Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

As soon as I started this game on Christmas night, I knew I would love it. The graphics stun and make you think it's real. The guns reload as should and even shoot through walls and other flimsy material. The modern military tech is very impressive. The game will seriously make your heart pound. The game doesn't glorify war, it shows how messed up it can be with many things like, friends dying, see death through the eyes of others, rescue missions, and even an amazing assassination with a .50 caliber Barrett. From infiltrating a boat to sniping men while wearing Ghillie, you'll be amazed. The stealth missions are tense and full of suspense while firefights are full of action and violence. Infinity ward really took the gold with this game. The only down side is that the game is short. I beat it in one night but it did take all night so the game takes maybe 6 hours on normal but up the difficulty and you've got a couple days to play. Also, play the multi-player. It has a 1-50 rank, customizable weapons and it's full of action. I loved it. If you don't buy this game, you'll be missing a classic without a doubt.

I generally don't like war games, or even first-person shooters very much. But something about this title gripped me from the beginning. I think it must have been the way it made my heart pound as I worked through the campaign, sweating every time I threw an enemy grenade back and wondering if I had enough time on the fuse. Or being severely outnumbered with just myself and a wounded sniper, feeling doomed yet somehow making it through. This is one of the few games which takes me out of myself (the way a really great movie does) and throws me into the shoes of an SAS soldier or Marine, and has me wondering if I'll make it to the end.

I'm not a game reviewer, but these are some things that have earned Infinity Ward high marks in my book with this title: Graphics - As of today (December '07), these are the best visuals a game has to offer, and sometimes I find myself just walking around an area admiring the detail that went into it. The frame rate (at least on the 360) remains pretty consistent, and the fluidity of movement is silky smooth from start to finish.

Pacing - Not once was I bored during the campaign. It's fast paced, but not in an unrealistic way - you're on the edge of your seat because there's "hostiles" all around you, and you can't afford the luxury of being bored.

Difficulty - I'm glad to see that a higher difficulty here does NOT mean an enemy who takes more shots, but rather one with faster reflexes, sturdier aim, and more strategic grenade-lobbing.

Sound effects - I don't know how many people look for good sound effects in a game, but for me, they tend to be a major factor, and I appreciate the satisfyingly diverse sounds of each weapon, or the "ping" grenades make as they bounce towards you, and yes, even the "thup" of hitting your target.

Story - About the highest compliment I could give this game is that it plays like a superbly made war drama. It's one part story driven, and one part simulator. The overall story and character involvement make it feel like something much more epic than just a first-person shooter, though if all you happen to care about is shooting, the story doesn't get in the way of that, either. The campaign ends with a dramatic conclusion, and I frankly hope there are never talks of making this franchise into a movie, because Call of Duty 4 goes beyond the limits of what films are capable of.

(also, the music is commendable, simply because I generally don't think I'd want much of a soundtrack for realism's sake, but Stephen Barton's work here is beautifully sublime, and sets the mood well)

What an incredible piece of game-making.

By far, the best graphics yet seen on any platform.

Action, action, action. No more wandering around, going, "er...where do I go now?" Nothing but action. The bad guys crawl out from anywhere, like six-foot roaches with machine guns.

A level of realism previously unachieved in any field of entertainment.

The graphics look silky and photo-realistic. I refer not solely to the facial features and the movement and stances of the characters, but also to the incredible backgrounds that da Vinci would have been proud of.

You get the feeling you're in a war - not a computer game. You feel attached to the game, and lose concentration in the real world, to such an extent that you'll lose track of time, and maybe even be late for work/school/auditions/AA meetings.

Without doubt, this game is the one that will change everything. Halo? HALO? Nothing compared to this. Honestly, buy this game. You have no reason to dislike anything about it, apart from maybe the price.

This game has raised the bar so high, that I'm certain some developers who were a couple of months away from releasing their own FPS will have to delay their games' releases to have a major overhaul to catch up.

Call of Duty 4 is streets ahead of anything else out there. Get it. Play it. Love it. Live it.

Lots of love, Thomas Hardcastle

Despite slight flaws, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is one of the greatest games that came out this year. If you like First Person Shooters, you will love COD4. With realistic war zones and a good storyline, the controller will be hard to put down. Although Call of Duty 4 is fill with nonstop action and violence, it gives you a sense of what real war would be like, and you begin to appreciate real-life soldiers. GameInformer rated Captain Price one of the best heroes of the 2007 as a gaming year. Never are you so delighted to be ordered around by a guy with a mustache.

Graphics: 9/10: Great graphics, with slight flaws in grass and thin layered items.

Controls: 10/10: The scoping system is wonderful and I love how you can stab people in the back.

Realism: 10/10: The war zones and situations are so life-like in COD4 that you feel yourself simultaneously slashing with the controller as if it was a knife while pressing the mêlée weapon.

Difficulty: 9/10: I beat the game on the Recruit difficulty setting, and I had no problem (it was the easiest). So I tried to repeat one of the latter levels on Veteren (the hardest setting), and I was utterly annihilated.

This was my introduction to the series back in 2009 or so. I was blown away by both the campaign and multiplayer experience, and I continue to be all these years later.

Worth the time of any gamer!