]

Hello, Meet Lola