Infinite Warfare
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''Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare'' is a 2016
first-person shooter First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the p ...
video game developed by
Infinity Ward Infinity Ward, Inc. is an American video game developer. They developed the video game '' Call of Duty'', along with seven other installments in the ''Call of Duty'' series. Vince Zampella, Grant Collier, and Jason West established Infinity Wa ...
and published by
Activision Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one ...
. It is the thirteenth installment in the '' Call of Duty'' series and was released worldwide for PlayStation 4,
Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for ser ...
, and
Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third base console in the Xbox series of video game consoles. It was first released in North America, parts of ...
on November 4, 2016. Development of ''Infinite Warfare'' began during 2014. It is the first title by Infinity Ward under the new three-year development cycle for the ''Call of Duty'' series. The game's campaign is centered around a battle for the
Solar System The Solar System Capitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar ...
, which the Settlement Defense Front (SDF), a hostile force who are the main antagonists, are attempting to take over. The player takes control of Lieutenant Nick Reyes of the Special Combat Air Recon (SCAR). They have their own transforming fighter, named "Jackal", that they can customize as well as a central hub ship named ''Retribution''. ''Infinite Warfare''s announcement trailer was noted for its strong negative reaction; it was the second-most-disliked video on
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at the time. Commentators attributed this to ''Call of Duty'' fans expressing frustration at the direction the series had taken, specifically that the game and its predecessors had futuristic settings. Nevertheless, the game received generally positive reviews upon release; it received praise for its gameplay, characters, and Zombies mode, but criticism for its multiplayer mode, while its single-player campaign received mixed opinions. It was named as Best Shooter at E3 by ''
Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
'' and was nominated for several awards. ''Infinite Warfare'' underperformed in sales compared to previous ''Call of Duty'' titles, though it was the top-selling game in the US in November 2016. Special editions of ''Infinite Warfare'' were released with a remastered version of '' Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'', entitled '' Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered''.


Gameplay


Campaign

Similar to the previous games in the series, ''Infinite Warfare'' is a
first-person shooter First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the p ...
. As the game introduces a new setting,
outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...
, new gameplay mechanics, such as
zero-gravity Weightlessness is the complete or near-complete absence of the sensation of weight. It is also termed zero gravity, zero G-force, or zero-G. Weight is a measurement of the force on an object at rest in a relatively strong gravitational fi ...
environments, are included. Players are equipped with a boost pack, and a grappling hook, which allow players to move in these zero-gravity environments easily. As the game is set in space, players can visit different planets, satellites and asteroids in the
Solar System The Solar System Capitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar ...
. Assuming control of Captain Nick Reyes, a Tier 1 Special Operations pilot, players engage in aerial combat with enemies using his transforming fighter, the Jackal. Aerial combat is not on-rail, as players can freely control the Jackal with few limitations. According to Infinity Ward, both space combat, and the franchise's signature "boots-on-the-ground" gameplay are the game's key focuses. Transition between space combat and boots-on-the-ground combat is seamless with no
loading screen A loading screen is a screen shown by a computer program, very often a video game, while the program is loading (moving program data from the disk to RAM) or initializing. In early video games, the loading screen was also a chance for graphic a ...
. Players gain access to Retribution, a central hub world. In Retribution, players can view their progression, and start main campaign missions, and secondary quests called "Ship Assaults" which gives them cosmetic and customization items, upgrades to the Jackal, as well as new story details. Reyes also has a wrist computer, which allows him to hack into enemies' gadgets and machines such as robots. It can also be used to call in reinforcements at some campaign scenarios. The game also features two new difficulty modes, Specialist and #YOLO, unlockable after initial completion of the campaign. In the former mode, health regeneration does not occur without Nano Shots, and weapons can be shot out from players' hands. Reyes' movement would be hindered if his legs are shot by enemies. In the latter mode, which also implements the same features from Specialist, when players die, they need to restart the game rather than restarting from checkpoints.


Multiplayer

''Infinite Warfare'' introduces a major overhaul to the class system called the "Combat Rigs". Similar to the Specialist system in ''Black Ops III'', there are six rigs in total, being Warfighter, Merc, FTL, Stryker, Phantom and Synaptic. All of which have different payloads, weapons, abilities and playstyles. For example, the Synaptic rig is designed for players who prefer to run and gun, while the Phantom rig is suited for players who want to play stealthily. Players can also gain access to several persistent perks, known as "Traits", which give players advantages in certain combat situations. Additionally, the game retains the chain-based momentum movement system of ''Black Ops III'', allowing players to perform thrust jumps, sliding, and wallrunning. The game features hundreds of both primary and secondary weapons. Players can gain access to several types of weapons, including traditional ballistic weapons and melee weapons, futuristic energy weapons, and different kinds of grenades, such as the Seeker Grenade and the Black Hole Grenade. Players can add attachments on them to enhance their efficiency. The game also introduces a new weapon crafting system. In a multiplayer match, players earn "Salvage" points, which can be consumed to purchase Prototype Weapons, variants of existing in-game weapons. For each gun, there are four types of prototypes, classified into four groups, namely Common, Rare, Legendary and Epic. All of which grant players gameplay advantages known as the "Gun Perks". Scorestreaks return in ''Infinite Warfare'' for players who have earned sufficient points in a match. Scoresteaks offer players perks such as the ability to deploy
UAV An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft without any human pilot, crew, or passengers on board. UAVs are a component of an unmanned aircraft system (UAS), which includes adding a ground-based controlle ...
and counter-UAV, and the ability to summon a R-C8 robot, an armored robot designed to defend the player and kill other opponents.


Zombies

The game also features a
cooperative multiplayer A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...
Zombies mode, which has its own gameplay mechanics and story, separate from the campaign. The mode is designed to be more accessible to new players, with new features such as sharing points and teambuy doors, as well as keeping the core gameplay of the mode intact, such as perks and power-ups. A new feature, Fate and Fortune Cards, is introduced similarly to the Gobblegums in '' Call of Duty: Black Ops III''; the cards offer temporary boosts in-game to the players, but unlike Gobblegums they are activated through point earning, and players can select any of the five cards they have equipped at any time, not one at a time like the Gobblegum machine. After initial use of five cards, players can refill their card deck for a price up to two times in a match. Unlike the campaign and multiplayer modes, Zombies is not themed in space combat, and retains the normal movement system.


Campaign


Characters and settings

''Infinite Warfare'' is set in the distant future, after Earth has been stripped of its
natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. ...
as a result of population growth and industrial expansion, prompting the nations of the world to unite and form the United Nations Space Alliance (UNSA), a political organization that handles matters of trade, travel, land claims and all efforts relating to human
space colonization Space colonization (also called space settlement or extraterrestrial colonization) is the use of outer space or celestial bodies other than Earth for permanent habitation or as extraterrestrial territory. The inhabitation and territor ...
. The residents of Earth rely on
colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
established elsewhere in the
Solar System The Solar System Capitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar ...
in order to
mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging * Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun ...
planets and asteroids for resources. The value of these outposts, however, attracts militant radicals who seek to control them, which could place the countries of Earth in a difficult position. In response, the UNSA is defended by the Solar Associated Treaty Organization (SATO), a coordinated military structure that defends Earth and the UNSA's holdings. Prior to the events of the game, a new hostile faction emerges on
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
, calling themselves the Settlement Defense Front (SDF), a
totalitarian Totalitarianism is a form of government and a political system that prohibits all opposition parties, outlaws individual and group opposition to the state and its claims, and exercises an extremely high if not complete degree of control and reg ...
government consisting of former UNSA colonies that broke away during a previous war of secession. Following years of a troubled stalemate with the Front, relations have deteriorated to a point where the entire Solar System is poised on the brink of war. As the newly appointed captain of the UNSA Warship ''Retribution'', Commander Nick Reyes ( Brian Bloom), a Tier 1 Special Operations pilot of the Special Combat Air Recon (SCAR), is tasked to lead a crew to defeat the Settlement Defense Front on Earth, as well as journey to
outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...
and across other planets in the system using space-based fighter craft, referred to as Jackals, to stop the Front from taking over the entire Solar System. Assisting Reyes in the fight against the SDF are his mentor Admiral Fredrick Raines (
John Marshall Jones John Marshall Jones is an American actor, best known for portraying Floyd Henderson on The WB sitcom ''Smart Guy''. He is currently the spokesperson for Pizza Hut. Career Since 2021, Jones has had a recurring role as U.S. Air Force General Nel ...
), Reyes' wingman and best friend Lieutenant Nora Salter ( Jamie Gray Hyder), his robot sidekick E3N "Ethan" (
Jeffrey Nordling Jeffrey Richard Nordling (born March 11, 1962) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Jake Manning in ''Once and Again'', Larry Moss in '' 24'', Nick Bolen in ''Desperate Housewives'', and Gordon Klein in '' Big Little Lies'', as wel ...
), and the SATO Marines including Staff Sergeant Usef Omar (
David Harewood David Harewood MBE (born 8 December 1965) is a British actor and presenter. He is best known for his roles as CIA Counterterrorism Director David Estes in ''Homeland'' (2011–2012), and as J'onn J'onzz / Martian Manhunter and Hank Henshaw / ...
), Corporal Sean Brooks (
Jason Barry Jason Barry (born 14 December 1972) is an Irish actor best known for his portrayal of Tommy Ryan in the 1997 film '' Titanic''. He also starred in '' The Still Life'' for which he won numerous awards. Early life Jason Barry was born in Artane ...
) and Private Todd Kashima (
Eric Ladin Eric Steven Ladin (born February 16, 1978) is an American actor. Early life and education Ladin studied at the USC School of Dramatic Arts. Career Ladin has guest starred as William Hofstadt on multiple episodes of the AMC show ''Mad Men'' a ...
). Other notable allies include ''Retribution'' Navigator Victor "Gator" Diallo (
Omid Abtahi Omid Abtahi ( fa, امید ابطحی) is an Iranian-American actor. noorfilmfestival.com Accessed 2016-1-28 He is best known for his roles as Salim in Starz Original ''American Gods'', Doctor Pershing in ''The Mandalorian'' on Disney+, Saleem U ...
), ''Tigris'' warship captain Maureen Ferran (
Claudia Christian Claudia Christian (born Claudia Ann Coghlan August 10, 1965) is an American actress, singer and author, known for her roles as Commander Susan Ivanova on '' Babylon 5'', as Captain Maynard on Fox's ''9-1-1'', and as the voice of Hera on the N ...
), and ''Retribution'' Chief Engineer Audrey "Mac" MaCallum (
Claudia Black Claudia Lee Black (born 11 October 1972) is an Australian actress, best known for her portrayals of Aeryn Sun in ''Farscape'', Vala Mal Doran in ''Stargate SG-1'' and Sharon "Shazza" Montgomery in the film '' Pitch Black''. She has had promin ...
). Facing Reyes and his allies in battle is the commander of the starship ''Olympus Mons'', and leader of the SDF, Rear Admiral Salen Kotch (
Kit Harington Christopher Catesby Harington (born 26 December 1986) is an English actor who is widely known for his role as Jon Snow in the HBO epic fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2019). After studying at the Royal Central School o ...
), and his senior commander Akeel Min Riah (
Jim Pirri James Pirri is an American actor and fight choreographer best known for voice acting Angelo Bronte in Rockstar Studios' ''Red Dead Redemption 2'' and is also known for playing Tori Vega's dad on the Nickelodeon show ''Victorious''. He also voiced ...
).
UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
fighter
Conor McGregor Conor Anthony McGregor ( ga, Conchúr Antóin Mac Gréagóir; born 14 July 1988) is an Irish professional mixed martial artist. He is a former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight and lightweight double-champion. He is the first ...
makes a cameo appearance as SDF Captain Bradley Fillion, while
Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
driver
Lewis Hamilton Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Mercedes. In Formula One, Hamilton has won a joint-record seven World Drivers' Championship titles (tied with Mic ...
appears as ''Retribution'' Electro-technical Officer Carl Hamilton.


Plot

In 2187, a UNSA special forces team is sent to a secret UNSA weapons research facility on Europa where a prototype weapon is being developed, resulting in the SDF seizing the installation. The UNSA team recover the prototype and initiate the facility's self-destruct, but are captured by the SDF and subsequently executed by one of the SDF's main commanders, Admiral Kotch. On Earth, Reyes expresses his opinion to Admiral Raines that the SDF attack is tantamount to a declaration of war and that the UNSA should be preparing a counterattack. However, Admiral Raines explains that the UNSA's leaders do not want to escalate the situation, especially during the Fleet Week celebrations where the entire UNSA fleet gathers at
Geneva , neighboring_municipalities= Carouge, Chêne-Bougeries, Cologny, Lancy, Grand-Saconnex, Pregny-Chambésy, Vernier, Veyrier , website = https://www.geneve.ch/ Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevr ...
. Invited to enjoy the festivities, Reyes links up with his wingman Salter and is assigned the experimental E3N for evaluation. Suddenly, the UNSA's AATIS defense cannons, hijacked by the SDF, open fire on the assembled fleet; simultaneously, an SDF assault force invades Geneva. Reyes manages to fight his way to the AATIS control tower, where he shuts down the AATIS cannons and apprehend Riah, the SDF spy responsible for sabotaging them. Reyes then accompanies the surviving UNSA ships into orbit to oppose the attacking SDF fleet. The SDF's flagship, the ''Olympus Mons'', suddenly arrives and destroys more UNSA ships before it is forced to retreat. The battle is a disaster for the UNSA, as only two ships survive the battle: the carrier ''Retribution'', to which Reyes is assigned, and the destroyer ''Tigris''. Upon landing on the ''Retribution'', Reyes learns that both the ship's captain and the executive officer were killed in battle, leaving him as the highest-ranking officer of the ship and its ''de facto'' captain. Admiral Raines promotes Reyes to commander and orders him to retake the cargo port on the
Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
from the SDF. After successfully liberating the Moon, Reyes is tasked with delaying the SDF for as long as possible until the UNSA can rebuild its fleet. At this point, Reyes can embark on a number of optional missions to attack key SDF targets, as well as a strategic refueling tower on Titan, crippling the SDF's fuel supply. Later, he is sent to investigate a disturbance at an asteroid mining station near Mercury, only to find it was a diversion while the SDF destroys the ''Tigris'', leaving the ''Retribution'' as the sole remaining UNSA ship. Learning that Riah is carrying a beacon meant to signal the main SDF fleet to invade Earth, Reyes devises a plan to use the beacon to lure the SDF fleet right into the still-operational AATIS guns. The plan goes awry when Riah escapes, destroys the AATIS guns, and kills himself to trigger the beacon. The SDF arrives and the ''Olympus Mons'' destroys UNSA headquarters, killing Admiral Raines. With no other options, Reyes uses the opportunity to board and commandeer the ''Olympus Mons''. He manages to fight his way to the bridge and kill Admiral Kotch. He then takes the ''Olympus Mons'' and ''Retribution'' to
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
, where he intends to use the ship to destroy the SDF's orbital shipyard and cripple their fleet in return. While the attack is successful, the ''Olympus'' ''Mons'' is damaged to the point its weapons are inoperable, and with few other options, Reyes orders it to ram the shipyard. As a result, the ''Retribution'' also suffers damage and drifts into the ''Olympus'' ''Mons''' flight path. Both warships crash onto the surface of Mars with the shipyard still intact. Realizing that there is no way for them to get back to Earth alive, Reyes rallies the survivors of the ''Retribution'' crew and leads them on one final assault on the shipyard. Most of the surviving crew are killed, but Reyes, Salter, Ethan and a few others make it to the shipyard, where they commandeer a destroyer. However, its weapons are disabled and the mooring clamps are locked. Ethan sacrifices himself to destroy the moorings while Reyes unlocks the destroyer's weapons and orders Salter to destroy the shipyard, despite him still remaining on it. Salter reluctantly opens fire, ejecting Reyes into space. He is able to watch the SDF shipyard explode before shrapnel from its destruction punctures his suit, causing him to suffocate. Some time later, the UNSA honors Reyes and the ''Retribution'' crew's sacrifice, stating that their destruction of the SDF shipyard was a decisive victory and that the SDF has been all but destroyed as a result. Salter, who is one of only four survivors from the ''Retribution'', salutes a war memorial in Geneva listing the names of all of the UNSA soldiers who died in the conflict, including Reyes. During the credits, the recorded messages of some of the deceased ''Retribution'' crew may be heard.


Zombies


Characters

''Infinite Warfare Zombies'' stars
Ike Barinholtz Isaac Barinholtz (born February 18, 1977) is an American actor, comedian, writer, director, and producer. He is best known for his starring roles in the comedy series ''MADtv'' (2002–2007), ''Eastbound & Down'' (2012), '' The Mindy Project'' (20 ...
,
Jay Pharoah Jared Antonio Farrow (born October 14, 1987), better known by his stage name Jay Pharoah, is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and impressionist. Pharoah was a cast member on NBC's sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 2010 to 201 ...
, Seth Green and
Sasheer Zamata Sasheer Zamata Moore (; born May 6, 1986) is an American actress and comedian known for her work as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 2014 to 2017 as well as her leading roles in the TV series ''Woke'' (2020–2022) and ''Home Econom ...
as the main protagonists of the story: Aaron "A.J." Jordaniels, Andre Wright, Poindexter Zittermann and Sally Simpson. They initially appear as aspiring actors, who are trapped inside a series of horror films by director Willard Wyler (
Paul Reubens Paul Reubens (; born Rubenfeld; August 27, 1952) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and children's entertainer. He is known for his character Pee-wee Herman. Reubens joined the Los Angeles troupe The Groundlings in the 1970s, an ...
), where they play out the role of the films' archetype characters. Throughout the season, the actors encounter various celebrity actors who are also trapped in each film, including:
David Hasselhoff David Michael Hasselhoff (born July 17, 1952), nicknamed "The Hoff", is an American actor, singer, and television personality. He has set a Guinness World Record as the most watched man on TV. Hasselhoff first gained recognition on ''The You ...
,
Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film '' Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, ...
,
Pam Grier Pamela Suzette Grier (born May 26, 1949) is an American actress and singer. Described by Quentin Tarantino as cinema's first female action star (although, there are some who dispute that claim and believe Cheng Pei-pei actually holds that distinc ...
, and Cassandra Peterson who reprises her role as Elvira, Mistress of the Dark.
Jason Mewes Jason Edward Mewes (born June 12, 1974) is an American actor, comedian, film producer, and podcaster. He is best known for playing Jay, the vocal half of the duo Jay and Silent Bob, in longtime friend Kevin Smith, Kevin Smith's films. Early lif ...
has a minor voiceover role as himself, while
Fred Tatasciore Fred Tatasciore (; ) is an American voice actor who has provided voices in animated and live-action films, television shows, and video games. He is known for voicing the Hulk and Beast in various Marvel media and Solomon Grundy in various DC ...
provides the voice of the demon
Mephistopheles Mephistopheles (, ), also known as Mephisto, is a demon featured in German folklore. He originally appeared in literature as the demon in the Faust legend, and he has since appeared in other works as a stock character (see: Mephistopheles i ...
.


Plot

Some time before the events of the game, horror film director Willard Wyler lost his wife Alexandra to leukemia, causing a rift between him and his daughter Winona. At some point, Wyler made a deal with the demonic Mephistopheles, and unwillingly became a slave to him, forced to collect souls by sending them into alternate dimensions formed from his films, leading them to their deaths by the monsters of his creation. Over time, Wyler felt guilt for condemning countless victims, including Winona, to their doom, and secretly formed a plan to recruit actors who could enter his films and fight back, freeing Wyler from his prison and defeating Mephistopheles. After decades of elusive retirement, Wyler prepares for his comeback into the movie business. He invites four aspiring actors: A.J., Andre, Poindexter and Sally, to his theater for an audition, but unbeknownst to them, he intends to trap the four inside one of his own movies, "Zombies in Spaceland". The four actors find themselves in an 80's theme park, dressed as the archetypes of the era. As the four try to survive the oncoming zombie horde, they find unexpected help from famous actor
David Hasselhoff David Michael Hasselhoff (born July 17, 1952), nicknamed "The Hoff", is an American actor, singer, and television personality. He has set a Guinness World Record as the most watched man on TV. Hasselhoff first gained recognition on ''The You ...
, who has also been trapped in this movie for an unknown amount of time as his ''Knight Rider'' character Michael Knight. With Hasselhoff's aid, the four actors manage to fend off the undead, much to Wyler's chagrin, and discover a piece of an artifact known as the Soul Key. As the actors attempt to escape, they instead find themselves in another one of Wyler's films, "Rave in the Redwoods", set in a '90s campsite in the
Redwood National and State Parks The Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) are a complex of one national park and three state parks, cooperatively managed, located in the United States along the coast of northern California. Comprising Redwood National Park (established 1968 ...
, where they go up against hordes of undead raver teenagers and
sasquatch Bigfoot, also commonly referred to as Sasquatch, is a purported ape-like creature said to inhabit the forest of North America. Many dubious articles have been offered in attempts to prove the existence of Bigfoot, including anecdotal claims of ...
es. As the actors traverse across the campsite, they encounter director
Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film '' Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, ...
, who has also been trapped here for an amount of time with his friend
Jason Mewes Jason Edward Mewes (born June 12, 1974) is an American actor, comedian, film producer, and podcaster. He is best known for playing Jay, the vocal half of the duo Jay and Silent Bob, in longtime friend Kevin Smith, Kevin Smith's films. Early lif ...
. Kevin reveals that Jason died prior to the actors' arrival in the film at the hands of the chainsaw-wielding Slasher, who lurks the campsite. The actors help Kevin recover his memory, and convince him to help them escape the film. However, the group soon uncovers through the memories that Jason, along with various other victims associated with Wyler, was killed by Kevin who was unknowingly the Slasher all along. Kevin, as he fully recovers his memories, is forced to transform into the Slasher to kill the actors, but is defeated. The actors retrieve the second piece of the Soul Key, and are immediately warped into Wyler's third film, "Shaolin Shuffle", set in the backdrop of a '70s
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. The group, now dressed in 70s apparel, find help from actress
Pam Grier Pamela Suzette Grier (born May 26, 1949) is an American actress and singer. Described by Quentin Tarantino as cinema's first female action star (although, there are some who dispute that claim and believe Cheng Pei-pei actually holds that distinc ...
, who operates a martial arts dojo in the film. Pam assists the actors in fighting Wyler's zombie horde, by giving them special martial arts skills and training. The group encounter Arthur McIntosh, a failed businessman who after consuming a mysterious chemical became the Rat King, capable of controlling sewer rats at his will. The actors and Pam battle McIntosh and manage to kill him, while also retrieving the third piece of the Soul Key. The four actors are then teleported into Wyler's fourth film, "Attack of the Radioactive Thing", set in a 1950s beach area affected by a radioactive experiment. The actors encounter horror film hostess Elvira, who is also trapped inside this film, and proceed to assist her in her plan to foil Wyler's scheme. Together, they battle against a combined force of zombies as well as mutant crab-frog fusions and a giant radioactive beast dubbed Crogzilla. The crew assemble a nuclear bomb and detonate it inside the Crogzilla's belly, blowing it to bits. They then retrieve the fourth piece of the Soul Key inside the Crogzilla's eye. The four actors are then teleported into the final film, "The Beast from Beyond", as they arrive at a futuristic military station on an ice planet, where they battle against the Cryptid aliens from the ''Extinction'' series, as well as a mixture of zombies from the previous four films. After fighting against a herd of Cryptids, the four retrieve the final piece of the Soul Key, and are seemingly teleported back to Wyler's theater, where he joyfully greets them. Without letting him explain himself, the four actors furiously send Wyler back into the Spaceland movie using his own method, but ultimately realize they have become slaves to the demon Mephistopheles in Wyler's place. Mephistopheles himself appears in front of the four actors, and threatens to consume their souls; the four then arm themselves for a final battle against the demon. After seemingly winning against him, the four are teleported back to the theater, but still find themselves unable to escape. In reality, it is revealed that they are already trapped inside the Soul Jar, which contains pocket universes representing the theater as well as each of Wyler's films. Meanwhile, Wyler enlists Hasselhoff's help in Spaceland once more in an attempt to escape the movie. He reunites with the four actors and reconciles with them as all five begin to plot their next move.


Development and release

In 2014,
Activision Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one ...
announced a three-year development cycle for the '' Call of Duty'' series, in which
Infinity Ward Infinity Ward, Inc. is an American video game developer. They developed the video game '' Call of Duty'', along with seven other installments in the ''Call of Duty'' series. Vince Zampella, Grant Collier, and Jason West established Infinity Wa ...
,
Sledgehammer Games Sledgehammer Games, Inc. is an American video game developer company formed in 2009 by Glen Schofield and Michael Condrey. The pair formerly worked at Visceral Games and are responsible for the creation of ''Dead Space (2008 video game), Dead Sp ...
and
Treyarch Treyarch Corporation ( ; formerly Treyarch Invention LLC) is an American video game developer based in Santa Monica, California. Founded in 1996 by Peter Akemann and Doğan Köslü, it was acquired by Activision in 2001. The studio is known for ...
would take turns in releasing a ''Call of Duty'' video game every year so as to extend each game's development time. ''Infinite Warfare'' is the third and the last game in the first cycle, and it is the first video game developed by Infinity Ward since 2013's '' Call of Duty: Ghosts''. Development for the game dates as far back as 2014. According to Infinity Ward, the development team added many new ideas to the game, and put emphasis on the game's storytelling. The team chose space as the game's setting as they believed that it can introduce new environments to players. To make the game more realistic, Infinity Ward had consulted several military experts. The team also wants to start an ''Infinite Warfare'' sub-series.


Reveal

In February 2016, Activision announced that Infinity Ward would be the lead developer of 2016's ''Call of Duty'' game. ''Infinite Warfare'' was officially confirmed by Activision when they announced that the company would not have a booth at
E3 2016 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2016 (E3 2016) was the 22nd E3, during which several hardware manufacturers and software developers and publishers from the video game industry presented new and upcoming products to the attendees, primarily re ...
, and that their products would be shown through their partner, Sony Interactive Entertainment. Activision teased the game with a video, titled "Know Your Enemy", and a new ending for '' Black Ops IIIs "Nuk3town" map, which shows a giant airship on top of the map. The game was leaked via PlayStation Store on April 26, and the first trailer was revealed unofficially via Hulu prior to the game's official announcement. In May 2016, Activision released the official announcement trailer for the game, a week after they trademarked the name of the game. The trailer of the game was officially revealed through a live-stream on
Twitch Twitch may refer to: Biology * Muscle contraction ** Convulsion, rapid and repeated muscle contraction and relaxation ** Fasciculation, a small, local, involuntary muscle contraction ** Myoclonic twitch, a jerk usually caused by sudden muscle co ...
. As part of the reveal, Activision ran a social media game using a
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chat bot, which tasks the player to decode a message. A remastered version of '' Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'', entitled '' Modern Warfare Remastered'', was released on PlayStation 4,
Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third base console in the Xbox series of video game consoles. It was first released in North America, parts of ...
and PC alongside ''Infinite Warfare'', only available with the purchase of either the Legacy, Digital Deluxe or Legacy Pro edition of ''Infinite Warfare''. The first public piece of gameplay for the ''Infinite Warfare'' campaign was revealed as a trailer during the
Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professiona ...
press conference at E3 2016. A gameplay video of the "Black Sky" campaign mission was revealed at
San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is ...
on July 21, 2016. Also revealed was the "Terminal" map pre-order bonus for customers who pre-ordered ''Infinite Warfare''. In August 2016, Activision sent mysterious metal packages to YouTubers in the ''Call of Duty'' community. Each came with a combination lock and a countdown timer. A code was sent to all recipients to open the boxes once the timer reached 1 minute. Each box contained a variety of 80's-themed apparel, plus a cassette player and a VHS tape, which contained the reveal trailer for Zombies in Spaceland. An HD version of the trailer was released hours after, along with a reveal of the game's new mechanics, as well as the "Zombies in Spaceland" bonus preorder pack, which contains a weapon camouflage, an animated player card, as well as a "Fate and Fortune Card Pack" for use in the Zombies mode. The official reveal of ''Infinite Warfare''s multiplayer mode took place during the Call of Duty XP 2016 convention, which was held in early September 2016.


Multiplayer beta

A multiplayer beta for people who pre-ordered the PlayStation 4 version of the game began on October 14. An Xbox One beta began on October 21, and the PC version did not have a beta. The beta concluded on October 24.


Downloadable content

Players who purchased the season pass, whether it be separately or with certain special editions of the game, were to receive all four DLC packs for ''Infinite Warfare'', released in four different waves during 2017, for a slightly discounted price (compared to that of all DLC packs purchased separately). Season pass holders were to also receive 1,000 Salvage credits, the game's in-game currency, and 10 rare quality supply drops at the game's launch. The first DLC pack, named ''Sabotage'', was available to PS4 players on January 31, 2017, and to Xbox One and PC players on March 2, 2017. The pack includes the new Zombies map Rave in the Redwoods, as well as four new multiplayer maps: Noir, Renaissance, Neon, and Dominion (remade from the MW2 map Afghan). The second map pack, ''Continuum'', was released on PS4 on April 18, 2017, and on Xbox One and PC on May 18, 2017; the map pack includes four MP maps: Turista, Scrap, Archive, Excess (a remake of the MW2 map Rust), and one Zombies map, Shaolin Shuffle. The third map pack, ''Absolution'', was released on PS4 on July 6, 2017, and on Xbox One and PC on August 8, 2017; the map pack features the Zombies map Attack of the Radioactive Thing and four MP maps: Permafrost, Fore, Bermuda and Ember (a remake of the MW3 map Resistance). The final map pack, ''Retribution'', will be released on PS4 on September 12, 2017, and features the final Zombies episode The Beast from Beyond, as well as four MP maps: Carnage, Altitude, Depot 22 and Heartland (a remake of the Ghosts map Warhawk). In addition to map packs, ''Infinite Warfare'' also feature announcer voice packs, replacing the regular voice over in multiplayer with other voices. A voice pack called "UK Special Forces" was released for free to all players, featuring the voice of actor
Craig Fairbrass Craig John Fairbrass (born 15 January 1964) is an English actor, producer, and screenwriter. He is best known for his roles as Delmar in the thriller film ''Cliffhanger'' (1993), Dan Sullivan in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' (1999–2001) ...
(also known for his role as Gaz in ''Modern Warfare'', Ghost in ''Modern Warfare 2'', Wallcroft in ''Modern Warfare 3'', and Tee in ''Infinite Warfare''). Other voice packs feature various celebrities, including rapper
Method Man Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), better known by his stage name Method Man, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is known as a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He is also half of ...
, YouTuber Ozzy Man Reviews, and comedian
Ken Jeong Kendrick Kang-Joh Jeong (, ; born July 13, 1969) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, producer, writer and licensed physician. He rose to prominence for playing Leslie Chow in ''The Hangover'' film series (2009–2013) and Ben Chang in the ...
.


Reception


Pre-release

Upon release of the initial trailer, the game was heavily criticized by the community for being too futuristic. The consensus held was that this had stemmed from frustration with the current direction of the franchise, as consecutive installments released in the past few years had been set in future settings and narratives. In response to the criticism, Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg stated that he knew "that there are people in our community who are nostalgic for the 'boots-on-the-ground-style gameplay' ... ut... we also have millions of people in our community who want to have new innovative experiences in the game each year and ''Infinite Warfare'' is going to deliver that." He also stated that '' Call of Duty: Black Ops II'', whose trailer also received its fair share of dislikes, would go on to become the best-selling ''Call of Duty'' game at the time. , the trailer has received more than 3.95 million dislikes and is the 25th-most-disliked video on YouTube. Despite its pre-release criticism, ''Infinite Warfare'' was named Best Shooter at E3 by ''
Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
''. At the 2016
Game Critics Awards The Game Critics Awards are a set of annual awards held after the E3 video game conference since 1998. The awards are given to products displayed at E3 with the title Best of E3 of their category. Format The nominees and winners of the awards a ...
for the best of E3, the game was nominated for Best Action Game, but lost to rival game '' Battlefield 1''.


Post-release

''Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare'' received "generally favorable" reviews for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, while the PC version received "mixed or average" reviews, according to
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
. ''
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' gave the game a 7.7 out of 10 stating; "Despite its shift to interplanetary combat, ''Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare'' is a generally fun but inessential shooter." ''
Trusted Reviews ''Trusted Reviews'' is a web publication focused on technology, published in London, UK by Incisive Media. History Trusted Reviews was founded in 2003 by Hugh Chappell and Riyad Emeran as a response to the decline in sales of computer review ...
'' awarded ''Infinite Warfare'' 4 and a half out of 5 stars, reasoning; "A solid campaign and the excellent "Zombies" mode will see people stick around for a good while". The single-player campaign received mixed reviews. ''Trusted Reviews'' praised it as the latest example of the improving quality of ''Call of Duty'' campaigns in recent years, complimenting the "immersive experience" thanks to an almost complete lack of
loading screen A loading screen is a screen shown by a computer program, very often a video game, while the program is loading (moving program data from the disk to RAM) or initializing. In early video games, the loading screen was also a chance for graphic a ...
s, although they felt the narrative was "a bit thin". ''GamesRadar+'' praised the dark and realistic tone, and thought the game was a departure from the typical sense of heroism in the series. ''Game Informer'' thought that ''Infinite Warfare'' still included some of the series' usual elements but carried greater emotional weight than its predecessors. The story and characters received particular praise; ''Polygon'' and ''GameRevolution'' write the characters were the "strongest" and "most memorable" in the series, with ''Polygon'' feeling the writing for a ''Call of Duty'' campaign had never been bettered. ''IGN'' appreciated the dialogue and cast performances. ''GameSpot'' also praised the characters and compared the game's structure to a film, in contrast to past installments that felt like an episodic series. '' EGM'', however, panned the narrative as one of the worst they'd experienced in some time; they criticized the characterization of Kotch and Kit Harrington's "lifeless acting", as well as the supporting characters' arcs that they felt were "rushed to an uncomfortable degree"; both ''EGM'' and ''IGN'' highlighted an example when Omar expresses his dislike of Ethan, but has bonded with him without explanation by the next mission. ''IGN'' wrote the campaign was "slow and plodding" and only marginally better than ''Call of Duty: Ghosts'', which they saw as a low point of the franchise. ''
Destructoid ''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017, and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022. History ...
'' called the campaign "average", thinking only fans of ''
Mass Effect ''Mass Effect'' is a military science fiction media franchise created by Casey Hudson, Drew Karpyshyn and Preston Watamaniuk. The franchise depicts a distant future where humanity and several alien civilizations have colonized the known unive ...
'' and
sci-fi Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel universe ...
would be swayed by it. ''
Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
'' was pleased from a perception that the "frenetic" movement of gameplay in recent ''Call of Duty'' installments had been toned down for ''Infinite Warfare'' and harkened back to the series' older style. While '' EGM'' enjoyed the variety of gameplay in space, they felt that at times it was unclear as to where the player was meant to go or what their objectives were. ''Destructoid'' felt that some of the gadgets used in the game were more entertaining in multiplayer. The game's multiplayer was criticized by ''Trusted Reviews'', writing they were saddened that it was not on par with previous entries.


Sales

''Infinite Warfare'' sold 1.8 million copies in its first week in US. However, overall sales were down 50% compared to 2015's '' Call of Duty: Black Ops III''. Activision was reported to be expecting sales to be down due to the fact that ''Infinite Warfare'' was going to be a "new sub-series" and that the ''Black Ops'' name carried brand weight with it. Despite slow initial sales, ''Infinite Warfare'' was the top-selling game in the US in November 2016. Activision reported in February 2017 that the game missed their sales expectations with one of the reasons cited being that the game "didn't resonate with fans". The PlayStation 4 version sold 105,764 copies within its first week on sale in Japan, making it the bestselling game of the week in the country.


Accolades


References


External links

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