Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is the breath of fresh air that Call of Duty needed. After the somewhat disappointing Ghosts last year, Advanced Warfare feels like a true next-gen entry in the franchise, and it’s the best Call of Duty since Black Ops 2.

Advanced Warfare may be developer Sledgehammer Games’ first full foray into the franchise, but they have changed Call of Duty drastically and after playing through the game, it’s hard to go back. Every aspect of Call of Duty has been changed, and for the better, the leap into the future has allowed us to play with some cool guns and gadgets, and these are what keeps Advanced Warfare a cut above its counterparts.

If you’ve been following Advanced Warfare even a little bit up to its launch, you’ll have no doubt seen Kevin Spacey’s face plastered all over the marketing. Yes, Frank Underwood himself graces Call of Duty with his presence, and to my surprise, he’s actually well used and is one of the best villains the series has boasted for a long while.

While the story is far better than the series has had to offer in the past, it isn’t perfect. Spacey’s character Jonathan Irons goes from idealistic CEO to dictatorial villain a little too quickly, and ridiculous set-pieces still litter the campaign. But it feels like a new take on the formula, and that’s enough to get excited for. The biggest and best new feature in the game is the Exo-Suits,  basically they’re robotic exo-skeletons that allow you to take more damage, double jump, dodge in the air and so many more features that I won’t spoil here.

The reason Call of Duty is so popular is its multiplayer, and Advanced Warfare brings the best to the table. The aforementioned Exo-Suits give combat a “verticality” that was unheard of in the series’ past, and every moment where I wasn’t dashing around the battlefield felt like a wasted opportunity. With that said, it still feels like Call of Duty at its core; levelling up will still unlock new weapons, perks and scorestreaks, and the pick 10 system from Black Ops 2 makes a return, where you can pick a certain amount of weapons and gear to take into battle, although you get 13 choices this time around.

The maps are all designed superbly, mixing up long rooftops for the Exo-Suits with sprawling corridors for series veterans. Unlike past CoD games, there are no maps that feel bad or that aren’t up to par. I never let out a groan when I found out where I would be playing next, although I still wish that there was a variety in the size of the maps. They range from large to medium, with no maps being designed for close quarters combat only; think: Rust from Modern Warfare 2 or Nuketown from Black Ops. I realise the Exo-Suits make close quarters boring, but it would be nice to have a more intimate battleground if I wanted to load a game up with just a friend or two.

The final big addition to the multiplayer is customisation. Playing for a certain amount of time or completing challenges will grant you Supply Drops, open these up after the match and you can unlock modded guns, different aesthetic gear, or even double XP for a certain time. This gave multiplayer more of an identity for me, as I felt like I had a character, not just a class. While there are far less guns to unlock, the fact that each gun has different versions with different stats and appearances actually gives Advanced Warfare more variety than before.

In place of zombies, this year we got Exo-survival. Basically waves and waves of enemies will spawn until you die. While the Exo-Suits make the mode a touch more fun, it’s mostly forgettable, even when playing with friends.

Advanced Warfare feels like an evolution for Call of Duty. Not only is it a step up from its predecessors, but it also gives a good roadmap of where the series is going to go this console generation. If you’re a fan, you’ve probably picked it up already, if you feel burnt out on the series, I would recommend giving Advanced Warfare a fair chance, because it certainly deserves your time and money.