Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Review

So, for all that's good in COD4, what's not to like? You will find that like other Call of Duty titles, the missions are very linear. You are given one single objective that must be accomplished in order to move onto the next and the next until the mission is complete. You can collect weapons from fallen foes, look at the scenery or just cower behind a dumpster, but you must complete the objective to move on. Your squad mates will add supporting fire and take out bad guys, but they are not able to complete the objective for you. While this ensures the player experiences the important story elements, it is a little annoying when you figure out that your highly trained and specialized team is totally dependant on you in every situation. In some situations, enemies will continue to spawn and plague your team until you move forward and take their position. Like clowns pouring from a tiny car in a circus, they just keep coming unless you keep moving forward.

Finally, in a somewhat mixed blessing, COD4 implements some items usually seen only in a console title (not too surprising since it is released at the same time on PC, PS3 and 360). The not-so-good part is a check point save system. You do have the ability to save and quit whenever you like but this means you will be exiting out to at least the main menu so it's only a really viable option if you are ending your game session. At different points as you move through the mission, the game will automatically save for you. While this is sometimes good when you get caught up in a tense firefight and forget to save after a difficult situation, it can also be a bit counter productive when you have to restart several minutes back from the place you died. And in a few missions near the end, this irritated me to point where I wanted to scream.

The other features that are kind of neat are Intel Pieces in the form of laptops scattered on each level. After you complete the game on any setting, these laptops unlock cheats that can be enabled while you play. The more laptops you find, the more cheats you unlock. Lastly, after the game is complete, you can go back and play in Arcade Mode for the entire game or level by level. Using a limited number of lives and racking up points for number of kills, strings of kills and how quickly you complete the level, you can try to best your own high score. It's surprisingly fun and gives you another reason to play through the single-player game again.

The amount of excitement COD4 has generated is completely justified. Infinity Ward has proven once again what happens when a developer takes their time, does the research and puts in the effort to do things correctly with a game. While many other games try for a Hollywood block-buster feel, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare pulls it off like no one else ever has and does so in great fashion. The comprehensive multiplayer features are going to ensure that COD4 will remain on players' hard drives long after the single-player story has been completed. And to have such great graphics, sound and gameplay on both the single-player and multiplayer sides, gamers everywhere are going to count themselves lucky. Now, if there was some way for gamers to exude such a pleasing aroma as me, LAN parties everywhere would be much more enjoyable.