5 Reasons Why Call of Duty: Mobile Could Be a Better Esport Than PUBG Mobile and Free Fire

Call of Duty: Mobile was touted as one of the most anticipated and exciting mobile titles of 2019 and despite the game exploding onto the scene, it seems that there has been little progress in the esports side of things. While the PC version is already a successful esports title, it only seemed natural that the mobile version would make a transition. With the game’s familiar mechanics, natural competitive feel and legacy past, it is a real shocker that the game is so far behind in the competitive genre. 

In the mobile space, the shooter genre is largely dominated by titles like PUBG Mobile and Free Fire, both Battle Royales. In many aspects, Call of Duty provides a very unique gameplay and viewing experience when compared to these two and can easily be seen as an emerging contender. With the publishers finally making a foray into establishing an esports ecosystem with the Call of Duty: Mobile Championship, could this be the start of something great? 

[Also read: Call of Duty Mobile Championship Details Revealed in Leak] 

We take a look at 5 key reasons why Call of Duty: Mobile is a different experience from existing games and what is offered to viewers in an esports sense. 

1. Easy for Casuals to Understand

One element which makes CODM easy to follow is the fact that it’s much easier to follow. You can tune in halfway into the game and get a brief round up of which team is on top by looking at the score. Unlike a BR, where you have to follow 16 teams and can’t really tell which teams are doing well till quite late into the game a CODM map has only two teams in it. Be it Hardpoint, Team Deathmatch, Domination and Search and Destroy the  game follows a simple scoring system that isn’t too difficult to follow. In Battle Royale not only do you have to track the individual map, but the points table for the entire tournament for things to make sense. 

Being easy on the eyes makes viewing a game a lot more natural and is one of the reasons why a game that is simple, such as football gets more viewers than one which is super technical, such as Formula 1. 

Even on the PC, Battle Royale's like Fortnite may be fresh on the market, but are yet to enjoy the long term success of a title like CSGO

2. Rivalries Feel More Natural

With 16 teams in the mix, rivalries and matchups in BR’s can mean very less, especially because team’s don’t contest each other's drops and may end up not engaging each other throughout the map. However the potential to build up these massive regional and inter-regional rivalries is much higher in CODM as the tournament structure will be triangular, i.e. good teams will meet each other in higher stages of the competition. Having key player and team rivalries makes games very entertaining and almost every great sport and esport has been built on the back of this. 

StarCraft's Success came largely because the rivalries in that game very intense, spectacular and massively well defined | Read the full article on TL.net

3. Player and Team Story lines are Easier To Follow

In a BR title 40-80 players are in a map at the beginning, which makes it incredibly hard to follow the narrative and individual story of a team. As a result, fans tend to be less emotionally invested in these titles. Unlike a two-team match, in a BR each team gets significantly lower screen time and exposure and if you are a fan of a certain team, you’ll find it difficult to follow that team’s journey as the action is spread across the map. When only 10 players are involved however, the build up and narrative in each map can feel a lot more involved as you are able to track most players and their performance throughout the match. 

4. Strategy, Skill and Action Can Be Tracked

In BRs the focus is on high level strategy and rotations, which is difficult to track and visualize, and while there are moments of incredible skill and action, chances are many of these might not be caught on camera. In a match of CODM however, it’s easier for the casters to break down the strategy round-per-round and you can actually see the magic unfold in front of your eyes. You can see how each round plays out and what sort of movement your favorite player is making, what sort of angles they are holding and in general the skill level of the players and teams is much more apparent in the match. In a BR , many good decisions and strategies happen on a macro level and can be difficult to see while on CODM, there are more micro level decisions that affect the game directly and can be observed clearly. 

5. Round per Round Buildup and Climax

In a BR, a typical map will start with the action being super slow in the start and slowly ramp up to a point where it becomes impossible to track everything. This process can often take a good 20-30 mins making it hard to anticipate. In an objective/goal/timer based round the action is often easier to follow as there is a set build up followed by an action phase which is quite easy to predict. It also allows you to tune in and out of the broadcast making it a more realistic watching experience. There is also a lot more opportunities for hero plays and clutches in Call of Duty as it is a round based game and it is definitely a factor when deciding a popularity of a title. 

PUBG Mobile and Free Fire are two giants in the mobile esports space and it’s hard to see Call of Duty: Mobile making an immediate impact. However, rest assured that the title has the necessary ingredients to be a successful esport title. Also this isn’t a claim that it in any way is a better title than others, but only highlights some key areas where it has an advantage.