The Price of Call of Duty Elite And Why It Might Not Be Such A Bad Thing

Today sees the gaming webosphere all abuzz over the just announced pricing for Activision's Call of Duty Elite. Today is also the day we bid adieu to a former collaborator here on the Video Game blog. That's right folks. Yasar, formerly of the groundbreaking Yasar and Guy Show, is leaving Savings.com to fully engage in his pursuit of academic excellence. Before he embarks on his quest to become a game designer in his own right, the Robin to my Batman returns for one last trip through the video gaming blogo-verse.

For those who are unfamiliar with the latest addition to the COD franchise, Call of Duty Elite will basically be a social community for COD players to congregate, form clans and teams based on similar likes and interests. It will debut with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, which comes out in November.

VentureBeat laid out the various details of the Elite setup, specifically the inter-connectivity that will be available to the new social gaming network:

"For instance, you can check-in via a mobile app and change the configuration of your weapons for multi-player combat. When you get home and turn on your console, the new weapons configuration will be waiting for your confirmation...With Elite, you can join groups based on your interests, such as sports teams. You can also form a clan that you can play with as a group in combat. You can make new personal connections in this way. 

Also, you'll be able integrate your Facebook friends with your Call of Duty Elite account. You can invite those Facebook friends to join you as friends in Call of Duty Elite, and you will be able to instantly invite them to join you in games. That will make it much easier to find friends to play with."

Membership in Elite will come with a price however.

Yasar: After spending $60 on the new CoD: MWF3, gamers might be reluctant to spend even more on DLC and social network connectivity. By more I mean $50 a year more. That's a bit pricey at first glance, but there are options if you are initially balking at the price tag.

Guy: There are two types of Elite Status available: Free and Premium. Both require signing up for the service. With the Free signup, Call of Duty players will have access to a Career Player Profile, the ability to Create a Class Online, HD Video Sharing, Public Groups and Private Clans and Elite Apps. Premium service sign-up includes all of that plus monthly downloadable content, pro analysis and strategy, Elite TV, and the option to level-up your Clans. In the end, Premium signup offers a lot more. The ability to get all DLC for Modern Warfare 3 free after the initial $50 signup for Elite, makes the additional cost worth it in my opinion.

Yasar: Worth it for diehards and truly dedicated Clan multi-players.

Guy: True. It definitely isn't for the more casual fans of the series or new fans looking to just get a few hours in with MWF3. This subscription package is clearly not being marketed to them, but for the serious multiplayer who is already invested in this type of experience. 

So what do you guys think? Who is a diehard and is all for this? Is this the start of a new social gaming experience that will thrive and grow on the next gen? (I say yes, for good or ill). Discuss, rage, babble on below.

While the debate grows, you can find me on Twitter @SavingsGCapes knee deep in all manner of video game discussions, breaking news stories, and game deals galore. Until next week my friends, keep those controllers at the ready.