MW3 meme “aged well” as history repeats itself over a decade later
Activision MW3 2023 caught a lot of flack during its launch, and a meme from nearly a decade ago seems to paint the same picture of the original MW3 that came out in 2011.
MW3 has been in a strange position since its reveal and launch, as it’s become the butt of numerous jokes and harsh criticisms. Most notably, Christopher Judge roasted the game’s campaign portion during his speech at The Game Awards last December.
The core of the argument is many felt it would’ve been better received as an expansion to last year’s title, not a $70 package. However, that’s not the timeline we live in, and claims of reskinned DLC will forever stick to this title’s legacy.
Oddly enough, this isn’t the first CoD title to receive the “reskinned DLC label.” Funnily enough, it was the game of the same title over a decade ago that fought these accusations.
MW3 meme describes fan sentiment from over a decade ago
2011 saw Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games team up to release Modern Warfare 3, the epic conclusion to the original trilogy. Despite overwhelming praise from critics, fans heavily labeled it as “MW2.5” since many felt it didn’t change the formula enough like MW2 did for the series.
In all fairness, 2009’s MW2 raised the bar absurdly high for Call of Duty, introducing Killstreaks, weapon customization, and many more features that would become staples of the franchise. Surpassing that was an otherwordly task that no title could perform, but MW3 did fine for itself.
Fast forward 12 years, and this version of MW3 has fans feeling the same way. A post on the MW3 subreddit said: “This aged well,” with a meme from nearly a decade ago, where a player uses an expo marker to write a three on MW2’s disc, basically sharing how they felt about both titles.
This year’s issue feels a bit more complex, with the Carry Forward system and 16 maps from 2009’s MW2 doing more harm than good for the game’s overall narrative. There’s also the ordeal that it was rumored to be DLC before its announcement until it pivoted into a full title.
This isn’t the first time both MW3 titles caught flack, as 2011’s version was caught in a review bomb when last year’s title dropped. It seems both titles will be linked together forever, although it may be for bad reasons rather than fond memories.