Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

"Infinity Ward Pimp-Slaps the Competition (Single Player Review)"

Call of Duty hardly needs any introduction, as it has been the definitive (and much imitated) World War Two shooter spanning two console generations. However, Infinity Ward seems to have gotten as sick of the WWII motif as the rest of the gaming world and they have finally brought COD into the modern era. The results are more spectacular than anyone could have possibly imagined.

STORY
While the game is set in the real world, the conflict is entirely fictional. It details a simultaneous operation of the SAS and US Marines as they try to make sense of rapidly unfolding events that could threaten the security of the world.

The beginning of the entire affair is shown through the eyes of a captured Middle Eastern president as he is driven through a city in chaos. Soldiers execute people on the sidewalks and armored personnel carriers roll through the streets. As the car slows he is dragged out and executed on national television. It quickly becomes apparent that this was just the beginning of a military coup intended to bring respect and sovereignty back to the country. This sparks the deployment of the US military, with the Marines leading the way. Their objective is to take the revolutionary leader, Al-Asad, into captivity and stop the war.

Thousands of miles away, the SAS infiltrates Russia to save an informant. Russia also seems to be in the throes of revolution, as the Ultranationalists fight in the streets. It quickly becomes apparent that the two plot lines are tightly intertwined by some unknown connection. Before the credits roll, you'll have to put a stop the plans of several madmen and save millions of lives in the process.

GRAPHICS
Looking at past Call of Duty games, it should come as no surprise that this entry raises the bar a few notches. In fact, it is probably one of the best looking titles on the Xbox 360. From the water effects, to the smoking contrails of an airborne rocket, to the consecutive explosions of an air strike, everything you'll see in Call of Duty 4 is amazing. Lighting is equally impressive, and is presented in a way quite unlike anything I've ever seen before. In an early level, lightning highlights the environment in blinding white flashes, causing an intense white contrast to come over everything every few seconds.

Character models look amazing as well. Not only has Infinity Ward shown an impressive attention to detail, they've made the animations top-notch as well. All actions taken by your allies and enemies look surprisingly realistic, from stumbling away from a flash grenade to crawling away after being gut-shot. Death animations are realistic and varied.

Perhaps the best thing is that no matter what kind of onscreen chaos is unfolding, the game never misses a beat. During my time with this game (two complete playthroughs) I never witnessed a single second of slowdown or missed frame. This is especially impressive when there are numerous simultaneous explosions, or when there are over a dozen characters onscreen all shooting like madmen.

SOUND
This is one area which is often neglected in many games, but Infinity Ward has put just as much thought and energy into it as any other aspect of the game. All guns have their own distinct sounds which are easy to pick out in the midst of battle. Voice acting is well done and never seems forced or hackneyed. And, unlike in most FPS games, it's actually possible to hear what people are saying in the midst of a firefight but subtitles are there if you need them. Music, while sparse, always comes on at the right time and manages to increase the tension or excitement of whatever situation you find yourself in.

GAMEPLAY
I'd be lying if I said Call of Duty 4 injected any new revolutionary ideas into the world of first person shooters. Rather, what it does is take the typical formula and inject it with so much excitement and intensity that you don't care about any fancy extras. Granted, there are plenty of cool little segments added in for spice, but none of these are all that unusual.

For the better part of the game, all you'll be doing is shooting bad guys. There are a few sections where you'll stab some people and a few where you sneak around. Still, the focus of the game is on taking out enemies with ruthless efficiency and extreme force. As is typical for the franchise, you'll have all sorts of weaponry with which to accomplish your goals. However, since the game has been kicked into the twenty first century you'll find that the implements of destruction are infinitely more gratifying to use. For instance, Call of Duty's trademark “aim down the sights” aiming mode had translated perfectly. While many of the guns in the game are still equipped with standard sights, you'll typically start out a mission with a laser equipped rifle. So instead of lining up a target with iron sights, you'll just place him under the red dot and pull a trigger. Using this new method, it is almost disgustingly easy to rack up headshots like nobody's business.

But, in true Call of Duty fashion, you aren't a one man army. There isn't a single section of the entire game where you're really alone. There are always allies backing you up, meaning that should you get injured and need to take a breather, someone will be able to hold off enemy fire for a few seconds. You aren't able to give them commands, but they do show a surprising amount of intellect for AI controlled soldiers. They take cover and fire at threatening enemies and generally execute all those fancy maneuvers soldiers learn in boot camp.

Like I mentioned earlier, there are lots of short segments that break up the typical action. While these vary from relatively mundane to poop your pants awesome, they all work perfectly within the framework of the game. Probably my favorite was one I would classify as mundane. During a mission, one of my comrades cut the power to a house and I donned a pair of night vision goggles and stormed the house, taking out the helpless soldiers inside. Another involves the use of an AC-130 gunship equipped with enough firepower to level a small country. And in perhaps the most intense mission in the entire game, I donned a ghillie suit and stalked through a field while APC's and soldiers moved past on either side.

If there was one thing that bothered me during my time with COD4, it is that there is no real cover system. While this obviously isn't a Tom Clancy game (nor would I want it to be), it feels strange that my enemies and allies can duck into cover and blind fire out of it, but I can't. Still, there weren't many times in the campaign that I felt I actually needed, but it would have been nice to peek around corners before walking into a face full of boomstick, especially on the higher difficulties.

THE VERDICT
While I could knock off a point for the relative brevity of the single player campaign, I really don't think that would be fair. Somehow, Infinity Ward made a game that never lets up from beginning to end, and probably contains as much action as any other twelve hour shooter. For that reason, along with some impressive technical achievements and a simple but engrossing story I award this title with a perfect score.

HIGHS
- Non-stop action
- Mind-blowing scripted events
- Sweet rail-shooter sequences
- Aiming down the sights works perfectly with modern guns

LOWS
- Fairly short single player mode

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 06/30/08, Updated 10/01/08

Game Release: Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (US, 11/05/07)