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When it comes to shooters, it doesn’t get much better than Call of Duty. Although the Call of Duty franchise is known for its intense and realistic depiction of war, it has also always been mired in the backdrop of World War II. Now, this has all changed, with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, developer Infinity Ward has freed itself from the limitations imposed by WWII and has taken its beloved franchise into the modern age.

As with previous Call of Duty games, Call of Duty 4 tells its story from more than one viewpoint. Throughout the course of the game you will experience war through the eyes of the British S.A.S and the U.S. Marines. Whereas previous games had you storming the beaches of Normandy for the umpteenth time, Call of Duty 4 will throw you into much more varied and fresh environments. Whether it’s sneaking through a contaminated Chernobyl, sprinting across the hull of a sinking ship, or rushing from one burnt out car to another in a frantic attempt to find cover in a Middle-Eastern village; Call of Duty 4 will drag you in and not let go.

It bears mentioning that Call of Duty 4 is intense. More intense than virtually any shooter I have ever played. The AI is smarter, the enemies are more numerous and the dogs are ferocious. Yes, Call of Duty 4 introduces dogs into the fray and if you’re not quick enough, they’ll rip open your throat before you know what happened. Luckily, most of the time you will have intelligent squad mates at your side. From warning you of incoming enemies to throwing back a live grenade, these squad mates feel very realistic and do a good job of covering your back.

Another aspect of Call of Duty 4 that’s not hard to miss is its video/audio presentation. Call of Duty 4 is one of the most photo-realistic games out there and, coupled with superb sound design, you will often forget your sitting on your couch playing a game. In fact, there were a couple instances while playing when I was killed because I was spending too much time appreciating Call of Duty 4’s incredible visuals. Along with these visuals comes a very impressive physics system. Unlike in most shooters where bullets will stop once they’ve hit a wall, in Call of Duty 4, bullets can in fact pierce walls, depending on the material the wall is made of and the force which the bullets are being expended.

The single player campaign can take anywhere from five to nine hours, depending on what difficulty mode you are playing under. While some may bemoan this relatively short gameplay experience, I actually welcome it. I would rather have a short, well-crafted experience that stays fresh and exciting throughout, than a long-winded one that starts to become dull halfway through. This is not to say that I don’t enjoy longer videogames, for I do, but to me, the pacing of Call of Duty 4 is spot on and in the end, I was in no way disappointed in how long it took me to complete the game. After beating the game, you can go back through on Arcade mode, which lets you replay levels with different sets of rules. You can also apply a variety of cheat codes such as slow motion.

Call of Duty 4 also boasts an extremely varied multiplayer mode which should keep players busy for a long time. You will find 55 multiplayer ranks, six classes (you can also create your own), 16 maps, multiple game modes and much more.

With Call of Duty 4, Infinity Ward has created an intense and immersive shooter which will keep you on your toes throughout the game’s single-player campaign. The WWII backdrop has performed admirably for the Call of Duty franchise, but Infinity Ward definitely made the right decision in honorably discharging WWII, ushering in the modern age, and with it, one of the best shooters ever.

Filed under: Reviews, Video Games, Xbox 360 Tagged: | Call of Duty 4, Infinity Ward, Xbox 360