Formats: Xbox 360 (version tested) | PlayStation 3 | PC
Developers: Infinity Ward | Sledgehammer Games
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: 8th November 2011 (Out now)
Each year a new Call of Duty comes and breaks records. One year after Treyarch’s Black Ops took the world by storm, proving to be the developer’s best game in terms of sales and quality, many out there will feel in safer hands with the return of Infinity Ward’s Modern Warfare 3, the third instalment to the title that kicked off Call of Duty’s mass mainstream popularity. However, with the well publicised mass exodus from Infinity Ward immediately following the release of Modern Warfare 2, there’s still sceptics out there who see the MW developer in a different light. With all the “creative talent” gone, will Modern Warfare 3 be the one to flop? Particularly with many folk flocking to EA’s Battlefield 3 recently too.
Of course, at this stage we know that hasn’t been the case. Infinity Ward’s leftovers, with the help of Sledgehammer Games, have ensured that Modern Warfare 3 delivers exactly what we expect from the franchise. Whether this “more of the same” is a good thing or not depends on the player. Naturally many out there only buy a Call of Duty game to play online against friends and foes across the world. These people may never even touch the single player campaign or Spec Ops mode. Others, meanwhile, will only divulge in the solo campaign without ever venturing online. The latter may feel a little short changed as the campaign can be completed in one sitting, of around 6-7 hours (on the standard difficulty setting, with Veteran adding extra time due to many additional deaths). As we all know, the real longevity comes by taking the shooting online.
Credit to Infinity Ward, they’ve managed to create a campaign of over-the-top and often tense set pieces in a variety of locations. In fact you’d never tell that the main talent behind the previous two Modern Warfare games had no part in this. One minute you’re fighting through the destroyed streets of New York City, then you’re speeding down the subway systems in London, right before the Eiffel Tower falls on your head. There’s even another controversial moment, this entry’s equivalent of “No Russian” from MW2, which is nicely done, and will remain unspoiled here.
As is normal for the recent Call of Duty games, Modern Warfare 3 does hold your hand a fair bit. Most of the time you’ll be following companions to objectives and told in black and white what to do, without having to sit and think about it. You could probably go through an entire level without shooting your gun, leaving it all the the AI while you go prone and relax. Even the trademark Price sniper/stealth missions return, where you have to follow Price (he’s a real soldier, you know) through a level and do what he says, rather than work it out yourself and add hours to the game play. This isn’t Deus Ex or Crysis 2, this is Call of Duty, a shameless corridor shooter, and as a corridor shooter it’s as good as it gets. It doesn’t pretend, or even try to be anything else. The campaign works as a mindless shooter, just like being in a tense action movie.
That’s the single player, how about multiplayer? Well, it’s as good as it’s ever been. While you may feel a bit daunted a first if you invested countless hours into Black Ops , or previous games, online, there are enough improvements and new modes to make you put BO back in the box. The traditional modes are still available, along with several new ones (19 in total), spread across 16 new maps.
You still level up, unlocking new weapons, attachments and perks as you go. This time you also level up your weapon the more you kill with it. Every time a weapon levels up you can improve it with new additions, such as perks that allow for better aiming or reduced recoil. It really pays to alternate your arsenal. Those who couldn’t stay alive long enough to rack up Killstreak awards previously will be happy to know that kills carry over even after death. You’ll finally be able to unleash the most devastating of killstreak awards to rack up kills and XP regardless of how many times you get your ass kicked.
Of the new modes the most noteworthy is Kill Confirmed. Here the only way to earn points is to pick up the dog tags from downed enemies. You can prevent the opposition gaining a point by being quick and picking up your downed team mates dog tag first. While you can wander the map and hope to pick up loose tags you can also use them to lure the enemy into a trap. Once a tag thirsty enemy comes near a well planted tag you can mow them down and take theirs. It’s a nice addition that offers plenty of tension, and often frustration at the same time. Frustration, however, leads to a craving for sweet revenge.
Then there’s Spec Ops. Along with the tried and trusted mission-based version from MW2 there’s also a survival mode. Which is another wave fighter, only this time your enemies aren’t already dead before you kill them. How long can you survive against endless waves of enemies? And just how wisely do you invest the cash earned for killing them? Spec Ops tests you in various ways, earning you stars. Perfectionists will spend hours trying to unlock every star available.
Modern Warfare 3 may contain pretty much everything we’ve seen before, but as it’s the conclusion to the Modern Warfare story we can forgive that. It contains a thrilling, but brief, single player campaign, the fun and challenge of Spec Ops and the trusty multiplayer we know, love and can’t help but be addicted to. It is now time to move on, however. If Treyarch are planning Black Ops 2 next year, then it needs to bring innovation to the series. Otherwise those sales figures will surely start to decline. Or will they? Until then, Modern Warfare 3 offers plenty of entertainment to keep our shooting taste buds satisfied.
