Should Be A Staple In Every PS3 Library

Author's Rating:

Pros: large variety of weapons and gear, customizable, single player missions have depth, realistic

Cons: Bog map tends to lag in large games, cheaters, short single player

The Bottom Line: 
The single player is fun, but the multiplayer action is great. Everyone needs to own this game.

Author's Review
The Call of Duty series has attracted first person shooters since the original game was released in 2003. Since then, the series has boasted a number of good games, including the hotly anticipated Call Of Duty:Modern Warfare 2 that was released today. Expect a review of that game when I can log more hours. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, however, earns the title of best game in the series.

First things first, Infinity Ward finally broke the World War II setting with COD4. That market has long been flooded, but very few titles try to take on the current fighting in the Middle East. It was a refreshing change to have access to airstrikes and modern weaponry instead of bolt action rifles and molatov cocktails.

The arsenal in Modern Warfare is also a strength, lending itself to many styles of play. The Dragunov SVD is one of three sniper rifles, silent assaulters can use an MP5 equipped with a silencer and Rambo-style players can lug around M60E4 light machine gun (a weapon normally found on vehicles). In multiplayer, players are invited to choose one of 16+ sniper rifles, shotguns, LMG, SMG and assault rifles as a primary weapon, one of four pistols as a backup, frag grenades and one of special grenades. In single player, the game assigns you a starting layout with weapons appropriate to the level. However, players can certainly find a host of weapons on the bodies of dead enemies.

Graphics are typically a strong suit for the COD family, and Modern Warfare doesn't drop the ball. There's no lack of details in the environment, ranging from leaves on the trees to imperfections on fences. The backgrounds tend to be static while human beings move fluently - although you'd never notice just looking casually. Guns and equipment look fairly realistic, not the blocky, colorful cartoony style of other FPS games. Playing outside in the bright sun makes everyone stand out, while shadows can sufficiently hide characters from anyone running by. Some parts of the game are so dark night vision goggles are preferred, or even required.

Unlike games like Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six and other more detailed shooters, players never issue commands in Modern Warfare. Instead, your allies' AI is at the very least competant on it's own. That said, the enemies are also very respectable. Make a few too many mistakes and you'll end up dead on the floor in a hurry.

One of the aspects that makes COD4 stand out are its physics. You can jump, fall, run, etc. appropriately for an average soldier. Carry that big ol' M604E and your speed will suffer, while a player carrying a MP5 can sprint. Falling from anything higher than one story tends to yield some damage, but it takes a three-story or higher drop (not very common) to actually kill. In addition, weapons can finally punch through walls and other obstacles, depending on individual statistics. Finally, no more missing a kill because your opponent is hiding behind a wooden fence against your sniper rifle.

The game's meat and potatoes is multiplayer; there's just so much to choose from. There's a long list of game types to play, ranging from standard team deathmatch to fighting over a bomb in sabotage to 1v1 in cage match. Hosts can select the style of play, but the game randomly selects a level and players select their gear. Players also have the ability to veto a level, but it requires a certain number of votes and can only be done once every other game. As you rack up kills and perform tasks/feats, the game awards players experience. At certain points the game will promote your rank, offering you access to more of the arsenal.

COD4 also features perks. Gradually unlocked with rank in multiplayer, perks bestow certain abilities on the player. For example, UAV jammer prevents enemies from seeing you on radar while martyrdom makes you drop a live grenade when killed. There are three tiers, one of each can be selected and it's important to properly match the perks with weapons. Perks are not a part of the single player campaign.

I've got two beefs with multiplayer. First of all, it's become very popular to hack and/or cheat on the Playstation Network. Nothing kills a good game like finding someone raining bullets from the top of an inaccessible building. The second is the network design. I've heard of complaints about having no backups to the host, but I just know that if a host decides to end the carnage for everyone, he can simply be leaving. Some maps, Bog for instance, are also prone to heavy latency issues and cause players to skip frames.

My biggest problem with the single player campaign is its length - it's just too short. The storyline is interesting, but fairly linear, and switches between a U.S. Marine and British S.A.S. soldier. The story revolves around stolen Russian nuclear weapons and Middle Eastern terrorists. Every mission has an objective, which occasionally change mid-level, and one main route to achieve it. But unlike older COD games, you are not limited to one small passageway. Modern Warfare opens up buildings, side routes, hills and other ways to your goal, allowing you to flank the enemy. The single player campaign also incorporates several vehicles, putting you behind a machine gun in a helicopter and at the console of an AC-130 gunship.