Publisher: Activision
Reviewed on: PS4 (PS4 Pro)
Also available for: Xbox One, PC

Cast: Chad Michael Collins, Asher Sarraf, Barry Sloane, Nick Boraine, Claudia Doumit, Debra Wilson, Aidan Bristow, Joel Swetow

Developer: Infinity Ward
Studio Heads: David Stohl, Patrick Kelly
Written by: Ben Chaney, Brian Bloom, Justin Harris, Taylor Kurosaki

Last year Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 skipped any form of single-player campaign and focused on the multiplayer slice of the COD cake and, in my opinion, it worked. This year, Infinity Ward returns with a reboot of the Modern Warfare franchise, including a brand-new, thrilling, scary and haunting story that sees the return of some fan-favourite characters from the original trilogy. But what they lose among all of this is the addictive multiplayer that had me hooked with Black Ops 4’s selection of modes.

It’s impossible not to be in awe of Call of Duty’s visuals and sound this year; it’s better than ever. Stunning environments that take you through jungles, war-torn cities and a city under attack are the most realistic COD has ever been. The character models are some of the best I’ve seen. Smug smiles by Captain Price aren’t lost behind his beard and instead become memorable moments in a game that truly feels like a movie someone caught between directing duties from Kathryn Bigelow and David Ayer. And as you move through the campaign, any load screens are hidden behind cutscenes, making it possible to play the whole thing like one 4–5 hour continuous movie.

When you begin the campaign—actually, anytime you click into the campaign menu—you’re warned the game contains graphic and highly adult themes that may upset some, and they’re not exaggerating. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare treats war like the series never has before, but as much as the content is shocking and eye-opening, the story itself never grabbed me and some history-tweaking to fit the game’s narrative rubbed me the wrong way.

Everything centres around the fictional country of Urzikstan, under occupation from Russian forces who invaded many years prior. Russia holds Urzikstan, but not without trouble, as they attempt to fight off rising rebel forces. The leader of these rebels is Farah Karim, played by Claudia Doumit, and she’s easily the most interesting character in the game. You’ll learn of her past, what she’s been put through because of the invasion of her country and what she’s striving to take back. I kinda wish the game was all her story, but it’s not; it’s about Americans helping save her and her country because, at the end of the day, it’s Call of Duty.

Early in the game, you’re introduced to the terrorist organisation Al-Qatala as they attack Piccadilly Circus in London and you play as special forces Kyle Garrick attempting to stop the ensuing chaos. Men with fully automatic weapons jump atop vehicles and shoot directly downward before spraying everyone around them; suicide bombers run out of the subway and take down innocents cowering in the streets, and for the most part, you feel utterly helpless.

Infinity Ward spoke about rebooting the franchise because what is considered “modern warfare” has changed—and they’re right. Playing through an attack on Piccadilly this confronting, so early, hits hard. I was out of breath by the end of the level and somewhat shaken. It stirred an emotional reaction I haven’t experienced in games before. Modern Warfare is at its best in missions like this where it presents things how they are, no matter how sad, angry, or disturbed it may make the player feel.

The fact that Urzikstan is fictional becomes important when you’re playing a mission as CIA operative Alex, fighting alongside Farah to help put a stop to Al-Qatala. During a cutscene you’re told the highway you’re watching—Tariq Almawt, also known as the “Highway of Death”—was bombed by the Russians during their invasion. There’s a real Highway of Death, however, located between Safwan and Basra in Iraq, and America took part in bombing it in 1991 as Iraqi military attempted to flee, killing roughly 1,500+. Ripping from real-life events is one thing—being inspired by them, sure. But when you name it the same thing and stick the blame elsewhere in a game that’s trying to present atrocities from every side of a war, it feels horribly daft. It’s these rewritings of history to fit Infinity Ward’s narrative that do a disservice to the game they think they’re making.

In many interviews, developers at Infinity Ward plainly stated this game isn’t political—but it is; they’re just not wanting to have anything to say about it. A game about Russia invading a country—fictional or not—is, by nature, political. I’d say naming your in-game highway after a real-life massacre but changing it so America wasn’t involved is a political move.

Multiplayer is a mixed bag and although there’s one standout mode, it doesn’t have massive longevity and is brought down by the worst maps of any Call of Duty I’ve played.

Much like the campaign, the visual fidelity and audio are the standouts. It doesn’t look as good as the campaign, but it’s still impressive and detailed. The audio is a huge improvement as they approach Battlefield-level gun sounds and ditch the usual buzz-box vibe the franchise often had.

With the realistic campaign comes a more realistic multiplayer as well—for better and worse. You are louder than ever and you’ll hear another player pounding towards you like a recently released elephant if you’ve got good headphones. You can equip the Dead Silence field upgrade to tackle this, which quickly becomes the best choice as being able to sprint around silently is more important than ever.

The way Modern Warfare seems designed to be played is the Realism mode, which strips away the HUD, offers night-time variants and has everyone playing slower as you’ll be taken down in one shot. It’s more intimidating, but certainly the way to play if you want to jump into Team Deathmatch.

Piccadilly may be an amazingly realistic campaign location but, in multiplayer, it’s an aggravating map that always ends with one side spawn-camping the other, no matter the mode. Several other maps grew tiresome quickly as well. There’s no map voting system, no custom servers to cull the bad picks or alleviate bad connections.

How willing you are to deal with camping will define your Modern Warfare multiplayer experience. Nearly every mode features it, and there seems to be no good way to tackle it: players sitting on the same staircase all game surrounded by claymores; others hiding in corners with riot shields. Much of this stems from the removal of the usual “bleeping” minimap. This time the map only lights up if you call in a UAV or manually spot with a drone.

Camping is at its worst in Ground War—the 24v24 mode clearly inspired by Battlefield—but it gets little right. Every match devolves into a tank and a pile of snipers on a hill. If you’re on that side, it’s a bore; if you’re against it, it’s pain just trying to step out of spawn.

Gunfight is the most fun: you and a friend team up in intense, fast-paced and, ultimately, camping-free action. You’re assigned two random weapons on tight, mostly open maps. The mode requires coordination—calling positions, routes, utilities used. I played it entirely with a friend and wouldn’t have considered it otherwise.

In March 2020 Infinity Ward released the ‘Warzone’ mode to Modern Warfare players and free-to-play for those that don’t own the game. Although this is an extension of Modern Warfare, its F2P structure means we’re reviewing it based on its own merits.

There’s no Blackout this year and no Zombies either, so what’s here feels bland and tiresome. Spec Ops is included but is a boring wave mode with a ridiculous difficulty. Even if the weapons all sound and handle great—and the customization, Gunsmith and moment-to-moment shooting are solid—it’s a massive letdown. Hopefully it’ll be patched and tinkered with over the coming months.

A beast of an engine and impressive systems are behind Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, but the multiplayer is mostly full of design frustration, and as hard-hitting as the single-player feels, it’s ultimately without substance and afraid to make the hard choices it asks of its characters.