Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare

While not every multiplayer addition is as good as it could be, Modern Warfare’s campaign sets a new gold standard for the series that will be hard for sequels to match.

Daydreaming aside, I love Modern Warfare for the big swings it does take. It sets the bar high for first-person gun feel. Gunfight is a standout mode that proves to me Call of Duty can slow down and the sky won’t fall. I hope to see even bigger risks with its post-launch support. Modern Warfare is a promising platform for new ideas, but the sentiment will carry little weight if Activision shoves this game aside and we’re talking about Black Ops 5 in 2020. For now, it’s the Call of Duty to beat.

This annualized series continues to pound out excitement, but this time in ways you may not expect.

The new engine finally gives Call of Duty a much-needed face lift with enhanced environmental, texture and model detail with the only hiccup being texture pop-in. Spec Ops mode is fine, but the brutality of Operations and the lack of multiple Classic Spec Ops missions makes the feel like an afterthought compared to campaign and multiplayer. Still, fans have asked for years for a Call of Duty title that hearkened back to the pre-Ghosts days and this is it. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare delivers a fantastic package of content that does the Modern Warfare name proud. Infinity Ward is back in action and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare delivers on nearly every front.

In general, Call of Duty Modern Warfare is a tight shooter that hits most of the parts you expect from a AAA shooter, while throwing heaps of new ideas into the mix. However, the few areas that I'm cold on: Ground War, Spec Ops and the few moments of the campaign when common sense gave way to a desire to shock needlessly… they're a bitter aftertaste to one of the best shooters I've played all year.

But the pitfalls of Spec Ops don't detract from what Modern Warfare does well. Realism mode is an excellent addition to the slate, and although not all the new multiplayer modes are great, Gunfight and the Night Vision playlist are refreshing standouts. And while the campaign ends up playing it safe in the end, it's still a memorable one, and it lays a strong foundation for where the Modern Warfare series could go from here.

Modern Warfare is fast and frenetic, setting a new benchmark for fidelity and high-pressure FPS action.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare does everything fans of the franchise could ever want. You get the triumphant return of the single-player campaign; crossplay that actually works; maps and weapons available to everyone; and a robust multiplayer experience packed with over 25 maps (including Spec Ops maps) out of the box. Modern Warfare isn’t the best Call of Duty game in the franchise as the single-player and Spec Ops modes fall a little short. Yet, at the very least it pushes the series back in the right direction and fans should be plenty satisfied with what Infinity Ward has brought to the table this year.