XDefiant Might Be The Refinement Call of Duty Players Are Looking For

The closed beta for Ubisoft’s new multiplayer shooter has done something no other game in its catalogue has done in years: garnered actual interest among gaming fans.

For the first time since forever, Ubisoft’s game XDefiant has actually attracted more eyeballs on Twitch than the game it’s emulating from: Call of Duty and its Warzone 2 modes. The game took out its Tom Clancy moniker in favour of being its own game, and as a result, is being championed by streamers and esports-level players.

It’s as if players are clamouring for a 2010s-modern shooter title with a skillgap, especially for one that’s fast and has features like red dots on minimaps that indicate gunfire location. And also skill based matchmaking in casuals: seems like XDefiant has these and a couple more.

i missed playing a game with a skillgap #XDefiant pic.twitter.com/193w8RwW5D

— SoaR vne (@Entervene) April 16, 2023

Even ex-Modern Warfare lead Robert Bowling called XDefiant “a refinement” of the CoD genre.

https://twitter.com/fourzerotwo/status/1647330843961221120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1647330843961221120%7Ctwgr%5E6939e6fec19a8c0aa9f46bc448eb2e6f7e5409c2%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pcgamer.com%2Ffans-of-a-sweatier-call-of-duty-are-championing-ubisofts-free-to-play-xdefiant%2F

Other noteworthy features in XDefiant include special abilities and comprehensive gun customization, and the fact that the game is free-to-play. If you’re curious about XDefiant and whether it’s a true CoD competitor in the multiplayer front, you can register for the beta on the official site and try it out until 23 April.