Opinion: Make Activision Great Again

Can bringing back the old solve casual gaming fatigue?

Within the last few weeks, we have seen three major titles re-released on current-gen platforms. Assassin's Creed: Black Flag Resynced, a complete remaster and rework of the original 2013 release, and ported versions of Call of Duty: Black Ops and Black Ops II for PlayStation 4 and 5. While I’m not against the idea of classic favorites being reintroduced, I believe there are both right and wrong ways to do it, and allowing major developers to resell older titles today is a slippery slope.

As an observer who has yet to play the remake, I can say that Ubisoft has seemingly delivered with Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag Resynced. They reworked everything from graphics and in-game mechanics to combat, parkour, additional content, and the removal of irrelevant aspects of the game and story. Most importantly, all the performance reports I have found indicate the game works.

Similarly, the shadow release of the Call of Duty: Black Ops and Black Ops II generated much excitement. [Editor’s Note: As of this posting, these PlayStation ports have a higher player count than Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 across all platforms combined.] However, despite my love for the series, I cannot understate my disappointment.

For starters, there is the price. I’m not one to complain about cost if something is really good, and had these releases been done properly, I wouldn’t even be bringing it up. For PlayStation Plus subscribers, each game costs $20, and all DLC for each game costs $10. So, for two complete games with all their content, you would pay $60. On paper, getting two complete games for $60, with the average release price today for a single game at $70, doesn’t sound bad at all. However, once the PS Plus discount closes, this $60 price tag jumps to $80. Once again, these are two fantastic games for $80. This is costly, but the crime isn’t the price; it’s that these games are no longer great. Allow me to elaborate.

There has been zero effort put into these re-releases. The games themselves feel like the way we played them back in the early 2010s. The graphics haven't improved, the sensitivity settings don't do anything, and the games feel… okay. I understand these were advertised as ports, not remasters, but I foolishly thought they would do more than just give us new servers for multiplayer. My main frustration is the very well-known fact that Activision has had two really well-done and successful re-releases. We got Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Remastered back in 2016, as well as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Campaign in 2020. These games were brought back perfectly. Even though one was just a remastered campaign, they played flawlessly; the games felt smooth; the content was overhauled; and they were the true meaning of what a remaster should be. The release of the Black Ops and Black Ops II ports is nothing more than a major step backward at the cost of our own wallets.

I believe that if major developers really wanted to make money, they would spend their own money to bring back dozens of old titles. Activision has already proved they can do it, which is the main part that irritates me so much. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Remastered was originally locked within special editions of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare. This bundle was released on November 6, 2016, and remained together until July 27, 2017, when it could be purchased separately. For over 8 months, the cheapest way to play the beloved classic was to pay $80 for the one game most players actually wanted to play. Yes, this is a perfect example of a big corporation bleeding our wallets dry, but at the time, it was a win-win for everyone. Activision made a butt load of money, the prepubescent children got their space jetpacking game, and the real men got a classic Call of Duty that was perfect. Activision also showed they actually care a little, too. The remaster was serviced for several years, and they even made new content rather than giving us only what had already been done a decade earlier.

My proposal to Activision, as well as to any other developer, is to remake your old stuff and really mean it. At least we could finally get the games we really enjoyed. This idea doesn't have to be limited to massive multiplayer games, as Ubisoft just proved. Give me all the remastered games, including Call of Duty, Assassin's Creed, Uncharted, Infamous, and Spider-Man: Web of Shadows (which should have been Spider-Man 2 2023). At this point, I’m going off my own personal wishlist, but I can guarantee that each of us has a list over a mile long of games we know deserve to be brought back with the respect and love they deserve.