Before getting into anything, let’s get one thing clear. In terms of overall gameplay, especially single-player, COD4 blows RSV2 out of the water. The single-player in COD4 is much more organized, has better flow, and is overall…better. Much better in fact. Graphically, both games are good, but Call of Duty seems much less ‘clunky’ as far as animations go.

As far as artificial intelligence goes, I hate both games. Rainbow Six has enemies just kinda of running towards you shooting and screaming. Plenty of times I’ve found myself using cover on the exact same object an enemy was, like I would be covering on against a table and the enemy would be on the opposite side, none the wiser. Squad teammates are hardly teammates, more bullet shields then anything else. During combat they perform well, but when it comes to orders they get very annoying. Squad mates get stuck, one will follow an order while another won’t, or they will just totally ignore you. Sometimes they even tell you how moving to a certain spot is absolutely impossible, even though said spot is 2 feet away. This is in contrast to Call of Duty’s AI, which is good, however Infinity Ward saw fit to follow the most horribly annoying form of creating combat: respawning enemies. Anyone who has played the game knows what I am talking about. As far as squad combat goes in COD, the only problem is your squad seems completely incapable of doing absolutely anything without you doing it first. Never will they take one step past a line without you pushing forward first.

No, its not even debatable. Call of Duty 4 is the better game, by far. What this grudge match will focus on is online play, both games biggest addition to the world of replay value. Call of Duty went so far as to pass Halo 3, a game whose predecessor stayed on the number one spot for months. Since then, it has remained relatively unchallenged by online shooters. The biggest problem is a total lack of content. COD4 released in November, and since then we have had one update and just now an announcement of new maps. For a game released in November, just 4 new maps in April might not be enough. The question I really hope to answer in this article is for those who think Call of Duty, while great, has become a bit stale over time. The question is whether or not Rainbow Six Vegas 2 is a good enough online experience to switch over to.

After playing the hell out of COD4 then switching over to Vegas, the first thing I noticed right away is the speed. Call Of Duty is a very fast paced online shooter, not nearly as fast as games like Quake or Unreal, but fast nonetheless. It still has tactics, but can be very run-and-gun sometimes. Vegas is the opposite. It doesn’t move at a snails pace, but its a much more tactical online shooter. Anyone making an immediate switch and not changing up their style of play will be destroyed. Cover is something used very often here. Luckily, Vegas 2’s maps aren’t that large that camping and sniping are very prominent (my personal vendetta with COD4 is in fact sniping, and one of the four new maps is built for it).

Which brings us to the maps. COD4’s maps are much more open, with a few close quarters battles here and there, and a few maps built just for that. Vegas’ maps are largely indoor, tight conditions. Cover is abound, and your going to need it. As for the actual quality of the maps, both games are pretty comparable. A few maps are extremely fun, a few aren’t. There aren’t any maps in either game I just couldn’t stand to play.

The next feature to most logically address would be the foundation for any round of Xbox Live or PSN play: gametypes. This is probably the easiest of features to compare. COD4 is mostly your team versus their team, deathmatch style. Of course, games like Search and Destroy and Sabotage are there, but easily the most popular are Domination and especially Team Deathmatch. These aren’t your tactical gametypes. Of course working with a team is an option, but I honestly can’t remember the last time I coordinated in Team Deathmatch, weaving in and out of cover with a group. No, in terms of tactical gametypes, Vegas has the upperhand. If your a bigger fan of those gametypes in COD4, you’ll love them in Vegas.

Last but certainly not least, incentives. COD4 features a leveling system with the added bonus of ‘Perks’, something all players have come to know and love. As you level, you gain guns, challenges for extra XP, and those awesome little Perks. Fans of martyrdom know and love the feeling of getting killed only to see that little ‘+10′ pop up. Last Stand loyalist love the close-to-call battle, only to lose, but then pop a couple of pistol rounds back. Add in little things like Slight of Hand, Eavesdrop, etc. and it really mixes up combat and lets you have a little more fun. Unfortunately, even though a system of incentives exist in RSV2, it isn’t nearly as developed in COD4. Gone are Perks. Instead of challenges, a system called A.C.E.S takes their place. What this is, essentially, is three bonuses for kills. Marksmen, CQB, and Assault. Kill an opponent from far away, get Marksmen points. Kill an opponent close up, get CQB points. Kill an opponent with a grenade, get Assault points. Tons of little things do get added in for each, but honestly, as you play you won’t even notice until you advance a level in that particular A.C.E.S. Rewards are XP bonuses and new guns. As you level, you gain new clothing to outfit your character. That includes just clothing and accessories, but also armor. While COD4 has the best incentives for play with Perks and challenges, Vegas features the better character customization.

I hope this article helped those on the fence about Vegas, and those looking for something new to play. Of course, if you want something entirely different for Live, pick up Chromehounds and play with some friends. If you want something easy to play and learn, and much less complicated then any of the three aforementioned games, grab Halo 3.

Share:

Chuck is just way too optimistic about everything. He loves writing, relaxing, playing some games and watching some football.
Email this author | All posts by Chuck