The Call of Duty franchise doesn’t have the best history on mobile, but the forthcoming release and current closed Beta of Call of Duty Mobile may finally establish the series as a portable force to be reckoned with.
Call of Duty Mobile has long been teased by Activision, having been available in China for quite some time before finally coming to Western gamers. Registrations opened a few months ago for the game’s closed beta on Android, which opens today in select countries.
Activision hasn’t detailed which countries have access to the beta, but we do know more about what Call of Duty Mobile will offer.
So what do we know so far? Call of Duty Mobile will be free-to-play, and will offer some of the most iconic weapons, modes and maps from across the Call of Duty franchise, including Nuketown, Crash, and Hijacked. Modes such as Team Deathmatch, Free for All and Domination will also be included, along with, thankfully, Search & Destroy.
Call of Duty Mobile Controls
The first-person genre, be it shooter or otherwise, hasn’t always transitioned well to mobile, with few developers being able to really nail the touch-screen nature of the controls.
Unless a player has access to a control pad for their phone, controls are limited to the screen, with a majority of players using smaller version screens of popular phones than the larger alternatives such as the Note or iPhone equivalent.
Call of Duty Mobile will have some different options when it comes to controls: you’ll be able to adjust the settings to automatically run so you don’t need to always be pressing a sprint button, although this may not be especially useful for snipers that wish to remain silent, should they not have the appropriate perks applied to their class.
There is also a “Simple” or “Advanced” control scheme, with the former simplifying the controls, while the latter keeps things as tied and in line with controller controls as possible. Simple, for example, will automatically fire once a crosshair hits an enemy, whereas Advanced Mode requires you to manually fire and aim.
Call of Duty Mobile Customisation
Customisation is obviously an important component of Call of Duty Mobile given the sheer variation on offer, and how welcoming the franchise more broadly is in allowing you to adjust your game style and class to your preferred loadout.
You’ll have the standard range of customisation options available, including primary and secondary weapons, and a bunch of attachments for each.
Call of Duty Mobile Modes
So far we know that Team Deathmatch, Free For All, alongside Search And Destroy are confirmed. Reports point to Hardpoint, Domination and Frontline also making an appearance, with support for between eight to ten players.
The most recent trailer, which you can view in this article, also teased Black Ops 4‘s Battle Royale mode, Blackout, right at the very end, with a quick glimpse of the icon dropships opening their cargo bays before a drop.
Maps
We just have to expect — and beg — for the best from Call of Duty.
We know that Nuketown, Crash, and Hijacked will be there. But we’d love to see Crossfire, Shipment, Bloc, and Overgrown from Call of Duty 4.
If you’re not part of the current closed beta for Call of Duty Mobile, you can register for the open beta here, which is set to kick off next month.
