Sledgehammer Games’ biggest test to date with the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare franchise is likely Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, as rumors of its rushed development have placed a great deal of pressure on the game. It’s true that the release, in its initial version, had to rely significantly on repurposed assets; one example of this is the multiplayer map pool, which was made up completely of 2009 MW2 maps.
Even though Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 didn’t have a lot of original content when it first came out, Sledgehammer Games has had a lot of opportunities to make an impact on the game through its in-game seasons. In recent months, MW3 has benefited from a wealth of new content, including the addition of vital new maps, operators, weapons, and game modes. Fans are especially interested in the recently released MW3 maps, and the popularity of Sledgehammer’s new, smaller-scale maps indicates how adept the studio is at creating these kinds of experiences.
The Second Season of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is a Love Letter to the Smaller Maps of Sledgehammer Games
Call of Duty’s multiplayer gameplay moves more quickly than that of other first-person shooter franchises, such as Battlefield, which makes it work well in settings that are more intimate and embrace the chaotic nature of the game’s rhythm. Over the years, Call of Duty has created some of the most recognizable small multiplayer maps in the entire gaming industry; games like Shipment and Rust have become cultural icons in and of themselves.
Despite this, given that Shipment and Rust have appeared in Call of Duty a total of 14 times over the years, it is evident that certain members of the community are becoming weary of them. Sledgehammer Games has been working hard in recent months to introduce fresh, more manageable experiences to Modern Warfare 3, and on December 6th, the Meat map was added to the game, maybe in recognition of this.
Although playing smaller maps can be irritating, Meat has been praised by many as one of the greatest original tiny maps that Call of Duty has published recently. Season 2 of the game has obviously tried to live up to this praise. Stash House was added to the game with the release of Season 2, which debuted on February 7 and has since received a lot of favorable attention. Meat and Stash House both have a great mix of indoor and outdoor areas, which adds a surprising lot of variation to their gameplay for such little packages.
For MW3’s Smaller Maps, Sledgehammer Games Has Looked to the Past
Sledgehammer’s skill at creating smaller maps extends beyond Modern Warfare 3, too; one of the most well-known levels from the game is Das Haus from Call of Duty: Vanguard. Modern Warfare 3 is expected to release a remastered version of the level later in its current season, demonstrating how popular Das Haus has become.
Though opinions on the larger-scale Modern Warfare 3 maps released by Sledgehammer Games have been rather divided, the studio’s smaller-scale creations have already developed a devoted fan base. The popularity of these smaller levels and the impending rerelease of previous studio maps are fast establishing Sledgehammer as the best studio for Call of Duty’s more private multiplayer environments.