I never liked the original COD games. They seemed too cinematic and the multiplayer games were not good. So it was really on a whim that I purchased COD4 three days after it was released. OMG!!! The single player campaign is fast paced and really well done. There is great mission variety and most can be completed using different strategies. It was short, but it was one of the best SP FPS games I ever played. It was so good I went back and attempted to beat every mission on Veteran difficulty. Then there was multiplayer...
-----
Looking at stats alone, this game should not be better than Halo3. No vehicles, no screenshot/video support, no online player analysis, no good party system. Forget all that! Somehow without all these distractions, COD4 is just incredibly fun to pick up a gun and blast somebody else in the face. Then you realize that you can level up not only yourself but each weapon as well, giving you a reason to use every gun. This was a brilliant strategy, because even now a year after the game's release the online community still uses all the guns, instead of settling on the obvious best few. Also you are constantly striving for that next player rank, which is only a few games away at all times, thanks to the prestige classes. These reset the experience levels so that you are always ranking up and don't have a situation where your next rank is literally weeks away (ahem, Halo3 and BF2). The good variety of multiplayer maps and modes keeps it all from getting stale, with headquarters being probably the best gametype.
-----
This all combines to make a package that will definately give you your money's worth. I just got my 55 Gold Cross and have decided to retire the game from my regular rotation, but damn, it sure was an awesome time. So why is this game so good? Even after 20 DAYS of gameplay, I can't really tell you. I can only say that if you are one of the three people who have not palyed it, you are missing out. I'll see all of you next Nov when COD5 is released. Start training.
FallJester
