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After the release of Call of Duty 2, which was originally a launch title for the Xbox 360 back in November of 2005, Infinity Ward look at their franchise title and must have wondered where they could take the series next. While Call of Duty 3, originally released early this year (2007) and developed by Treyarch Pi Studios, remained in the European Theater of the Second World War, Infinity Ward was looking to take the series that put them on the map into a new direction. Skip some sixty years ahead and Infinity Ward has brought their landmark series into the modern age with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
One might think from viewing CoD4 that this game is set during the current Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts that the United States and our allies are involved in. In fact, CoD4 has more in common with Ubi-Soft’s Tom Clancy games then any current headlines.
For once in this series, Infinity Ward has actually tried to create a real actual story line for the players to follow. While it is simple, the theme is a classic thriller tale of the unthinkable. A Russian maverick warlord who wishes to bring back the Soviet Union has allied him self with a fanatical Middle Eastern leader. Their ultimate goal is simple: the complete and utter down fall of Western civilization. Sure, this is a plot that has been done a million times before, but CoD4 manages to really make you feel like you are knee-deep in the events that are unfolding all around you as you play as both a British SAS soldier, and a United States Marine Corps enlisted man.
Design: 10/10
To call this game just beautiful would be an understatement. Call of Duty 4 is quite simply, gorgeous. Regardless of what system you are playing on, whether it is a 360, PS3 or PC, this game is by far one, if not the most beautiful game to grace the modern era of gaming. The attention to detail is absolutely insane. Everything from blades of grass, textures, environmental debris, effects, sound design and mission structure is simply flawless. Each mission design, regardless if it is the first to the last, has been painstakingly developed and flushed out.
Cinematics and game play all move into one another without missing a beat while, level design its self is quite diverse, as you won’t be playing the same type of mission twice. Even though I can’t say that the mission designs are as open as they have been in previous Call of Duty games, they are still large enough that you can attack any objective from multiple angles, or just go Rambo and hit the enemy right up the middle, which normally means certain death.
AI, both ally and enemy is as perfect as a game can be. Your allies will all use cover, lay down support fire for your teammates and make use of grenades frequently. Enemy NPC’s at many points in this game are truly challenging as they will support their own comrades, move to out flank your position while lobbing an endless bombardment of their own grenades thrown at your feet. Staying in one place for too long isn’t the answer to survival in Call of Duty 4.
Sound design in the Call of Duty series has always been outstanding but this time around, it is simply amazing. I recommend gamers play CoD4 with surrounded sound, or at the very least, turn you TV’s volume as high as you can stand it. Frequently throughout the course of my playing this game, I was bombarded by so much sounds generated from explosions, gun fire, echoing effects, music, men screaming as they died or called out enemy position, the distant echoes of fighter jet to the tinny ping-ping sound that a grenade makes as it lands by your feet. After a couple of hours, I actually had a headache that didn’t go away for nearly a day. The sound design and game play is simply that intense.
In multiplayer, all of these element are still present, only now replaced by your teammates of fellow Xbox Live players screaming out that the opposite team has overrun your control point. Graphically for multiplayer, the tone is understandably turned down a few notches, but still Call of Duty 4’s multiplayer design is a cut above anything else that is on the current console market.
Features: 8/10
Despite the fact that Call of Duty 4 is set in modern times, this is still the same old CoD that fans have played in past installments of the series. Little if anything has changed in terms of controls or the game play.
There is surprisingly a lack of variety in weapons or any other modern military features that we have seen in games such as Ghost Recon: Modern Advance War Fighter. Sure, many modern weapons that are currently used by Western militaries are present in CoD4, but for the most part, there isn’t any one weapon that really stands out or seems to have an edge over other’s. For the most part, you will find your self-using the same assault rifle or sniper rifle throughout the entire game.
At other points, you will have to escort a tank or man machine guns, but there still isn’t any real connection to other military hardware other then the man next to you.
Most of the high marks for Call of Duty 4’s features actually come from its online play. Instead of just being another multiplayer, CoD4’s online play is a hybrid FPS and RPG. Players based on how well they do during the course of their online play can unlock upgrades for their weapons, while raising through the ranks. Level 60 is the cap and there are a number of various weapon modifications you can add to your custom character class.
There is no doubt that it is online that most players are going to spend most of their time as Call of Duty 4 has one of the most unique and insanely addictive online modes out there.
Performance: 9/10
Performance is exactly as players have come to expect from the Call of Duty franchise. Frame rate is blazing 60 frames per second, and with absolutely no slowdowns or technical glitches. This all carries over online too as CoD4’s servers are amongst the best I have ever played on.
Controls are all tight and very responsive. It shouldn’t take anyone more then a couple of minutes to get the hang of CoD4’s minor upgrades. In fact, without the new coat of paint on this game, you might as well be playing Call of Duty 2 or 3.
Overall: 9/10
While Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare isn’t perfect and doesn’t bring much original material that gamers haven’t played before, this title still manages to be a truly visceral experience that is the closest thing to real warfare without having to join the Army. In fact, I honestly can say at one point early in the game, after watching a US Marine run out into the middle of the street and get cut down by machine gun fire, my skin was crawling as I couldn’t help but feel emotionally connect, not to the NPC, but the simple truth that this game hits closer to home then any previous title in this series…or any other game to date.
If there has to be any one major flaw to Call of Duty 4, it is its overall length. I find it really hard to justify the $60 price tag of this game when even the most casual gamer can finish it off in less than four and half hours. Regardless, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is a breath of fresh air and a true work of visual art.
Site [Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare] Site [Infinity Ward]
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