Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III review
Modern Warfare 3 is a combination of nostalgia and attempted innovation, but it has few new striking elements that set it apart from the rest of the franchise. The distinctive features of MW3 should have been a revamped Zombies experience and a less linear campaign with open-world components. While exploring into high-level danger regions and annihilating zombie adversaries is undeniably entertaining, Zombies lacks originality – it’s just a variation on the standard DMZ gameplay.
This edition, developed by Sledgehammer Games, aims to recreate the explosive plot and magnificent action that the Call of Duty franchise is renowned for but just lacks, except from the exceptional online multiplayer.
The single-player story begins up after the events of Modern Warfare II and Warzone 2, with the team attempting to apprehend Vladimir Makarov following his jail breakout. Captain John Price, Lieutenant Simon “Ghost” Riley, Sergeant Kyle “Gaz” Garrick, and Sergeant John “Soap” MacTavish return as members of Task Force 141. To be honest, much of the narrative is fluff; all you need to know is that Makarov is the big evil guy who must be stopped. Understanding the plot may be difficult if you haven’t played prior Warzone 2 seasons.
The multiplayer in Modern Warfare 3 is the bright star of this year’s Call of Duty offering, and it is without a doubt the glue that holds the entire package together. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to ignore the obvious flaws in what should have been a MW2 addition. The game opens with an entertaining quest involving a sneaky jail break, demonstrating potential. This momentum, however, is quickly lost as the campaign shifts into Open Combat missions, giving you greater choice but compromising the series’ distinctive dramatic intensity. Hidden supply boxes in these missions include excellent gear and weaponry, but once located, there’s little need to retry. Instead, the attempt at gaming variation breaks the plot, leaving it fairly empty. The lack of new advances like demolition physics is a squandered opportunity that might have drastically improved the entire experience.
The 14-mission campaign takes roughly 4-5 hours depending on the chosen difficulty level: recruit, regular, toughened, or veteran. It’s built for replayability since some missions feature treasures and additional weaponry for future loadouts if you wish to revisit levels.The only cooperative play accessible is the Zombies mode, which is actually fun. Codenamed Operation Deadbolt, it throws 24 players into Call of Duty’s greatest open-world Zombies encounter in squads of 3.
One bright component is the enduring quality of 2009’s Modern Warfare II maps. Estate, Scrapyard, Highrise, Sub Base – these maps retain their excellence, focusing on firefights at all ranges and various movement patterns and layouts. While the 2020 era Call of Duty offers quicker gameplay with sliding and diving, these levels remain well-balanced. As they always have, these battlegrounds thrive in the tactical gameplay of Search and Destroy where spawn sites are allocated and team planning is crucial.
The visuals have improved significantly from the beta, removing previously hazy and washed-out settings. Even older maps are revived with fresh textures, lighting, and environment enhancements that add character. Modern Warfare III is graphically spectacular, and the cast delivers superb performances, converting the FPS game into what could have been a fascinating political drama if not for the narrative faults. Cinematic linear stages, precisely designed around the storyline, have realistic character models and great writing that wouldn’t be so awful if the muddled tempo didn’t detract from its brilliance.
Despite this visual upgrade, the UI design has an awkwardly archaic vibe, reminiscent of its predecessor. The multiplayer in Modern Warfare 3 is the bright star of this year’s Call of Duty offering, and it is without a doubt the glue that holds the entire package together. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to ignore the obvious flaws in what should have been a MW2 expansion. Modern Warfare III excels in multiplayer but disappoints in the story, zombies, and obvious money-grabbing techniques, leaving fans wishing for the franchise’s past brilliance.
