World War II has been a standard setting for FPS games for some time now. Call of Duty got started in the WWII setting while the sequel was the same. Both games managed to differentiate themselves from the crowd of still growing WWII games by including some of the most finely tuned gameplay in any shooter. Call of Duty 4 continues that tradition of excellent gameplay, and in this version, it has been tweaked and polished to perfection along with the new setting it all takes place in. It comes togerther to make one of the most addictive and amazing games of the console generation so far.
COD 4's story continues the tradition of being played from the prespectives of multiple soldiers. Most of the game is played as a British SAS officer, along with other parts as a US marine. Both sides start out with different battles and enemies but in the end come together to fight the main antagonist. While the developers of COD 4 stated that they tried to keep modern politics out of their game, the places you go to fight do have relevance in today's political world. As the SAS officer, you go through Russia hunting terrorists with nukes, and the US marine fights terrorists in an anonymous Middle Eastern country with nukes. This does reflect fears very present in today's world. This modern day aspect of the game makes it more believable and adds to COD 4's strength as a whole.
The gameplay in COD 4, as mentioned above, is perfect. All parts of the game from sprinting to aiming to doing all other activities in the game feels incredibly natural. It is actually possible to forget your holding a controller while playing this game. The weapons, also modern, are very accurately designed and have appropriate devastating sound effects. Gun shots in this game make you feel like you're doing something bad to the person on the business end of the gun. The weapon variety is also nice, with plenty of M4 Carbines, AK-47s, shotguns, sniper rifles, Javelin Missle Launchers and Uzis to name a few. There is also an amazing sequence where you control the gunner's seat in an AC130 gunship. The mission types range from stealth to assassinations to get somewhere and kill every enemy you see. Another thing that keeps players, even in 2008, playing COD 4 is the multiplayer. I myself am not a multiplayer type of gamer, but COD 4 has many fun unlockable guns, game modes and perks to enhance your character, to make it worth a try. The perks are not quite at Role-Playing levels, but it does encourage experimentation and the modes are fun to play with friends. Multiplayer gamers will love it and more single player type gamers should give it a try.
The last part that brings COD 4 above other FPS games is the graphics. Everything from smoke to blood to destruction to the textures on the character's uniform are rendered amazingly in HD. The graphics are to the point where you can almost imagine feeling the objects in the game because they are modeled and textured so well. Very few games can do that well with graphics, and COD 4 is one of them. It is a truly beautiful game.
COD 4 is a rare balance of game with story and single player with multiplayer that makes it one of the best games of 2007 and of this console generation. The single player is shorter than normal, but it replays very well and the multiplayer will keep people coming back. Even single player gamers like myself think the multiplayer is well done. It doesn't matter whether you borrow it from someone, rent it, or buy it, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is a game that should be played and enjoyed not just by people who like FPS games or war games, but by gamers in general. This is a landmark game for this generation.
- 5 stars
