Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Review
Started February 13, 2008
Beat February 18, 2008

To begin, I only think it's fair to immediately state that as long as you're a fan of fast paced realistically based war shooters there is no need for you to read this review to ensure it's quality and worth. If you're interesting in seeing what I think about the game, how I dissect it, and possibly arguing your point on the subject, then you're in the right place. This game is held to standards not seen all that often in the gaming industry. The amount of polish and time spent making it feel perfect is admirable. For one thing, if you played Call of Duty 3 and then when 4 came out, it felt different in a whole new way to you, most likely, and to me the things that impressed me as soon as I started playing were the biggest changes; squad is actually useful, weapons come in heaping quantities (big plus), enemies are smart without being unfair (most of the time), dialogue and storyline are possibly recycled from a gazillion other war stories, but that doesn't matter, because you end up caring and becoming immersed in the game no matter what.

Several things that I saw that were refreshing changes were the improved controlling and the many little quirks that add to the experience, like stealth, weapons for every situation, and a small group of invincible allies. Sprinting in single player is also a very nice bonus this time around. The cinematic score compliments the action almost perfectly, with orchestral suites and riffing guitars punctuating the action in top quality combinations. Everything feels more effective, like you're actually making a difference with every action you commit. In COD3 there were times when I felt my weapons were underpowered, or couldn't shoot straight, and there were also elements to the game play mechanics that were extremely frustrating, like the misdirecting health indicator (you have to wait a few seconds after the red clears away, because you're not actually fully healed). All that has been ironed out in 4, proving Infinity Ward to really be the father figure developer to Treyarch, changing the way in which their already firmly established series plays.

Probably one of the most drastic changes include the ability to shoot through varying obstructions, like walls, scenery, and objects. But the great thing about this feature is that it never seems to unfairly impact you, like enemies shotting you through ridiculous walls or buildings that you're using for cover. And to top it off, the levels make ingenious use of the aforementioned cover.

The really cool thing about this title in particular in the COD legacy is that you end up caring for your squad mates substantially more so than in previous iterations. And, for the record, Captain Price is one big bad ass. That said, all of your squad mates are invincible, so none of them can die, but this surprisingly doesn't detract from the believability of each individual situation in the game. During the course of the campaign you get to use much more than just the aid of your ground troops, never seen before in a call of duty game, or at least not to this degree. You can call in helicopters, air strikes, and such at several points throughout the story.

Back to the story, I honestly have to say that it takes so many turns and is always surprising you with either a unique event in the game world, or an intriguing/exciting level. To specifically mention parts that wowed me, I would put down a word for the presidential assassination, the nuclear bomb's detonation, the nightvision sections, hiding from the helicopter searchlights and sneaking around, the ghillie suit mission, getting to play as captain price, the rush of adrenaline at the end, the very ending sequence, and lastly, but not leastly, the bonus mission at the end (a very nice bonus if I may say so myself). In fact, a lot of the big memorable parts of the game seem to have been influenced by popular war movies and other games (which is a super good thing). Overall, there isn't a whole lot that I could complain about with this game.

If I had to say some nasty things about it, though, some of them would definitely include the occasional parts where the enemy has the ridiculous ability to predict your every move, always knows where you are, and attacks you at just the wrong moments (for you). I'm amazed that I beat it in such a short period of time, as there are some EXTREMELY hard and frustrating parts, on every difficulty from what I've heard.

IF I COULD GIVE A TIP TO ANYONE STUCK ON A PARTICULAR SECTION, IT WOULD BE TO LOOK FOR AN ALTERNATIVE PATH, USE SPEED, AND ALWAYS BE PREPARED!

As I played through the title, and then went back and revisisted COD3, I realized that this is the true genius of Infinity Ward and their new baby. COD3 was still a linear fast paced shooter while in every sense of the word COD4 took the adrenaline filled adventure and actually made a real next gen title by creating a much more open, dynamic, exciting, interesting, and replayable ride. Some call it over scripted, but hell, if scripting is this good, then who cares?

Anyways, whenever I got stuck somewhere, perhaps I died a hundred times there, but eventually I would figure out that there was another path I could take to reach the same objective, except that this path allowed me to flank the enemy, kept me in one piece, got the job done much quicker, and made me feel like a bumbling fool. On this, as a relatively fresh game mechanic, I have to formally congratulate Infinity Ward on a great success, a great game, and a great experience.

Oh, wait, I forgot something did I? Well, that was just single player. There's still the mutliplayer to add on to this whole package.

What does the mutliplayer do to stand out? Well, it includes a huge host of gameplay modes, and yes, most of them are just copies of modes from other games, but it's the variety and the quality of each mode that ends up counting for more than originality in this instance. Plus, there's the ranking system, the unlocks, and the prestige mode gizmo, and that ends up making for an extremely addictive mutliplayer package, even lacking achievements, which in my opinion is a really good design choice. (I can't tell you how many times I've faced level fifties in Halo 3 asking for people to help them get the spartan laser achievement or something like that, COME ON PEOPLE! AT LEVEL FIFTY!? they must have been joking!)

The multiplayer levels design-wise retain all the winning qualities of the single player campaign, and end up standing the test of time for serious multiplayer gamers. Multiplayer is at such heights here that it's tournament quality, which is saying something for the competitive multiplayer component of the console gaming industry.

Sum of all Parts

Rating - 4.8/5

Name of the Game: Sixth game in a series of fast paced action shooters depicting warfare, previously from world war II.

A Series of Factions: Addictive, fun, and engaging multiplayer, short, action packed, enthralling single player with a few twists and turns to shake things up.

Choice of Diversity: Controls not really configurable, good range of difficulty settings, plenty of weapon and direction choices in game.

A Factor of Fun: Extreme level variety, you'll do many crazy things in it, it's been quite a while since I've played such a fun and mature shooter.

Contributing Assets: Graphics match that of expected next gen visuals, sound quality is great, single player is varied and quite enjoyable, although the replay value for me was low because I grew tired of it after spending so much time dying. If you aren't that hardcore, don't try it on veteran, you'll have a much better game experience. Crazy amount of polish and finishing touches equal a smooth ride all the way through. Multiplayer urges you to unlock this and that and this and that to the point of addiction. You won't be dissappointed you bought this title.

If I were to look back at COD4 many years from now fondly as a memorable gaming experience, above all else, I feel that if there were one part of COD4 that it would probably be an extremely close toss up between the atomic detonation and the ghillie suit mission. Both of these stand out so supremely in my memory of my experiences with the game that I just don't really think I could define between them which one is better.
The detonation was outstanding because it showed that this was not your standard shooter affaire, while the stealth mission was so dramatically scripted, and scripted well, that I felt as if I was the biggest badass in the world after I'd finished the mission. It just felt right.
Ultimately, my inability to choose amongst the great parts of the game is a testament to the roller coaster ride that it is, and the wild adventure that anyone who plays through this game seriously is bound to enjoy. Without further ado, my favorite treat of the year.