Should Under 18s Quit Call of Duty?
- DiomedesUK
- Jan 27, 2016
- 3 min read
It has been no secret that under 18s playing competitive Call of Duty have suffered a massive blow recently due to Activision funding and partnering LANs that only supported a strict 18+ rule to play.
So what actually happened? The developers of the much played, Call of Duty, have launched the Call of Duty: World League, with both professional & challenger brackets. This league has massive financial payouts that would be enough to motivate anyone to take part. The professional league has already started, and is currently in week 3. The challenger bracket operates slightly different and allows teams build up points through offline and online tournaments. For an offline tournament to have challenger points, they must be partnered with Activision. The only catch, activison works with a strict 18+ only rule (due to legislations and laws, the developers cannot promote their game without the 18+ participation, however we'll leave out the legal jargon for this article).
This means that under 18 players can only partake in online tournaments and will not be able to compete in the largest league ever to feature in Call of Duty and will not be able to compete in most offline LANs.
So what's the point in playing?
Effectively, there is some point in playing. Those aged under 18 usually do not have all the time in the world to grind out the game like the prfessional players. With Call of Duty World League matches often taken place at 3pm on weekdays and taking up long-weekends with travelling, the younger players are often at a disadvantage with school and other commitments. The younger player has to priortise education. This is not a bad thing though! This means you can practice and learn until you are of age, while competing in some online tournaments to still fund your hobby. When you turn 18 you also have the opportunity to further your education with University if gaming is not for you.
There are plenty of tournaments like MLG, Gfinity or unofficial leagues, like our own, that offer no age restrictions but monetary payouts. In addition to scrims & gamebattles, a younger player has the opportunity to really practice and prepare themselves for when they are 18. Taking in the bigger picture and the way the Call of Duty scene is expanding, there may be more opportunities for younger players as the scene itself grows.
But if you really want to game and attend LANs then lets not forget that Halo has no age restriction. Why Halo? Its on a different console, granted, but if you were this serious about gaming then you've probably already dealt with this hurdle. Halo also offers some large prizes at LANs and has received remarkable backing from its developer, Bungie. Gfinity offered an amazing Halo experience at the weekend, its definitely a game that is up and coming!
Let's not forget, some of the greatest players in Call of Duty started in Halo and made the swap over. Formal, Halo & Crimsix all made the swap over at some point in their career and have excelled in Call of Duty. In some ways, winning championships on other games makes you more appealing to organisations and teams because you know how to win.
So as a younger player, you have many options on how to further your career. Playing amongst the Call of Duty community and creating a name for yourself so when you are of age, you will be ready to play or making the swap over from another game that so many have done before!
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