Whether you love or hate the reasoning behind all of this chaos, there is little room for boredom. If Infinity Ward perfected anything within Modern Warfare 3, it was simply to keep the Campaign full of non-stop adrenaline pumping action until the very last second. As intense and immersive as this mode is, I did feel that some of the choices to keep that freshness throughout were a tad predictable. Things like riding in the back of a vehicle, only to have it stop due to an explosion and then dodging gunfire up to a check point have been done before and are repeated a few times during the Campaign and the whole “slow-mo door breaching” concept also gets old after a while. That isn’t to say that there are any flaws with these styles as each perform well and are fun to play, but with a series showing it’s age like Call of Duty, one would expect a little more innovation displayed this time around.
As fantastic as the Campaign is, there is no doubt that multiplayer will be most player’s home for the next year. Most of everything from the past entries has transferred over, with a few new modes and perks tossed in for everyone to chew on. We also have been treated to 16 maps in total, based off the many locations that are found in the single player mode. A good portion of these areas are also a bit smaller than what we have seen from the series in the past. I’m guessing that this was to cut down on the camping and if that was the motive behind the map sizes, it seems to have worked as multiplayer feels a lot more fast paced and is more about running and gunning. While I imagine many will jump for joy over this change (NO MORE CAMPERS!), I personally was a bit taken back as there isn’t a whole lot of room to formulate a strategy on the fly. Of course that’s just my own preference though and most will have no problem adapting to these new set of locales quickly, building up a nice kill streak along the way.
Instead of a currency system, each achievement players earn grant a specific number XP which can then be used to further unlock new perks and rewards such as medals, sights, attachments, and attires. It’s more of the same, but considering how loyal the fans of the CoD series are, I don’t think they would have it any other way. One new feature to speak of however is the “Strike Packages”. After selecting an appropriate class, you then can choose Assault, Support, or Specialist, which all reward different assists depending on the player’s performance on the battlefield. Assault works nearly identical to the Kill Streak formula of the past, where players can gain offensive techniques based on the number of consecutive kills pulled off during a round. Support is a bit more “noob” friendly as it allows for turrets, UAVs, and other unlockables to become available based on points earned, rather than kills. The Specialist package is a bit more in depth, allowing for more advanced players to chain together several perks at once for a much more powerful and balanced result.
Those who are wanting more than the standard variants of deathmatch will also be pleased to know that two new modes have been added into Modern Warfare 3. Team Defender is one of the new types, and has players hold onto a flag while collecting double points in the process. Kill Confirmed is definitely the better of the duo as it consists of collecting each player’s dog-tags after death. If by chance you get killed and are able to collect your own (or a downed team mate’s tags), the kill then doesn’t count.
Out of all the new additions this year, most will probably be interested in the newly revamped Special Ops. Not a whole lot has changed with the varied single player or co-op mission types, but a new Survival Mode is something the series definitely needed after all these years. This works a bit like the Halo series’ Firefight mode where the main objective is to get through waves of enemies with one or two players and simply stay alive as long as possible. After each round ends, the player’s points result in new perks opening up such as extra ammo, air strikes, new weaponry, and even reinforcements to fight off the much tougher attack dogs, Juggernauts, and suicide bombers that show up as you progress through. If Modern Warfare 3 has perfected anything new this year, it’s certainly the Survival Mode as I found myself spending hours just trying to see everything that was offered within.
Visuals/Audio
We may be looking at an aging series with Call of Duty, but Infinity Ward have yet again outdone themselves with the sheer presentation offered within Modern Warfare 3. Each model is incredibly realistic and look fantastic running through the detailed environments. Go ahead, look down. You will see every single blade of grass blowing in the wind of battle and explosions that can change the look of an entire landscape in a few seconds time. Even the shadows for choppers and aircraft are fully animated, giving a layer of depth to the graphics and making everything feel more exciting to the player as a result. Yes, this is a very pretty game and one can actually lose time just soaking in the atmosphere of it all as Infinity Ward have definitely built the most varied and beautiful Call of Duty game to date.
The soundtrack is also fantastic this time around, blending with all of the action to make each battle more intense in the process. This is more noticeable during Campaign mode, as certain somber tunes can start playing to give the player a “heads-up” whenever a crushing event is about to take place. It’s almost like what one would see in a big-budget action flick, and the effect is just as powerful. I also must give some of the credit to the voice actors who captured the roles of Soap, Price, and all of the protagonists during the Campaign. Each performance is filled with emotion and even though some of the characters are a bit one-dimensional, it’s hard not to feel something for lost comrades. Guns also sound as different as they look, which is an important part of multiplayer as the sound of your choice of weapon is crucial for survival.
Overall
With the Call of Duty series, many could argue that not a lot has changed over the years. Yeah, this statement is still correct with Modern Warfare 3, but if it isn’t broke, there really is no need to fix such a solidly built system. I do however think there was a lot room for innovation that was a bit of a missed opportunity this time around and if the series is going to keep going for years to come, we will eventually need to see some new mechanics introduced. This Campaign mode may be the best yet, but the constant offerings of “shock” overshadow the epic finish and as a whole, the mode is a bit less memorable overall. Being the most popular multiplayer on a console, returning players are sure to be in familiar territory as the layout is still brilliantly crafted and the new additions blend well with all of the other offerings of the past. It’s really hard not to respect the team of developers that bring the Call of Duty experience back each year as while everything feels more of the same, Modern Warfare 3’s presentation and new additions make it worth going back to the battlefield all over again.
