Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - Initial Beta Impressions

By Steve West: 2007-08-25 16:31:18

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Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - Initial Beta Impressions

Not too long ago an email arrived indicating that it was time to switch my priorities. During an intense battle in the Medical Room on BioShock the telltale ring of an email came in to inform this gamer of the Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare beta’s need for me to play it. Without hesitation I switched over and began my download. And that’s where our feature articles, to continue throughout the week as all you lucky recruits join us on the battlefield, begin.

Details on weapons, tactics, maps, and just the experience itself will be forthcoming. This time on the COD4 impressions we’ll go into the generalities of a first time playthrough. My experience with this series online consists of only my playtime in the last week. There was no 360 in the house during the release of 2 or 3, but I was ready to give the series a try. I’ve played Vampire Rain, and there’s nowhere to go from there but up. Infinity Ward has gone far beyond "up" with the COD4 beta, creating a multiplayer experience that rivals Halo on most levels, even surpassing the multiplayer juggernaught with weapon choice and customizability.

As you join the beta you begin as a recruit, with only a handful of the playable features unlocked for your use. If you want to use the fanciful new create-a-class feature, you better start manning up and getting kills. Rank is more than a symbol, or a number in COD4. The higher your rank, the more skills you possess. This rewards the player who learns and adapts to the game, but oddly enough does not punish those who aren’t quite up to speed on FPS games. From Recruit to Seargant the COD4 multiplayer beta is the best online experience so far this year.

Here are our initial impressions, straight from the dark cellar of the CB Games collective hivemind:

Sexy. Smooth. Holy shit! That is what can best describe the visuals in the beta. In my first play session I took many a bullet to the brain due to distractions of graphical beauty. It’s probably not a good tactic to inspect a broken down vehicle in the middle of a road during a firefight. But hey, it sure was pretty. Infinity Ward’s insistence on 60 fps was definitely the right move. Normally I don’t care, as long as a game runs at least 30 fps it’s smooth enough for me. COD4 thrives on its visual prowess.

You die, you learn. Whenever you are killed in the game the view immediately shifts to your enemy’s POV to show how they lined up their shot and took your precious life. Not only do you learn new, and better, tactics from the superior players, but you also are able to pinpoint a sniper’s location and call that information out to teammates. Now it becomes a matter of learning the maps. In game one the best I could do was, “Uh…sniper in the building…to the left of where I died. Maybe.”

C4 is now worthwhile. Yes, I know there are many C4 users out there who think I blaspheme by saying I never use the stuff in these games. Well, I’m here to tell you that I was right, and Infinity Ward proved it by creating a system that is perfect. Rather than planting some C4, pulling out a remote and waiting for the enemy, and hopefully surviving long enough to pull out your weapon, you’ll simply keep your gun in hand. In COD4 you can detonate the C4 you’ve planted with a double tap of the “X” button, and still be ready for a firefight immediately. Trust me; it’ll save your ass more times than you can count. Plus, it makes C4 a very dangerous situation for anyone unwise enough to enter a building I’m in.

You’re a terrorist, I shall kill you. One thing that is nice for the newcomers is team setup. When you’re on a team, you know who you’re playing with. There’s no figuring out if you’re a blue guy, an American soldier, or whatever. Your teammates have their rank symbol and GT above their heads. The guy with a name over his head? He’s a good guy. Everyone else is the bad guy. That is added to the distinct look of opposing teams. If you see a gentleman in a red beret running at you, and you seem to remember your sniper was wearing Middle Eastern garb…well, you might want to shoot Mr. Beret in the forehead.

That’s going to close it out for the generalities. We’re going to continue bringing you more Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare multiplayer beta impressions as the days wear on. But we have to agree with what you’re thinking, you don’t want to read about it…you want to play! So, remember to sign up on Monday for your token and we’ll see you on the streets of Crash.

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