Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (REVIEW!)

I should preface this review by saying this: I have never before played a Call of Duty game. I played Battlefield 1942 instead, and saw no need to go about purchasing multiple FPS titles about shooting Nazis (or Allies, as the case may be). I still don't understand the torrent of WWII shooters that deluged the market. I mean, how many times will you invade Normandy before you decide to stop paying for it?

However, playing this game kind of makes me wish that I had, because if all of Infinity Ward's games are as good as this, then I've been missing out.

Call of Duty 4 is an interesting...and intense...experience. This is the first game I've played in a long time wherein being shot is a pretty big fucking deal, and it took me a little while to adjust to the proper mindset. As opposed to Halo, where bearing down on your enemy with guns ablaze and screaming like a rabid jackal is a perfectly acceptable (and sometimes even effective) tactic, doing that kind of shit in CoD4 will get your ass killed. You don't have any shields. Your armor is a joke. What precious little cover you might find can be compromised by a big enough gun. You've got your rifle, your sidearm, your knife, and your wits to get you through the battle ahead.

The single-player campaign is not terribly long, clocking in at less than six hours on Recruit (Easy) mode. Those six hours, however, are some of the most intense in recent memory. I hesitate to compare it to Bioshock, for the two are very different experiences. While Bioshock repeatedly makes you jump, snarl, or shake your head and mutter "That was fucked up," under your breath, CoD4 has you running through sheets of enemy fire, any one bullet of which can kill you, screaming "OHSHITOHSHITOHSHIT!" at the top of your lungs. One of your computer-controlled teamates will scream "RPG!", and you'll feel your chest tighten as you scan second-story windows, frantically hoping to spot and kill the mystery assailant before he launches a rocket that will redistribute your bodily mass over a two-block radius. However, nothing here really breaks the mold: it's a FPS's FPS, and there are little-to-no additions to the genre.

One of the reasons why CoD4 is able to pull off such gripping intensity is because it's pretty. This game is close to photorealistic at points, and I don't even have an HDTV. The game knows it, too: it has a whole level wherein you are driven around a city and given the opportunity to have a look around. From a graphical standpoint, it's pretty amazing what these guys have managed.

However, unlike Bioshock, the story is pretty lukewarm. There's some terrorists (or something) that have a nuke, which was apparently given to them by some crazy Russian dude with a grudge (naturally). You switch between playing as a British special forces operative and a US Marine. Your job is to protect the freedom of the west, yadda yadda yadda. There are no shades of gray in this game: it's the good guys (you, obviously) versus the bad guys (the freedom crushing A-rabs, and their dirty communist supporters). The game is unapologetic in its outlook: it's us versus the crazy, freedom-hating, baby-eating muslims. I don't even remember if the game tells you why you're at war with these people. Probably something to do with the War on Terror, or something. I dunno. This ain't exactly Shakespeare.

This is forgivable due to some incredible gameplay moments, like when you are given access to a .50-cal sniper rifle and instructed to assassinate a target a kilometer away. Let's just say this: it ain't easy. The game takes wind, humidity, and the even goddamn Coriolis effect into consideration.

Actually, attention to weapon detail is kind of a big deal. Bullets can penetrate structures and kill men hiding behind them, provided that your gun is powerful enough. Also, there seems to be little dicking around with weapons to provide "balance": a high-powered sniper rifle is pretty unforgiving, and has a semi-automatic rate of fire. None of this "Wait for two to three seconds to reload like we're fighting in WWI again even though it's eighty-years later and technology's improved drastically since" bullshit. Sniper rifles are fucking serious business. However, you can't really shoot "from the hip" so well with them, which balances out pretty damn well since most of the levels are urban in nature. Shotguns are almost a direct opposite, allowing you to "spray n' pray" with a large margin of success. This is kind of a big deal, especially in multi-player.

Actually, let's delve into that, shall we?

Now, I've only had the opportunity to play three multiplayer matches: one Deathmatch (in which I came in first place, thankyouverymuch) and two Team Deathmatch (also both wins, due no doubt to my incredible prowess). However, let me say this: the multi-player matches are just as intense as their single-player counterpart. My friend Casey compared it to Counterstrike, which is a pretty good analogy...except that you don't have to wait for five minutes after being killed to respawn. In the three matches I've played, I've leveled up five times.

That's right, leveled up. You gain ranks by racking up kills and winning matches. From what I can tell, each kill you get is worth between two and ten points, and a bonus for winning a match. By leveling up, you gain access to new multi-player game modes, equipment, perks (special abilities) and challenges. Challenges are little sub-levels that require you to perform certain functions (get 25 kills with the M14 Assault Rifle), and reward you with equipment benefits (laser sights, weapon attachments) and XP. I can see how this function might irritate people who just want to play the damn game (and who can blame you?), but as a long-time D&D player, the process fills me with a sort of nerdy joy that makes me all warm and toasty inside. When I unlocked the Sniper and Demolitions pre-made classes, I nearly squealed with glee.

Kill-streaks in the game are rewarded with fun toys, such as radar (which your team can use), the ability to call in air-strikes, or summoning a helicopter which circles the map and rains death down upon your enemies. These all make a huge difference in a match, and can help to smoke out a nest of snipers.

I know I'm missing something, but all told, I can't wait to delve deeper in to the multi-player game. I've had a blast.

LONG STORY SHORT: I give Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare a rating of 4/5. I think I'll be playing this one for a while.