Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare

Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare from 2014 moved the series into the near future and was the first entry to introduce exoskeletons enabling double jumps, side dodges, and fast wall-runs, which fundamentally transformed the pace of movement and combat in multiplayer compared to previous entries in the series. The campaign also relied on the digitized face and voice of Kevin Spacey in the role of the main antagonist, which was unusual for the series at the time.

On Xbox One, the game was developed directly by lead studio Sledgehammer Games, and together with the PC and PlayStation 4 versions, it represented the full, current form of the game - with the highest texture resolution, the longest draw distance, and the complete lineup of multiplayer modes and maps. The exoskeleton movement, the entry's central new feature, felt the smoothest here thanks to the power of the new console generation, while the simultaneously released Xbox 360 version ran on simplified graphics from a different development studio with a more limited content offering.

The Xbox One version was thus the one the creators primarily intended to present the game with - with the full scope of content, graphics, and network features. Compared to the PC version, the difference was minimal, mainly standard console gamepad controls; otherwise the content was identical to PlayStation 4 and PC.

As with PlayStation 4, the difference compared to the simultaneously released Xbox 360 version was apparent at first glance - double jumps, side dodges, and wall-runs felt smoother on the new console generation and in larger maps with more players, while the Xbox 360 version from High Moon Studios had to simplify these elements due to performance limits. For Sledgehammer Games, this was the first major entry in the series that the studio led on its own, and the Xbox One version, together with PlayStation 4 and PC, showcased the new mechanics in their intended form, with the highest frame rate and the fewest technical compromises among all console versions.

Why play it: For players who want to experience the first entry in the series with exoskeletons and new movement mechanics in their full form, the Xbox One version is the smoothest choice without the compromises of the older generation.