Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare PC Games and Downloads

Released on 09/11/2007

• Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Preview

  Mark answers the Call…

  Making the move away from the setting you’ve based an entire gaming series on is no small gamble, but it’s something Infinity Ward, creators of the acclaimed original PC Call of Duty, have decided to do with Call of Duty 4. That said, the modern setting of Modern Warfare doesn’t take Call of Duty too far from its roots, and should give Call of Duty 4 fans far more toys to play with in Modern Warfare’s bullet-strewn sandbox.

  The emphasis with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, is firmly on retaining Call of Duty’s frenetic war-torn feel and instant first-person shooter playability – while moving Call of Duty’s gameplay into new, hi-tech territory with a slew of new modern technology.

  We’ve seen three distinctly different levels demoed from Call of Duty 4, and all fit into this ethos nicely. The first saw the Activision PR rep picking up the pad to play one of Call of Duty 4’s all-new aerial co-ordination missions; where the player mans a helicopter turret and covers his troops from above with different types of firepower.

  Stunning presentation

  Shown first because it’s probably the best indicator of how modern technology will influence Call of Duty 4’s gameplay, what struck us most about this level was the stunning presentation style; riding high above the action in shakey-cam documentary style likened to an NBC chopper, the view was a grainy white take on night vision, with ally troops and enemy units clearly marked and a definite objective in mind. It gave this particular portion of Call of Duty 4 almost the feeling of a real-time strategy title playing out before our eyes.

  But it’s the more traditional Call of Duty gameplay which fans are going to be looking forward to in Call of Duty 4 – and Modern Warfare didn’t disappoint in our sneak peak, showing us two campaign missions each with their own unique feel and approach.

  Bullets ricocheting and buildings burning right before our eyes in one of the most impressive visual displays yet for next-gen consoles.

  Sniping will be nothing new to Call of Duty players, but the sniper infiltration mission we’ve seen makes Modern Warfare’s take on silent ranged death-dealing utterly immersive. More slow-paced and considered than your usual Call of Duty blastathon, it sees the game’s stunning graphics engine rendering your cammo-clad soldier and squadmates – who are so well-concealed you can barely see them against the underbrush – through dense foliage to take out enemies in a nearby outpost, and plays with all the tension you’d expect from being vastly outnumbered on the modern battlefield.

  The last level of Modern Warfare we saw, however, was the real deal Call of Duty experience. Set on an explosive, ballistic middle-eastern highway, we watched in awe as helicopters burst and blazed across the skyline; bullets ricocheting and buildings burning right before our eyes in one of the most impressive visual displays yet for next-gen consoles.

  Jumping into the conflict, Activision’s poor PR was having an awful time with what looked to be the most sophisticated A.I. yet seen in Call of Duty; frequently mown down by barrages of gunfire and eventually having to take cover to proceed. When he did, night vision soon came into play – this version making the screen turn green and highlighting our enemies and comrades accordingly. He soon made his way off the highway, picking off terrorists from distance and even fighting with one up-close in a Call of Duty 3 style QTE, before finally being mown down in the shrapnel-shredded hallways of a crumbling building.

  Promisingly accomplished

  And that about rounded up our sneak-peak of Modern Warfare’s singleplayer mode. There’s a multiplayer mode planned too, of course, factoring in 16 players on consoles and up to 32 on PC. The big news here will be a brand new set of maps and a persistent character-building element where you create a class of character and unlock new gear as you go. As anyone who’s played the recent Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Xbox 360 Live Beta will attest, it’s promising to be the most accomplished Call of Duty multiplayer yet.

  With Call of Duty so well-respected amongst gamers and Infinity Ward one of the best FPS developers around, it’s no wonder Call of Duty 4 is shaping up so well. The final proof will be playing of course, but it’s safe to say that for CoD fans, shelling out on the gamble that Modern Warfare represents will carry with it very little risk indeed.

  Preview by: Mark Scott
  Preview Published: 05.10.07

  Published: 05/10/2007

• Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Review

  Who you gonna Call?

  After spending the last few weeks battling through Halo 3 to finish it on Legendary (Look at me! I'm up a tree!), it feels weird to step into a shooter world so vastly different to Bungie's sci-fi masterpiece.

  Halo's shtick has always been about you being the centre of the universe. Your mere presence makes toughened marines pee their pants in excitement, as they greet you like you'd greet a hero expected to save mankind pretty much single-handedly from an alien horde.

  Call of Duty has always been the polar opposite of this – casting you as a series of everyman characters who, sure, all played a valiant part, and yet against the backdrop of millions of World War II dead, meant next to nothing.

  The Call of Duty experience is just as valid and just as powerful, and serves to emphasise that the people who fight wars are scared human beings, not invincible super-soldiers.

  coherent, solid, and utterly, utterly alive

  Call of Duty 4 does nothing particularly revolutionary – but what it does achieve is a highly polished and perfected version of what we've come to expect from Call of Duty game, transplanted from its usual 1940s setting into the arena of “Modern Warfare”.

  Predominantly cast as a US Marine called Jackson, and an SAS grunt known as “Soap” you take part in a series of missions which make up a narrative which comes across as something straight out of 24 - all terrorists, rogue states and missing nuclear material. Standard-style Call of Duty missions are supplemented by further missions where you act as a gunner in different aircraft, play a role in a flashback, or otherwise take on another persona for a narrative section.

  The missions often feel like a string of interactive set-pieces. Whether you're protecting a tank, storming a building with night-vision goggles activated, taking out enemy hardware with a rocket launcher, or performing a long-distance sniper assassination, it's one incredibly cool, albeit linear, section after another. You don't get enough time to master any of the great new gadgetry or really revel in these sections, instead going from one gripping section to the next with a high level of urgency.

  Jaw-dropping

  Call of Duty 4's world at war feels like the most believable depiction of 21st century combat we've yet seen – not necessarily the most realistic (and don't listen to any games reviewer that comments on the realism of a war game – they're likely to have fought in only a few real-life gun battles) but it's coherent, solid, and utterly, utterly alive, powering the illusion with the best visuals and sound seen on the PS3 or 360 to date while the game also looks jaw-dropping on a PC games rig.

  One thing that Call of Duty 4 does bring to life is modern war's inherent creepiness. Once upon a time you had to be a man, to kill a man in battle. To thrust your bayonet between his ribs and see the life die in his eyes. Today's clinical war tech, and the de-humanisation of anyone that can vaguely be referred to as a "terrorist" has made the whole thing impersonal, distanced and cold. The first mission features squad members shooting guards as they snore in their beds while a later mission sees you aboard an AC-130 gunship with immense firepower taking out enemies which show up from afar through night vision technology as tiny white blobs, while the dispassionate voice of a co-soldier "celebrates" your accuracy with phrases such as "Ka-boom".

  it's one of the best rollercoaster rides around

  It's incredibly executed, fun to play, and it even gives you some idea of how difficult it must be to separate friend from foe in this type of situation in reality, but it definitely leaves you with a funny feeling in your stomach. Maybe it's supposed to, and maybe that's not a bad thing at all.

  While Call of Duty 4's single-player game will not last for ever, replayability is assured with the superb online multiplayer, which gives you options for developing your warriors with "perks" which provide a wide range of extra abilities – as far as online gaming on 360 goes right now, Call of Duty 4's multiplayer mode is right up there with Halo 3's.

  Call of Duty 4's only real downside is the lack of connection you can sometimes feel with the world around you in the single-player mode – partly because it can feel as if you're a third wheel a lot of the time, and partly because everything around you seems so scripted.

  With a compelling narrative, superb presentation befitting its blockbuster status and some of the most impressive technical chops of any game on the market today, Call of Duty 4 does a wonderful job at what it does best, with all the horror and exhilaration of modern warfare dragged kicking and screaming before your senses.

  Sure, it might feel like you're strapped into something on rails for most of the time, but it's one of the best rollercoaster rides around.

  GAME's Verdict

  

  • Some of the best graphics you've ever seen.
  • The best Call of Duty yet.
  • Ghillie suits are awesome.

  

  • Very controlled experience - essentially "on rails".
    
  • Feels very much like every other Call of Duty game despite the different setting.
    
  • Singleplayer mode is reasonably short.

  Review by: Jonny Austin
  Review Published: 23.11.07

  Published: 23/11/2007

• Infinity Ward gearing up for Modern Warfare prequel?

  Infinity Ward gearing up for Modern Warfare prequel?

  Call of Duty: Black Ops is probably glued into your disk tray at the moment. The game's been a colossal smash. But over at Activision, the Infinity Ward crew are already hard at work on the next game in the series, by the looks of it, and Eurogamer's reporting it might be a prequel to the first Modern Warfare.

  Citing the website ThisisXbox, a source close to the team has said that the new game's story will take place immediately before the events of Infinity Ward's 2007 masterpiece. The central figure will be the mysterious soldier known as Ghost this time, and the plot will apparently focus on how he was recruited into Task Force 141.

  According to the source, the narrative will take cues from the Modern Warfare comic book series, and will allow you to revisit locations from the last two Modern Warfare games, but from an entirely different vantage point.

  Sounds exciting, but it's worth remembering it's just a rumour, and Eurogamer's suggesting the next Modern Warfare game will probably leave us waiting until 2012 anyway.

  It doesn't matter, though. We reckon something like this is worth waiting for.

• Call of Duty to go sci-fi?

  Every year we get busy speculating about a futuristic instalment of Call of Duty. Now Treyarch, the team behind Call of Duty: Black Ops has got in on the act, with the game design director admitting he would be interested in a near-future update.

  "It would be pretty fantastic!" David Vonderhaar told Machinima (thanks, Eurogamer). "It would be kind of a unique opportunity but the way this works out is obviously more complicated than, 'Hey, me and Treyarch are going to make a near-future shooter.' It doesn't work out that way in practice. It's a tough question to answer. We have not announced any new Call of Duty games at this time but to answer his specific question I think, personally, it would be pretty fantastic to do near-future, you know? Not necessarily far-future."

  He was careful to that his answer was, "For me personally. I'm just talking for myself." Boo!

  Still, if he thinking about it, maybe there hope. If youe more interested in the past than the future, of course, Call of Duty: Black Ops concerns itself with all manner of Cold War shenanigans. It brilliant fun, and it available right now for the PS3, Xbox 360, and PC.

• Call of Duty date leaked?

  Eurogamer has a doozy of a scoop today: the website posted a news story suggesting that the date for the new Call of Duty game will be 8th November 2011. According to the news story, the website has heard this rumour from numerous sources.

  The story also goes on to suggest that the game, widely thought to be Modern Warfare 3, is codenamed Project Collossus. That sounds about right to us, seeing as a new Call of Duty game will easily go down as one of the most anticipated titles in history.

  Previous Call of Duty games tend to launch in the first half of November, so the rumour has a fair amount of credibility to it. It worth mentioning, though, that we still haven had an official announcement or a title for the game, although it pretty clear that Infinity Ward, the developer of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2, is back in the saddle.

  Whatever the launch date and whatever the title this is one game that we can get out of our heads. If you own a PC, PS3, or Xbox 360, you should be very excited about the prospect of a new Call of Duty to blast your way through and you should check with us during E3 to see whether the rumours add up.

• Treyarch bringing Modern Warfare 3 to the Wii

  Wii owners won't be left out of the action when Modern Warfare 3 hits the shelves this November. Black Ops developer Treyarch has revealed that it is currently working on a Wii version of the sure-to-be-blockbuster shooter.

  Infinity Ward is working on the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, of course, but Activision executive Eric Hirshberg announced the Wii version this week, while talking grown up money stuff to investors. The decision to squeeze the game into the Wii's smaller system came because the publisher didn't want to leave any of the community out of the excitement. How sweet.

  Treyarch certainly has good form where Call of Duty and Nintendo hardware is concerned. It turned out the Wii versions of Black Ops and World At War, and also tackled the Wii port of the original Modern Warfare.

  Modern Warfare 3 shoots your face off on November 8th on PC, PS3, Xbox 360 and now Wii as well.

• Time magazine picks the 100 best games ever

  Respected American journal, Time, has ventured into digital waters to list what it considers to be the top hundred video games ever made. The result is a suitably eclectic mix, presented in chronological order stretching from the 1970s all the way up to the 2010s.

  All the retro arcade classics you'd expect are in there - Space Invaders, Frogger, Pac-Man and more - while Nintendo's core franchises dominate the 1980s as consoles made their way into US homes. Mario and Zelda are among the only games to appear in more than one guise. The original Super Mario Bros and Mario 64 both make the grade, as does the original Metroid and its 2002 first-person sequel Metroid Prime.

  Resident Evil and Tomb Raider join the list in the 1990s, and are still going strong today. Resident Evil 6 launched recently, while Lara Croft is being relaunched in 2013.

  More recognisable names also pop up as the list draws closer to 2012. Bioshock, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Guitar Hero, Wii Sports, Portal, Gears of War and The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion are all held up as examples of classic modern gaming.

  Just two games from the last few years have been deemed worthy of a place. Mass Effect 3 and Batman: Arkham City are the lucky pair. Notable by their absence are current big hitters such as Assassin's Creed, Borderlands and Uncharted.

  Is Time placing too much importance on the past? Would you pick any of these for your top 100?

  Published: 16/11/2012

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