The Best Game I Played: May 2017 | Call of Duty: Zombie Chronicles

Jun 02, 2017

By: Max Cannon

A lot of different games flash across my TV, some of them good and some of them are not so good. If you're looking for a great gaming recommendation you are reading the right article. Each and every month I'll give you the update on my favorite game I played over the last 30 or 31 days. Some of these games will be newer releases and some will be ancient games that I dug out of my dusty old cabinet but they'll always be something I'm passionate about.

This month's game is a DLC blast from the past.

Call of Duty: Zombie Chronicles

Call of Duty: Zombie ChroniclesCourtesy of Activision

As is true with many millennials, I'm very deeply obsessed with nostalgia. While Call of Duty is a newer franchise in the overall history of gaming, I have some beloved memories playing Call of Duty with friends during my high school years. Staying up late to pair up with a friend and play games online was an insane milestone in gaming but not having an Xbox 360, and instead siding with PlayStation 3, I was unable to play Gears of War and its popular Horde Mode.

Horde Mode, Survival mode, and wave based gaming appear in an exhausting amount of titles but it was a noble idea at the start of the last generation. Basically, these are game modes where players fight increasingly tough waves of enemies -- which is also featured in Killing Floor 2 with PlayStation Plus in June.

The original Black Ops' Ascension map makes a return.Courtesy of Activision

Bringing Up the Past

The announcement of Call of Duty: Zombie Chronicles was a surprise for a few reasons. First, this isn't a DLC for Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare -- the most recent entry in the Call of Duty series -- but rather a new update to Treyarch's Black Ops III which released way back in 2015. Second, this update includes no new maps but rereleases of maps included in previous games like Black Ops, Black Ops II, and the very first map in World at War.

While I still enjoy recent versions of Zombie modes, especially the setting of Infinite Warfare's attempt at the game, they often feel overly complicated. Of course, that first map from World at War feels a little too barebones but returning to the original Black Ops' historic map Kino Der Toten made me feel immediately at home.

The start of the confusing Call of Duty: Zombies story takes place in Origins.Courtesy of Activision

While many games have painfully simple modes, like Uncharted 4's Survival Mode, most of these maps nail a perfect balance to keep score chasers engaged. Buying new weapons off the wall, barricading windows, and taking your chance at the mystery box prove how timeless the gameplay of this mode is and that's without taking advantage of the perks, traps, and Pack-a-Punch'd weapons to fight off the hordes.

There have been a couple of modernizations to bring these maps up to speed. Visually it's impressive while still retaining the feel of the original and guns have been replaced with the guns of Black Ops III. Don't worry though, some of the classics weren't left on the cutting room floor, you'll still use your Thunder Gun, Ray Gun, and a few other classics.

The Thunder Gun returns!Courtesy of MrDalekJD

We've gotten our fair share of remasters this generation. Everything from Skyrim to Arkham City has made its way from last generation consoles to current, and while the rereleases can often feel overwhelming this return to the greatest maps CoD Zombies has to offer feels perfect. It's the DLC I never knew I really wanted and I cannot recommend it enough.