The Call of Duty Franchise Copy and Pasted Its Stories With Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops: Cold War, and No-One Noticed

Though Vladimir Makarov is better off when left to his own devices in Call of Duty, there is someone who would be the perfect partner for him to work with. However, that partner appears in a different run of games, and may not be a person at all.

I am talking about the major antagonist in Black Ops Cold War, Perseus. The current status of both remains active, though I won’t use dead or alive, as there’s still confusion about whether Perseus is an individual or simply a spy network.

Makarov and Perseus Want to Blame America

Modern Warfare and Black Ops are two Call of Duty franchises that share Easter Eggs, suggesting there is a link to both. But, the similarities are more than meets the eye.

We usually see the US as something villains want to destroy, and when it comes to these games, Vladimir Makarov and Persues are on the same page. Nevertheless, they don’t necessarily want to destroy the country as much as they want to blame it for their crimes.

They are like the Jokers of this universe; they would like to see the world burn, or in their case, America. It all began in 2009 with Modern Warfare 2 when Vladimir Makarov made sure ‘No Russian’ was spoken at the Zakhaev International Airport.

There’s some guilt among fans for completing the level, but the developers who poured their efforts into the mission likely intended for it to be hard to complete.

The mission begins with Vladimir Makarov and three gunmen standing in an elevator alongside Private Joseph Allen, who is disguised as one of them, knowing that the chaos is just a step away.

As soon as they step outside, a hailstorm of bullets rains down on civillians as they make sure no one is left alive. Notably, they are using American weapons to execute their plan.

After the mission and near the final moments of the game, is is revealed that Makarov knew the true identity of the American soldier the entire time. He had meticulously planned every detail in his attempt to criple the country.

His words, “The American thought he could deceive us. When they find that body…all of Russia will cry for war,” still echoes my mind. It was all a setup to blame America for their deeds.

Perseus, Though Similar, Appears to be More Sensible Than Vladimir Makarov

But it doesn’t end there; a similar plot was written for Black Ops Cold War. The name Perseus is something that has been bugging America’s Monster, Russell Adler, for the past 13 years.

Always lurking in the shadows, Perseus is finally up to something. In the game, he is planning to leverage the top secret CIA program called Operation Greenlight to his advantage.

The idea behind Operation Greenlight was to insert nukes throughout Europe as an ultimate countermeasure to a possible Soviet invasion. Jason Hudson oversaw the entire operations associated with it.

It is revealed during an infiltration in a Spetsnaz facility by Frank Woods and Bell that an American-made nuke might fall into enemy hands. If it is detonated, the nation would become public enemy number one. This is also when we saw Russell Adler versus Hudson for a moment.

While both Perseus and Makarov essentially want to see the US burn, they aren’t so similar when their personalities are taken into account. Makarov isn’t loyal to a nation while Perseus is. However, they have the same goal of trying to bring Russia back to its former glory.

Another highlight is that Makarov is presented as a delusional psychopath, as he thought massacring Zakhaev International Airport might be pivotal to Russia’s rise. Perseus is more reasonable and would never hurt his own people.

Considering hypothetical scenarios, if Makarov becomes successful in his plans, it would be due to his self-interests and not in Russia’s. He would’ve worshipped Imran Zakhaev for the Call of Duty antagonist held him in high regards.

On the contrary, Perseus would focus on rebuilding Russia and not for any self-interest, as it seems the spy network is dedicated to the nation. Although, they would wipe out any country that stood in the way of Russia’s dominance.

What do you think of these story arcs leading essentially to similar schemes? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

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