As we are approaching the end of the month, it’s time to blow the dust off the old chest of drawers and take a look at the classic titles from today’s perspective. Recently, as part of the retro reviews series, we discussed Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas . Today in the timeline we are moving forward a few years because it’s time for a game that sets the benchmark for all first-person shooters. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare from 2007.
Benefits
- Flawless and atmospheric campaign
- Lots of melee fights
- Great audiovisual setting
- Simple and affordable controls
Disadvantages
- Campaign too short
Contents
Summary
Definitely one of the best Call of Duty games in the history of the series. Everything in Modern Warfare is played - from the plot, through graphics, to the audio setting!
Read Also: [Retro Review] Assassin’s Creed II – the best game in the series
Call of Duty must finally atone for its sins
Recently, the topic of Call of Duty rules on the Internet, or more precisely, in its entertainment part . Why? There are two reasons for this – the first are the announcements and the first trailers for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II , while the second focuses on the general troubles of Activision and its cult series. We are talking primarily about the recent moves of the series producers, which, to put it mildly, are not the best. Being brutal and blunt – CoD loses players with terrifying regularity.
The last installment of the series, i.e. Vanguard , met with very mediocre, even poor reviews, but the greatest pain and bitterness in Call of Duty fans aroused Warzone . Battle-royal was supposed to be something new and fresh on the market, but time has brutally verified the production released in 2020. The mass of bugs, weak support and the lack of revolutionary solutions made players slowly lose their patience. Fortunately, the series’ troubles were noticed by its publisher, recently announcing that on October 28 its premiere would be Modern Warfare II , which is a sequel to Modern Warfare released in 2019 .
Wait a minute … people unfamiliar with the series may now have a little confusion in their heads. At the very beginning of the text, I mentioned that we will look at Modern Warfare , but from 2007. I’m in a hurry to explain. The Call of Duty series fifteen years ago started a wonderful subset, which is called Modern Warfare . The first edition debuted in 2007, the second in 2009, and the third in 2011. Eight years after the release of the “three” and a total of seven new premieres, Activision decided to reboot Modern Warfare . This is how a game with the same title as twelve years earlier appeared on the market.
Since we have clarified the technical issues, we can move on to specifics. Due to the poor disposition of the Call of Duty series , Activision announced that the upcoming Modern Warfare II will meet the expectations of fans. It is mainly about players’ demands for an interesting plot, innovative solutions and, above all, high-quality gameplay . It just so happens that I am very familiar with a game that fulfills all three assumptions. It’s called Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare !
Jumps into the future we like – epic storyline
The year is 2007, the Call of Duty series is really just beginning. The premieres of the first three parts of the cycle are behind us. Each of them takes us to the front of World War II . On the one hand, it’s a great experience, but on the other, well, it’s a bit hackneyed. So what does Activision do? Without thinking, he takes the entire game several dozen years forward, that is, into modern times. As it turned out a few months later, it was a bull’s eye.
Maybe what I say will be a bit brutal , but in my opinion the biggest FPS games are almost no different. Call of Duty , Battlefield or Medal of Honor – in each of these titles, the gameplay is based on the same patterns. Of course, in some series this aspect is better developed and in others the other, but in general, the player’s tasks are the same. That is why, in my opinion , the most important issue in building first-person shooters is the plot and the atmosphere of the game.
In Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare , these two aspects played a decisive role. In the case of the production from 2007, the player plays several characters, but most of the time it is John “Soap” MacTavish and Paul Jackson . Both soldiers work in two different teams in two different storylines. However, both stories take place in 2011. The NPCs who make up our units also bring a huge atmosphere to the plot .
I do not think I need to introduce anyone to Captain John Price , who has already gone down in the history of the entire Call of Duty . However, I am not going to summarize the entire story of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare here , so I will focus on a few of the most important aspects. First of all , the game takes us to the near future , in which the Russian nationalist party collaborates with terrorists from the Middle East. It is important because it allows us to meet the main antagonists – Imran Zakhaev and Khaled Al-Assad . Extremely colorful and expressive enemies also add a touch of character to the story.
As players, practically throughout the story, we try to get both antagonists and, as befits such productions, save the world. During missions, we are thrown around various interesting locations , and each of them is significantly different from each other. As a result, we are practically not bored throughout the entire campaign. As soldiers, we fight on open territories, in buildings, in the air, at night or even on a sinking ship.
Brutality that pleases the eye
Let me just remind you that we are in 2007, so we cannot expect too much from graphics. Nevertheless, even from today’s perspective, it’s hard to accuse Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare of anything wrong in this matter. The picture is really decent and the individual objects look at least good. Textures around us, such as barrels, walls of buildings or cars, also suffer damage, which definitely has a positive effect on the perception of the game.
First of all, you can see that the Infinity Ward studio has drawn a lot of attention to the places where the fight was planned. We are talking about the interiors of buildings or open areas to which the skirmish would sooner or later move. The rest of the objects are rather sketchy, but you need to make a real effort to pay attention to it at all.
Another positive visual feature of the game is definitely the interface . Our attention is not distracted by unnecessary radars, tips or other strange pictures. As befits the army, we get basic information – weapons, number of ammunition, sight, grenades and a compass. It may be something that is not so often paid attention to, but it is definitely worth appreciating.
In the case of the series based on shooting at people , it’s hard to deny its brutality . In the case of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare , it is clearly visible. The story is structured in such a way that it has a very large number of short circuits that result in bloodshed . Therefore, it is worth highlighting the numerous animations that make our enemies (not us) fall like ducks. After receiving a fatal blow , opponents spread their hands, scream, groan and twist their faces. As for the title from 2007, it is really impressive.
The fact that we play the main characters does not mean that we cannot suffer ourselves. After collecting a lot of damage, the screen is flooded with a red glow, which makes us feel as if we were in the center of the events in a dynamic shootout. If it wasn’t so sweet , what I don’t like about the fights in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare are definitely … dog attacks . Did the creators really have to tell us to kill these wonderful creatures? Well, war has its own rules.
The audio setting takes us to the front, but there is a small snag here
I have already mentioned that Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is visually defending quite well, but it would not be fair if I did not mention that we can see and hear the game well . Each of the weapons makes different sounds, and thus when we witness a greater tension, a real concert takes place in our headphones. The whistle of bullets, screams, groans, grenade blasts or curses shouted out in different languages - all this adds up to a very good audio setting for this production.
Additionally, you cannot forget about music , which, contrary to appearances, plays a very important role in the game. We can feel it when completing the first mission. As the ship we are on begins to sink, our emotions are boosted by the suspenseful music. The sounds louder and the events culminate in a dramatic helicopter jump. Everything happens in such an audiovisual setting that we can feel as if we are watching a real action movie .
The same thing also happens in the final mission, the ending of which takes place on the bridge. The dramatic music combined with the death of our companions and the culmination of the whole story means that we leave the game with the awareness that we spent the previous few hours in a very good way. Exactly… a few hours.
Whether you like it or not, this text will be a card to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare . However, like every game, it did not avoid a few mistakes. The main sin of the 2007 production is directly related to the brilliant campaign. Namely – it is just too short. The main storyline will keep us having fun for less than seven hours. This is quite a meager result, the more so as the story is simply great and you could run through it several times longer. Fortunately, in the following years, the next installments of the Modern Warfare sub-series debuted on the market .
Variety is something we like about video games
As I mentioned above , what distinguishes Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is diversity. The missions that we perform are unique, so we have no right to complain that “the plot again boils down to running and shooting”. As players, we get a powerful arsenal of equipment with which we can harm our opponents. Additionally, a wonderful procedure is to flip the story around in different locations. We start on a sinking ship, a moment later we are in the Middle East, then we move to Russia, then go back a dozen years on the timeline and visit Pripyat .
The legendary mission in which we can play the role of a young John Price has become a dream come true for hundreds of thousands of players. Moving the story to an abandoned city, while focusing mainly on sniper rifles, makes in my opinion (and not only mine) this is by far the most epic mission in the history of the entire Call of Duty series .
Interestingly, after escaping from the contaminated and dark city, the plot takes us to modern times and serene Azerbaijan. Such treatments definitely have a positive effect on the reception of the game. Playing the role of individual heroes, it’s hard for moments of weariness, so basically nothing prevents you from getting through the entire story campaign in one sequence. Of course, this is a task for the most daring players!
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare review – summary
As I approached the end of this text, a certain reflection came to me. The Call of Duty series goes back to 2003, not counting Warzone and adding Modern Warfare II , which will debut in October, we have a total of nineteen games. Of course, a few of them were weaker or did not meet all players’ expectations – there is not even a discussion here. However, most of the titles are just very good or even brilliant. In addition to the Modern Warfare discussed today , it is worth highlighting the wonderful World at War, Black Ops or WWII .
Due to the fact that this is a really large group of large productions, I wonder if by any chance Call of Duty deserves to be called the best series of games in the history of the industry? Of course, there will be many voices talking about the Grand Theft Auto, Battlefield, Tomb Raider or even FIFA cycles . Nevertheless, I think that is a very good question that I would like to leave you with.
If, on the other hand, you answer yes to the above hypothesis, question number two arises. Well, which Call of Duty game is the best? In my opinion, it is Modern Warfare from 2007 that should be the benchmark for all future Activision productions , but I know that many of you will point to other titles.
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