Shoot people in space this weekend with free ‘Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare’

By Brad Jones December 13, 2016

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Activision has announced plans to make a sizeable preview of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare available to all Xbox One and PlayStation 4 owners this weekend. Between December 15 and December 20, portions of the game’s three primary modes will be offered up for free.

Players will be able to take on two full missions from the game’s campaign, according to a report from Eurogamer. They will also be able to dive into the game’s multiplayer modes until they reach a rank of 15, and try out its zombies mode until they attain rank 3.

The idea is obviously to give players a taste of the game for free, in the hopes that they’ll upgrade to the full version once the trial period comes to a close. All progress made in the free preview will carry over should players choose to make a purchase.

News of this free trial comes in the wake of reports that Infinite Warfare is under-performing in terms of sales. NPD figures for November indicated that the game’s sales were down by almost 50 percent compared to the 2015 release of Black Ops III.

2016 has been a very competitive year for shooters, with the likes of Overwatch, Rainbow Six: Siege, and Battlefield 1 receiving plenty of praise for their multiplayer, and Titanfall 2 and Doom being highly commended for their single-player. It seems that strong competition, combined with the unpopular decision to push the game’s setting further into the future, has undercut the popularity of the once-dominant franchise.

At this point, a free trial seems like a sensible strategy to encourage more players to try the game for themselves. In previous years, Call of Duty games have had little trouble maintaining an active player base — but sales being down could be reflected in-game by a diminished multiplayer community.

The free preview of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare gets underway on Thursday, December 15 at 1PM EST. Activision has confirmed that the trial will be available across both Xbox One and PlayStation 4, but there’s currently no word on whether PC players will get to take part.

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Brad is an English-born writer currently splitting his time between Edinburgh and Pennsylvania. You can find him on Twitter…

Gaming

Best Perk-a-Colas in Modern Warfare 3 zombies, ranked

A lineup of perk sodas from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

Ever since perks were introduced to the series, they've been a staple in every game mode in Call of Duty. For Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, you can obviously pick your perks during multiplayer, but not so in Zombies. This mode has always made perks work slightly differently, using different names, but similar mechanics. This time around, the Perk-a-Colas have returned, and these cans of refreshing soda just so happen to give your character a massive improvement. You can grab one from a vending machine on the map in exchange for your points, but they don't come cheap. Since these perks last you the rest of the match (or until used for some of them), you will want to choose your flavor wisely. These are all nine Perk-a-Colas in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 ranked from best to worst.

It is important to note that the location where each perk machine spawns on the new Zombies map is random for every match. There's no way to know where any specific perk will be, but you can see where perk machines spawn on your map as indicated by a downward pointing arrow.

Gaming

The best Call of Duty games, ranked

Soldier holding weapon in Modern Warfare II.

Few video game series are as influential and popular as Call of Duty. The annualized franchise throws players into fast-paced battles across various historical time periods -- along with fictional eras, as well. Call of Duty has taken us to World War II, the Cold War, a modern setting, and even to the future.

Although it's one of the most successful video game franchises out there, Call of Duty's quality varies significantly, with some fantastic entries in the series, but many mediocre ones as well. But which Call of Duty games are worth your time and which ones should you skip? To answer that question, we've ranked all the mainline entries in the series, with details about why you should or shouldn't play that particular game.

Gaming

The best field upgrades for Modern Warfare 3 Zombies

A man holding a mysterious glowing vial.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's Zombies mode puts a slight twist on the mechanics you are already familiar with. It now plays much more like a souped-up DMZ mode rather than its old round-based format. And Field Upgrades have been modified in terms of both their effects and how you get them just for this game type. There are six different Field Upgrades you can bring into the map and use on a cooldown timer to help improve your chances of survival, but you can only pick one at a time. You will begin the game with only one option, but steadily unlock the rest as you level up. Once you have them all, the question then becomes which is the best Field Upgrade? We've managed to exfiltrate with the answer.

Healing Aura
Regardless of whether or not you're playing with a team or running solo, Healing Aura is no doubt the best Field Upgrade to bring on any Zombie run. When activated, you and any teammates in the area will not only gain immediate healing, but it will also instantly revive any downed teammates. The downside to all this power is that this upgrade has the slowest recharge time and is unlocked at level 19.
Aether Shroud
This is another upgrade that you will be glad to have. Aether Shroud makes you you temporary invisibile to all Zombies. This won't make you invincible, mind you, and PMCs can still take shots, but if you're getting swarmed and have no way to escape, becoming instantly invisible to a bloodthirsty pack of zombies can save your skin more often than you think. This upgrade has a medium recharge rate and is unlocked when you hit level 39.
Frenzied Guard
Just past the halfway mark, Frenzied Guard has a massive upside, but not without some risk. When you pop this Field Upgrade, you instantly repair all your armor, but also draw all the aggression of any enemy nearby for 10 seconds. However, another perk is that anything you kill during this time also repairs your armor, so situationally, it can be great or detrimental. This one recharges slowly, unlocking at level 9.
Frost Blast
Frost Blast does exactly what you expect: it fires a freezing blast that will slow down any enemy you hit with it and deal a bit of damage. It's decent in a pinch, but not a game-changer. You can get it when you hit level 29.
Tesla Storm
An odd ability on paper, Tesla Storm is only good if you have a team working together. Activating it will create a lightning chain between you and your team that will damage and stun enemies that get close to any one of you. It lasts for 10 seconds and can be great in the final moments while holding out for an extraction, but not in other situations. It recharges slowly and is the last upgrade you unlock at level 50.
Energy Mine
This is your default Field Upgrade, so it makes sense that it's the "worst" on the list. Energy Mine isn't exactly bad; you simply lay down a mine that does what a mine does -- explodes. It's just that setting up traps like this in Zombies isn't all that applicable except when kiting a boss around or waiting for the helicopter. It has a medium recharge speed.