Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
Ask any non gamer to name a video game and they might mention old classics like Pong, Space Invaders, Pacman, or Tetris. They might mention controversial titles like Grand Theft Auto or Manhunt. They may mention Mario, Sonic or Pokemon the big well known brands. But most likely if they don’t mention Fifa then it will probably be Call of Duty.
Initially set around World War 2 the Call of Duty franchise has spawned an impressive 8 different titles and has spread out into the Vietnam War and a war based in modern times. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was the first of the series to be set in present times. Widely regarded as one of the greatest FPS’ ever made it quickly made a name for itself amongst the casual and the hardcore alike.
The combination of high speed action, easy kills and a nice blend of solid gunplay with decent stealth, all with a hint of realism, set the series apart for it’s rivals to the point where it became more than just a game, it became one of the most popular gaming franchises of all time.
The single player was fun but it was the multiplayer where the game really shone. Fast, fluid with easy kills (but conversely you died easier than in other FPS’) obtaining long killstreaks became addictive. Overall it was a unique experience that won a lot of people over, particularly non-gamers.
The sequel expanded on COD4, giving more killstreaks, including the game breaking Tactical Nuke. COD’s popularity rose. Since everything is a trilogy now Modern Warfare 3 has been released. COD’s popularity has led to a lot of copycats, some successful, some not. COD no longer feels unique, more that one to beat.
Recently EA and DICE have brought the Battlefield series into the fray which has drawn a lot of attention away from COD, attempting to steal some of its userbase. Can COD still compete? Well to do that it needs to evolve, which sadly it doesn’t really.
First the single player. Unusually this is probably the highlight of the game now. Completely abandoning any sense of realism, Modern Warfare 3’s campaign is a wild thrill ride, highly polished and a worthy end for such a successful series. Once again you travel around the world attempting to stop a terrorist but now he’s practically won. The whole world is at war and one of four characters you’ll travel all around the world, shooting enough soldiers to fill a continent.
It all works really well and the veteran difficulty level is just right providing a very challenging experience that never feels too impossible.
Spec ops returns with some enhancements. These are carefully reused segments of the game to offer quick challenges detached from the game itself. The second of these is a wonderful twist on the classic Mile High Club challenge from COD4. This time you’re the last terrorist of a group that has just hijacked a plane, who has to kidnap the Russian President.
In addition to this they have also added a Gears of War Horde / Halo Firefight style Survival mode. Here you fight wave after wave of enemies that get steadily more difficult as you proceed through the waves.
All of Spec ops can be done alone or with a friend and with scores/times to beat including global and friend leaderboards they have plenty of replay value.
What will take your hours though is the multiplayer mode. After 8 games the multiplayer has changed ever so slightly to meet the criticisms of previous titles. This is more a case of polishing what you have got that completely evolving the game however there are a couple of interesting new features.
It seems Infinity Ward have attempted to address one of the main problems with COD, which isn’t even a problem with the game but the people who play it. They seem to have focused on getting people to stop camping, a defensive technique where players stay out of fights, find an area they can secure easy and get kills from distant vantage points. This is all in an effort to keep their kill to death ratio high.
This has always been an effective way of keeping your Kill to Death Ratio high but doesn’t help when it comes to securing objectives. Typically what you find is players will place their scope on an objective and kill anyone who comes near it. Frustrating for players that actually want to play the game.
For example, Sabotage is a game where you have to collect and plant and neutral bomb at your opponents bomb site. When you have the bomb a huge marker appears above your head displaying Kill for the defending team. What you tend to find is that opposing teams never go for the bomb and set up camp around their bomb site. You can’t win if you don’t plant the bomb and matches can last the full 20 minutes.
Well you couldn’t win that way unless you got a tactical nuke after a 25 kill streak. Thank god they removed it after Modern Warfare 2.
So how have they addressed camping. Well first they have introduced a new mode called Kill Confirmed. This is like team deathmatch however when you get a kill you don’t score the points until you collect the dog tags they drop. If your opponent collects the tags before you do they can deny you the point which gives campers a dilemma, Do they leave their secure area to score the points and risk death, or do they rely on their teammates to collect the tags for them and risk their kills being denied?
Next is the addition of strike packages, in particular the support package. Previously rewards were given to players who could maintain a streak of kills without dying. Those that wish to play this way can chose the Assault package that offers rewards that hinder the enemy team. These are your predator missiles, helicopters and airstrikes.
Support meanwhile gives rewards based on points and does not reset on death. Capturing flags, planting bombs, generally helping your team achieve the objective with get you rewards that help your team. These include Advanced UAV’s, Sam Turrets, Armour vests, etc. This means that those who would throw themselves on a grenade to help their team win will get the same kind of rewards as those who can maintain a high Killstreak.
If you want something different you could try the specialist package which gives you additional perks the longer your Killstreak continues, to the point where you become an incredible powerhouse ready to rape all that dare challenge you.
Ultimately it still plays like COD4 did but with a little polish which seems to be putting off players who want to play something new. The look and feel of the game is all too familiar and this is probably the biggest criticism of the game. There are also some initial teething problems with some guns being overpowered but I’d expect that to be patched soon.
Overall MW3 is very much a case of if it aint broke don’t fix it. Some slight improvements have been made to the multiplayer but it feels all too familiar. The Campaign is a lot of fun and Spec ops is likely to keep you going for a while.
The perfect end to a fantastic trilogy but perhaps now we’re due a more dramatic overhaul for the series, so that COD9 will be a totally new experience.
8/10
Initially set around World War 2 the Call of Duty franchise has spawned an impressive 8 different titles and has spread out into the Vietnam War and a war based in modern times. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was the first of the series to be set in present times. Widely regarded as one of the greatest FPS’ ever made it quickly made a name for itself amongst the casual and the hardcore alike.
The combination of high speed action, easy kills and a nice blend of solid gunplay with decent stealth, all with a hint of realism, set the series apart for it’s rivals to the point where it became more than just a game, it became one of the most popular gaming franchises of all time.
The single player was fun but it was the multiplayer where the game really shone. Fast, fluid with easy kills (but conversely you died easier than in other FPS’) obtaining long killstreaks became addictive. Overall it was a unique experience that won a lot of people over, particularly non-gamers.
The sequel expanded on COD4, giving more killstreaks, including the game breaking Tactical Nuke. COD’s popularity rose. Since everything is a trilogy now Modern Warfare 3 has been released. COD’s popularity has led to a lot of copycats, some successful, some not. COD no longer feels unique, more that one to beat.
Recently EA and DICE have brought the Battlefield series into the fray which has drawn a lot of attention away from COD, attempting to steal some of its userbase. Can COD still compete? Well to do that it needs to evolve, which sadly it doesn’t really.
First the single player. Unusually this is probably the highlight of the game now. Completely abandoning any sense of realism, Modern Warfare 3’s campaign is a wild thrill ride, highly polished and a worthy end for such a successful series. Once again you travel around the world attempting to stop a terrorist but now he’s practically won. The whole world is at war and one of four characters you’ll travel all around the world, shooting enough soldiers to fill a continent.
It all works really well and the veteran difficulty level is just right providing a very challenging experience that never feels too impossible.
Spec ops returns with some enhancements. These are carefully reused segments of the game to offer quick challenges detached from the game itself. The second of these is a wonderful twist on the classic Mile High Club challenge from COD4. This time you’re the last terrorist of a group that has just hijacked a plane, who has to kidnap the Russian President.
In addition to this they have also added a Gears of War Horde / Halo Firefight style Survival mode. Here you fight wave after wave of enemies that get steadily more difficult as you proceed through the waves.
All of Spec ops can be done alone or with a friend and with scores/times to beat including global and friend leaderboards they have plenty of replay value.
What will take your hours though is the multiplayer mode. After 8 games the multiplayer has changed ever so slightly to meet the criticisms of previous titles. This is more a case of polishing what you have got that completely evolving the game however there are a couple of interesting new features.
It seems Infinity Ward have attempted to address one of the main problems with COD, which isn’t even a problem with the game but the people who play it. They seem to have focused on getting people to stop camping, a defensive technique where players stay out of fights, find an area they can secure easy and get kills from distant vantage points. This is all in an effort to keep their kill to death ratio high.
This has always been an effective way of keeping your Kill to Death Ratio high but doesn’t help when it comes to securing objectives. Typically what you find is players will place their scope on an objective and kill anyone who comes near it. Frustrating for players that actually want to play the game.
For example, Sabotage is a game where you have to collect and plant and neutral bomb at your opponents bomb site. When you have the bomb a huge marker appears above your head displaying Kill for the defending team. What you tend to find is that opposing teams never go for the bomb and set up camp around their bomb site. You can’t win if you don’t plant the bomb and matches can last the full 20 minutes.
Well you couldn’t win that way unless you got a tactical nuke after a 25 kill streak. Thank god they removed it after Modern Warfare 2.
So how have they addressed camping. Well first they have introduced a new mode called Kill Confirmed. This is like team deathmatch however when you get a kill you don’t score the points until you collect the dog tags they drop. If your opponent collects the tags before you do they can deny you the point which gives campers a dilemma, Do they leave their secure area to score the points and risk death, or do they rely on their teammates to collect the tags for them and risk their kills being denied?
Next is the addition of strike packages, in particular the support package. Previously rewards were given to players who could maintain a streak of kills without dying. Those that wish to play this way can chose the Assault package that offers rewards that hinder the enemy team. These are your predator missiles, helicopters and airstrikes.
Support meanwhile gives rewards based on points and does not reset on death. Capturing flags, planting bombs, generally helping your team achieve the objective with get you rewards that help your team. These include Advanced UAV’s, Sam Turrets, Armour vests, etc. This means that those who would throw themselves on a grenade to help their team win will get the same kind of rewards as those who can maintain a high Killstreak.
If you want something different you could try the specialist package which gives you additional perks the longer your Killstreak continues, to the point where you become an incredible powerhouse ready to rape all that dare challenge you.
Ultimately it still plays like COD4 did but with a little polish which seems to be putting off players who want to play something new. The look and feel of the game is all too familiar and this is probably the biggest criticism of the game. There are also some initial teething problems with some guns being overpowered but I’d expect that to be patched soon.
Overall MW3 is very much a case of if it aint broke don’t fix it. Some slight improvements have been made to the multiplayer but it feels all too familiar. The Campaign is a lot of fun and Spec ops is likely to keep you going for a while.
The perfect end to a fantastic trilogy but perhaps now we’re due a more dramatic overhaul for the series, so that COD9 will be a totally new experience.
8/10
posted by Master hunter at 1:23 pm
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