Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

Did you play CoD4: Modern Warfare? Great! Did you play CoD: Modern Warfare 2? Great! Because this is the same for better and worse. In keeping what must be exactly the same formula of the first two Modern Warfare installments in both campaign and multiplayer, Infinity Ward delivers nothing new with this installment; fortunately that formula is a pretty great one. Survival is the only thing I can think of that is new, it was a nice distraction but nothing huge. Spec Ops and multiplayer are still fun, but again, nothing new. The campaign is once again well directed and voiced, with a satisfying conclusion and a nice twist in playing as Yuri for a time. The problem is, as you've read before here, we've seen it before. All of the hallmarks of the CoD campaign gameplay returns without any new fun twist that makes it disappointing. Look, all in all it's a fun game. I enjoyed it. I have good memories with it. But was the beginning of my disinterest in CoD, especially because it was the beginning of Activision trusting the once legendary formula so much turning out bad Call of Duty games.

As sure as winter follows fall, the final quarter of the year sees another in the Call of Duty franchise pop onto shelves giving fans more of what they want but with new maps, weapons, story and so on. Having been badly burnt with MW2 (where I found myself a paying beta tester for the massive problems with that game) I was wary but was able to get it cheap as supermarkets tried to lowball each other to get volume in place of profits. Part of the reason for this was that, although short, I do enjoy the MW campaigns and, wary of spoilers, this is where I started.

The campaign continues the OTT plot and takes the same model of playing several characters across various global settings. OK the device of making Makarov all-powerful and central doesn't totally work but what does work is the delivery. The game play allows for some flexibility within the "rails" on which you're on; I found I could rush direct or flank and the layout of the levels. It is gloriously over the top and it is like being in an action movie. The voice action is manly and urgent, the soundtrack is loud and dramatic and the overall effect is that you really feel you're in the middle of a Michael Bay action movie. It is very short if you're only buying the game for the campaign, but I found it enjoyable and very satisfying as a game. It manages to be incredibly cinematic but yet I never felt like I was a tiny part of something bigger (like I did with the World at War campaign) and instead it was focused, with skirmishes having global meaning and urgency but yet being tight and contained. It doesn't all work in terms of plots and events but I enjoyed it a great deal and the ending was a great build-up to a really satisfying conclusion.

The Spec Ops part of the game remains a little stuck on in terms of the missions – on hardest setting some are near impossible without 2 players but mostly you'll get through them easily enough and their standalone nature means they are not that engaging. Massively better though is the addition of the Survival mode wherein you try and hang on through waves of increasingly difficult enemies. I enjoyed this mode a great deal and it was the one I played most – the supernatural force of the zombies in the Treyarch games (which Infinity Ward have ripped off here) never appealed to me because it felt like just battling the tide. However here the "human" foes armed with guns and moving tactically (as opposed to rushing mindlessly) made me feel I could outsmart and out play them. I'd have loved the fun of 4 players in a party doing it but it does work best with 2 players in terms of the challenge and gameplay.

This leaves the multiplayer – a game mode that has eaten so many days of my time on COD4 that I would be embarrassed to write it down! I have noticed that over the consecutive games I have put less and less time into it, to the point now that the game is social for me – I play it with friends but never alone. Even with friends though MW3 is a weirdly frustrating experience. The spawns are terrible and even in domination (a very stable game mode) you'll appear in front and behind of people all the time – I guess it balances out but it is still annoying. The game play is frantic but not in a good way, streaks are difficult and (with the spawns) deaths are often random. I liked some of the changes to the pointstreaks but too much felt like a step-back from Black Ops – the theatre mode is terrible, the lack of caps/defs for objective games is poor, but these are all details, it is the gameplay that matters. Sadly it is too frantic, too random and too lacking in tactics to be fun. I used to love the mode Domination and "understood" the flows of the game so well I could even "feel" when the other team sort of gave up trying to win. With MW3 there is no "flow" to feel, no tactics to read – no point in trying to flank to the far side of the map when you'll probably spawn there in a second or two! For my money MW3 was worth it because the campaign gave me about 15 hours of fun (a few playthroughs) and the Survival mode alone saw me clock over 35 hours (and enjoy them all) but I must say I'm tiring of it all. The multiplayer is uninspired and too frantic to be fun. Infinity Ward always talk about capturing the COD4 magic, but I don't think they can – they just keep "adding" stuff and the overall effect is to detract from the multiplayer, which is a real shame. A decent game that is worth getting but neither as bad as the haters suggest nor as good as the fanboys proclaim.

When Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 was released in 2011, it immediately divided players into two camps. Some began to scold the game for its predictability and "chewing over" past ideas, while others enjoyed the proven formula with cinematic explosions, machine-gun bursts and the pace of battles. I definitely ended up in the second camp. Yes, the MW3 did not invent anything very new, but it masterfully "rode on proven wheels."

The plot continues the events of "Modern Warfare 2" and picks up the story right from the moment where the last part ended. The world is on fire, World War III is breaking out, and the United States, Europe, Russia, and the Middle East find themselves at the epicenter of a global conflict. The location changes every 10 minutes: One minute we're fighting off Russian troops in New York, the next we're running through the streets of Paris, and then suddenly we're in London.

The main characters are already familiar faces: Captain Price, Yuri, Cope (what a stupid name) and, of course, the main villain is the treacherous Vladimir Makarov. At some point, the plot turns into a personal vendetta, and, as usual, we, driven by a thirst for revenge, go through blood and battles to get to the main villain. The story is full of epic moments. All this is served in a typical style for the "Call of Duty" series - a minimum of time to contemplate the world around, a maximum of explosions and unexpected turns.

The gameplay in MW3 is the same polished mechanics that have long made the series a hit. Hurricane shootouts, spectacular missions, escapes from collapsing buildings - all this works flawlessly.

Did I like the shooting system? Yes. The shooting is juicy, the weapon feels heavy and powerful, and each shot "reverberates in the hands" (and speakers) with a characteristic crunch of metal. The enemies are behaving quite aggressively, and the hero needs to fight for his life with all his might.

But, of course, we must not forget that this is a "Call of Duty", so we can forget about the tactical approach. There is no need to think through complex strategies here - the main thing is to recharge in time and not forget to hide behind shelters.

What are the locations? I would call this an adventure like a bullet-ridden trip around the world. One of the main advantages of the game is its variety of locations. New York, Paris, London, Berlin - you will be able to visit the hottest spots on the planet. The streets of megacities are blazing colorfully with the fire of war, destroyed buildings are crumbling like houses of cards.

I especially remember the scenes in London and Paris. The London mission, where you have to fight with all your might, cross the subway tunnels, looks like a scene from a Hollywood action movie. And in Paris, one of the most spectacular moments of the game takes place - the collapse of the Eiffel Tower. If after that someone says that "Modern Warfare 3" does not know how to surprise, then I do not know how to impress them.

Graphics in MW3 are the case when everything is done with high quality. Yes, the engine is slightly outdated, but the developers have made the most of it. The explosions are juicy, the surroundings are clear, and the lighting looks nice.

But the main thing is the staging. Everything here is built on entertainment: the cameras shake at the right moments, the characters dramatically fall, the enemies effectively "knock the doors off their feet," and the buildings collapse according to the laws of Hollywood. It's not just a shooter, it's an interactive action movie where the player is literally bombarded with epic scenes.

"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" is a classic example of a game that takes not novelty, but high-quality performance. Yes, the formula hasn't changed much from the previous parts, but I personally don't need it. When I launch Call of Duty, that's exactly what I want: drive, cinematic scenes, dynamic gameplay, and epic shootouts.

Of course, you can find fault with the fact that the game is following the beaten path and does not offer fundamental innovations. But why break something that works? Personally, I enjoyed MW3 - it's a strong, entertaining action movie that gives exactly what you expect from it.

8 out of 10.

Quick summary: Modern Warfare 3 starts off with Captain Price and Nikolai getting Soap, whose still injured from the ending of Modern Warfare 2, to a safehouse in India. Meanwhile, NYC is under attack by the Russians and Makarov is still at large.

The campaign was awesome, just awesome. There was so much action in those levels, a few characters return, I loved some of the plot twists, and also fighting in France, Germany, on an airplane, etc. was cool. I will say that there were times where a few levels seem to have gone by really quick. The multiplayer was similar to the first 2 games, but this time it has new killstreaks and game modes. Also Spec Ops is pretty cool, just like in MW2.

Overall, MW3 is epic and whoever played the first 2 games or the Call of Duty series in general will love this game.

Call of Duty Modern warfare 3 is the newest in the Call of Duty sequel selling an amazing 6.5 million on day release setting a new record. Let's start of with the campaign where you continue your hunt for villain Makarov battling through all sorts of new areas and enemies. You are hit with a lot of new features through this new campaign such as mortar towers, Juggernaught suits and assault drones. Also unlike Modern Warfare 2 history you get to play as the man himself Captain Price and hopefully end Makarov's run once and for all. While playing through the campaign you play as two new characters Frost from delta force and Yuri working along side Soap and Captain Price. The Main problem with the campaign is not the graphics or ideas but the length I believe it stops people overplaying the online game play as if the campaign was long you could mix and match between campaign and online. However anyone looking to buy the game should be prepared for new never been seen before features and new areas which have never been explored it is a definitely improved campaign from previous Call of Duty's.

The online game play has been frowned upon more being too much like Modern Warfare 2. I can assure you this isn't true. The game play modes, classes, maps and kill streaks are all new. Firstly the classes are certainly not the same as Mw2 as in these game they are more personal to your Game play style. As well as the new perks which keep upgrading for points after turning pro you get extra things added to make it that much more special. Firstly proficiency adds a wide range of mini perks such as kick, impact and many more to suit close and long range gunners or stealth like players. Also your gun now has it's own level making you test out all of the different attachments to gain points for your gun to level up and get the top gold cameo. This stops people staying with one gun class like Modern Warfare 2's Ump45 as once your gun is max level this implies to you that you have master it and need to move on. The assault and support kill streaks suits is completely new to call of duty and you can have a separate set of kill streaks for each class meaning you don't have to change around your classes for different game modes. Firstly the support point streaks they are now called suit objective type players who gain experience capping objectives and supporting their team . These point streaks are mostly defence type streaks like radar, advanced radar and EMP to help your team defend objectives and support people using assault point streaks. Assault point streaks suit the kill whoring type players as are things such as chopper gunner, assault drone and ah6 over watch these take time to shoot down and help these types of players maintain a good kill to death ratio. Finally the nuke on Modern Warfare 2 I believe was way to easy to get so making it so you have to get 25 kills in a row no kill streaks count takes a lot more skill to do. Another good thing about the online is the new game play modes such as kill confirmed perfect for people who hate camping.

Now there are problems with the online for example no stopping power sometimes results in people taking unbelievable amount of bullets and you die from two bullets sometimes showing the game can be unfair at times. Also what would be good of any Call of Duty is to have their own server as although host migration is more than often successful it can get annoying when it happens a lot. Looking at Call of Duty's sales they surely have enough to splash out on their own server like games such as MAG which uses Sony as a server rather than a player host. Finally one of the main problems for the online is the hit detection, this is where if you are near an enemy your character moves slightly without your control as you can sense them. Sometimes online this can happen from quite far distances resulting in enemies being able to preliminary fire at you as they know you are coming.

Private matches differ from any other game in the franchise as they have their own custom game modes which are not playable online. Some examples are infected, Juggernaught and team Juggernaught. Also due to popularity last year wager matches one in the chamber and gun game have returned yet they are specific to private matches. The difference this time is in wager type matches the host can choose what classes will be used to go in favour of your parties preferences. Also the final thing about private matches is that you weapon custom classes in private matches are different to your online custom classes so you can have specific classes for private and specific classes for online. The game did bring back special ops missions like on Modern Warfare 2 but as well as this you can play survival mode which is basically Modern Warfare's version of zombies. Survival see's you battling off all sorts of different kinds of enemies to achieve the highest wave (round) possible. The missions are pretty similar objective wise to Modern Warfare 2 such as time trials, defending and planting objectives which is a bit of a let down. Also the fact that it is only two player isn't as fun to play in parties or even finding a match online as there is only one other person with you so it can get boring. The most noticeable change to special ops is you have a rank so you can level up and unlock new things to help you in the missions and survival making it that little bit easier.