Modern Warfare 3 Was The Worst Pick As Call of Duty’s Game Pass Debut

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Obaid Ur Rehman

At Tech4Gamers, I mainly cover new gaming news, leaks, and rumours. Aside from that, I love to write features about my favourite games while inserting my opinion about their different aspects. 

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Not too long ago, Xbox introduced a price hike to Game Pass, which became controversial quite quickly. Many fans were making a big deal out of the price hike, and even the FTC joined the parade. However, Microsoft managed to call out FTC and cleared some things. 

Even though the subscription service is now more expensive, I think it is still a solid deal, especially the ultimate tier. Call of Duty is also on the service now, but Xbox couldn’t have picked a worse entry to debut the series on Game Pass.

Why it matters: Releasing the worst-rated game in the mainline series while fans were still worrying about the price hike was a bad move.

Modern Warfare 3 Is The Worst Call of Duty

For those unaware, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is the worst-rated entry in the series. Even though the sales were pretty solid, the majority of the fandom didn’t like the game. The multiplayer wasn’t half bad, but the main problems lie with the campaign. 

I didn’t enjoy the campaign at all since most of the things didn’t live up to expectations. Makarov would just come out of nowhere and be portrayed as smart just for the sake of being smart. Moreover, his plans didn’t really make much sense. The story was also just four hours long, while the launch multiplayer content was all recycled.

Due to all these negative aspects, it is considered the worst Call of Duty ever. However, despite such reception, Xbox decided to release it on Game Pass. The game is already available on the subscription service, but I don’t understand why the gaming giant made such a foolish decision.

Clearly, fans wouldn’t want to play Modern Warfare 3 for the campaign, and for multiplayer, there are way better options already. So, why would anyone bother with this negatively reviewed title? Xbox doesn’t seem to have thought much about this decision.

An Iconic Call of Duty Would Have Been Better

In my opinion, it would have been way better if the gaming giant had released an old Call of Duty on the service to kick things off, as most of them are pretty solid. If it wanted to attract more of the fandom to Game Pass, wouldn’t it have been better to just release Black Ops 2, the original Modern Warfare 2, or World At War?

These are my favourite Call of Duty games, and I would have loved to see them on Game Pass. I would have definitely downloaded these titles from the subscription service for the nostalgia trip, and I think many would have done the same.

We already saw a resurgence for these first-person shooters last year, so there’s clearly plenty of demand for the older Call of Duty entries, with Black Ops 2 being the most beloved. I still find these older classics much more appealing than Modern Warfare 3, and I suspect the same is true for many others.

Imagine if Xbox had launched all the classic Call of Duty titles on the service at once. Game Pass could have been the go-to for those looking to replay the older campaign or multiplayer experiences. The current decision wasted all this potential.

Game Pass Can Still Do Better

Anyhow, what’s done is done. We can’t do anything about Xbox choosing the worst entry in a beloved series for Game Pass. However, it can still release big hitters and bring more people to the service.

If you enjoyed Modern Warfare 3, Game Pass is probably more valuable to you than it was before. Fans can still expect older releases in the future, so the service will only improve from here.

More Call of Duty titles are bound to be released soon. The upcoming Black Ops 6 will arrive on the Ultimate tier from day one, and I have high hopes for this particular release since Treyarch is the lead developer behind the multiplayer.

Raven is also returning for the campaign, and this combination worked well for Black Ops Cold War. Black Ops 6 is set to release on October 25, so there is still some time left. However, Game Pass subscribers can currently jump into the early beta on PC, Xbox Series S|X, and Xbox One platforms.

Obaid Ur Rehman

[News Editor]

Obaid is pursuing a Law degree while working as a content writer. He has worked as a gaming writer for over three years because of his passion for the medium and reporting the latest updates in the industry. Having played hundreds of games, Obaid finds himself coming back to Elden Ring, Cyberpunk 2077, and Red Dead Redemption 2, with these games being among his favorites. He has also been mentioned on highly regarded websites, such as Wccftech, Metro UK, PS Lifestyle, GamePressure, VGC, and Gamespot.