NEWS
Will Modern Warfare 3 Be Better On The PS3?
It is rumoured that Modern Warfare 3 will more than likely be revealed in April. This news came from a bit of speculation from no other than PSM3 – the UK PlayStation magazine. It is no secret that the Xbox 360 version of the last title in the Call of Duty series – Black Ops – was given much more attention than the PC and PS3 versions. The multiplayer was particularly pale on the PS3 and PC version. It may be understandable that Activision and the Modern Warfare 3 developers are trying to make it up to Sony and the PS3 by giving them priority with news and the like. It might simply be that the guys at PSM3 couldn’t keep their mouths tight. Or perhaps with all the activity going on over on the PlayStation side of things this year, Modern Warfare 3 will be prioritised for the PS3.
In my mind, the PS3 is the console leading the way this year and not the Xbox 360. This is not just because of sales, but because of a few promising features and the amount of big name exclusives that the console has over the 360 this year. The most forefront thing in my mind though, is the incorporation of Steam on the PS3. Portal 2 will be the first game to get the cross-platform treatment; is there any doubt as to which console the game will sell most on? With this new feature on Sony’s console, PS3 owners can play with their buddies on PC and Mac, cloud-based storage means save games can be transferred between the platforms, and the PS3 version will get all the advantages that Steam brings along with it regarding DLC.
Although I cannot see Activision allowing PS3 players to have a key to unlock the PC version of Modern Warfare 3 for free, they may be interested in the capabilities of Steam considering they provide one of the largest multiplayer experiences. Earlier this year we were told that Beachhead Studios would be focusing “on the delivery, digitally, of new, innovative Call of Duty content and services will enable tens of millions of players around the world to continue to enjoy the experience that Call of Duty offers." There is probably no better service for gamers than Steam when it comes to DLC, and the same can be said regarding developers and patches. It’s not very likely that we are going to see a cross-platform competitive multiplayer, but a co-operative experience may work for Modern Warfare 3 as it will with Portal 2.
The noted industry analyst Michael Pachter also picked up that "Activision said they are working on 'value added, premium content that is exclusive.'" Pachter interpreted this exclusivity as meaning that Activision were going to be adapting to a pay-to-play model in the future despite Activision stating that would never be the case. Maybe Activision were telling the truth and instead had much bigger plans. This exclusive content could refer to the added bonuses brought along with Steam for PS3 and PC players. This would not likely affect the usual multiplayer experience we expect from Call of Duty, but it may mean entirely new content that will utilize cross-platform play for PS3 and PC players. If this were the case, I think Microsoft may be a little pissed off.
If this all seems to be stretched out of proportion I am not going to disagree with you, but let’s not forget that Activision are already working closely with Sony to bring Call of Duty to the upcoming NGP. No developer has been announced as of yet though. If we are to follow the path we are going down here, that would be because it is Modern Warfare 3 and they don’t want to tell people yet. Not stopping there, Sony are working to make the NGP fully cross compatible with the PS3. Could we also see Steam on the NGP? If so, that will mean Modern Warfare 3 could be played online from literally anywhere between millions of players across PC, PS3 and NGP. The likelihood that this will happen is slim, but cross-platform multiplayer is certainly a priority at the moment.
I will admit that these speculations are probably too huge to reach yet, but if given just a glimmer of hope I suspect Activision and Sony are aiming to be the leaders when it comes to these kinds of innovations.