Nerds That Geek Game Review – ‘Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

One of the things I’ve always loved about video games, is the sheer fact that sometimes they can accomplish what Hollywood and even novels cannot. Because video games can truly immerse you into a moment and a story unlike any other medium and sometimes, this particular genre of storytelling is able to tell incredible tales, the kind that no studio would ever put the money up for and one such series that I’ve always found to be incredibly cinematic and immersive is the Modern Warfare trilogy, because it truly offered up some bold storytelling when the first game in the saga hit the market back in 2007.
 
Granted, the gaming world had seen strong stories and jaw dropping moments arrive well before Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare ever arrived on consoles but what made this game so special is that it managed to set the bar going forward for strong stories in gaming since its powerful script was unlike anything else on the market. For this was in fact, a Hollywood script nestled into a world of graphics and honestly, that world building was what caught me off guard when I first popped this game into my Xbox. Because it became inherently clear that something special was happening, and the sense that real trouble was brewing hung heavy over this game from the instant you became ‘Soap’ McTavish.
 
That sense of danger added a real gravity to what you were doing in the game. Because it wasn’t just about spraying bullets and putting down wave upon wave of bad guys. This was about saving a fictional world, one on the brink of horrible things thanks to the machinations of a mad man and the power of that was only enhanced further by the top notch voice acting present during the missions and also that the story wasn’t told through only cutscenes that would only load at the beginning or end of a level, it unfolded in real time, and that’s what made this one so incredibly immersive, the fact that you were at the whim of digital fate and well, the wonder of this game doesn’t end there.
 
Because what was truly impressive about this game, is that it went to some supremely dark places. I mean, it’s one thing to see your fellow soldiers die alongside you while in combat, but it’s quite another thing to see a nuclear weapon unleashed upon the earth and fake or no, seeing that flash and having your character open his eyes and stumble about while bleeding out under the shade of a mushroom cloud is some powerful, powerful stuff and well, that particular moment is merely the gateway to far darker moments, including the ending and really when all is said and done, this really is a modern classic, one that pushed the envelope and provided the user with a unique and powerful experience.
 
In fact, this game was so unique and intelligent in its design that I’ve yet to see any other first-person shooter remotely replicate what this game had to offer, but many certainly tried to recreate the wonder of Modern Warfare. Because a sense of grit and gravity trickled into the gaming world after this one arrived and that alone is respect enough for a revolutionary story that set the stage for an incredible trilogy of games, one that didn’t end as perfectly as we would like, but one that truly set the bar for quality storytelling and a dynamic experience. 

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