Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2023) Review – Playstation 5

A Modern Classic Reimagined

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III is the latest installment in the blockbuster first-person shooter franchise that has captivated millions of gamers around the world.

The game is the latest reimagining rather than remakes of the classic Modern Warfare entries, taking the set-pieces and characters from the seminal franchise, and giving them updates for modern sensibilities.

The game’s campaign picks up from the explosive events of 2022’s Modern Warfare 2 (the first back-to-back storyline sequel in Call of Duty’s history), with the world on the brink of destruction, and elite Task Force 141 remaining the only thing between us and nuclear-fueled oblivion.

Multiplayer has also returned (obviously), but an interesting decision is to bring back all of the classic maps from CoD’s past, to give a new – yet nostalgic – spin on things. Add to that an open-world revamp to fan-favourite Zombies mode, and 2023’s entry of Call of Duty is quite the mixture.

But does Modern Warfare III live up to the hype and deliver a satisfying installment, or is it getting a little too familiar?

 

 

A Pulse-Pounding Ride Goes Off-Script

The annual Call of Duty campaign is a staple in many households – each November’s entry (save some notable exceptions) is home to a playable action movie, complete with all of the pyrotechnics, heroism and bombast of its big-screen movie brethren.

This year’s installment continues the events of Modern Warfare 2, with strong connective tissue all the way back to the flashpoint that was the 2019 reboot, Modern Warfare. All of the key protagonists of Captain Price, Soap, Ghost, and Gaz make a reappearance, as well as General Shepherd and the notorious war criminal Vladimir Makarov.

It remains a globetrotting adventure and from a first mission heavily reminiscent of breaking out Captain Price from jail in iconic level ‘The Gulag’ from MW2, to echoes of the atrocities committed by Makarov in 2009’s effort with another aviation-related incident, the campaign does its best to evoke missions past.

However, fans will know that the current storyline has already veered significantly off-course, making for interesting novel perspectives on our characters, as well as making room for great new ones like Farah, back once again and played with verve and determination by Claudia Domit.

Levels are set everywhere from a thinly-veiled London’s Embankment to idyllic off-shore tax havens, as well as the usual snow-capped mountains and army bases.

The beats will hit hardest for those who have followed the plot closely over the past three games, but the slightly anarchic story still sticks the landing for the most part, with the motion capture and facial performances all being a standout feature for all involved.

The most interesting developments are actually in the form of it being a significantly shorter campaign this time around – it took me around five hours on Veteran to complete – as well as ‘open combat missions’, where the usual linear Call of Duty campaign thrill ride takes a detour…

 

 

The Thrill of The Chase

The best place to start in terms of gameplay changes is in the campaign, where of the fifteen or so missions, a good proportion of them do away with the team-based, heavily scripted format we’ve known for the past few decades, to give way to something far more reminiscent of the recent ‘DMZ’ mode, found in Warzone.

You’re plonked – solo – on a map, given a number of objectives that can be completed with a significant degree of freedom in terms of both order and method. Weapons are procured from supply crates dotted around the level, and the same armour boosts and one-time-use perks found in the battle royale pop up here.

It’s certainly a bold change, and the premise is an incredibly exciting one. There’s a lot of effort gone into dynamic and contextual chatter between your avatar and the crew in your ear, giving pointers to areas of interest, rules of engagement, or even plot exposition as you potter around.

However, those who are fans of the huge CoD set-piece moments will be a little disappointed, as you have to find your own fun with this change from it being essentially on-rails to open plan for large swathes of the campaign.

We can tell this is quite a divisive move, but some levels – scaling 12 floors of an enemy-filled tower block a la The Raid in ‘Highrise’ for example – show the potential when open combat missions are a bit more hemmed in.

You get your AC-130 mission, you get your ‘All Ghillied Up’ stealthing through enemy guards mission, you get your ‘undercover in an enemy base’ mission – Call of Duty still knows how to play the hits from a gameplay perspective, but sometimes you just want them to release a new album…

With Sledgehammer Games on production duties for this installment, they’ve delivered tight moment-to-moment gunplay and a slight – yet entertaining – campaign.

 

 

Wealth Opens Doors

However, it’s the all-important multiplayer that keeps fans engaged every year, and this time it’s a mixture of old and new.

All sixteen incredible maps from 2009’s Modern Warfare 2 make a return, replete with all of the modern gameplay mechanics and graphics 2023 can deliver.

The old muscle memory kicks in quickly, and the snappy action, the addition of dolphin dives and slides as well as a bevy of weapon attachments and a kit-driven perks system construct a novel wrapper around the classic core experience, offering up something entirely different.

Don’t get me wrong – the horrible sight lines on Highrise still make you a prime target for snipers, and Rust is still four minutes of abrupt chaos – but it brings a new refinement to the anarchy, as well as all manner of treadmill mechanics to keep you playing long into the wee hours.

All of the modes are here, from Team Deathmatch to objective-driven efforts like Domination.

Equally interesting is the return of the Zombies mode, with all-new open-world sensibilities. Combining elements of DMZ, Warzone, and mission-based objectives with the shambling horrors, it’s easy to spend countless hours wandering around this mode alone – it was far better than it had any right to be, to be honest! Definitely the surprise highlight of the online bunch.

Flaws also persist in some horrible spawning, and the skill-based matchmaking lulls you into a false sense of superiority before crushing your hopes and dreams, but these are all mainstays to CoD, and as Modern Warfare 3 receives its patches, balance updates and ideally new maps, the meta-game evolves and the long term players will see the greatest rewards.

The gating of many weapons, perks and kill streaks behind beating daily challenges is a particularly devious way to drip-feed fun over weeks rather than days, as are the obvious battle passes and paid cosmetic options – all absent the first time around.

However, when you see Groot jumping into you and blasting at Homelander, whilst Snoop Dogg wanders around aimlessly in the background, it’s patently clear that the Fortnite effect, for better or worse, has had a huge impact on the Call of Duty ecosystem.

In summary, CoD’s multiplayer is as addictive a timesink as its ever been, the campaign is fun but a little uninspired by being so inspired by CoDs past, and the gameplay is the tight modern combat and longer TTKs we’ve grown to love since 2019 – more of the same in a good way, with some of the franchise’s best ever maps.

 

 

A Bittersweet Symphony

Graphics and audio were a mixed bag – great to still have a wealth of customisation features despite being on PS5. Silky smooth 120Hz frame rates, choosing FOV, amounts of grain on screen, even the FidelityFX settings to adjust visuals are all welcome once again…but either the graphics just weren’t as impactful (or we’ve gotten used to them) vs. MW 2019.

There’s no equivalent to the incredible ‘Clean House’ mission, where lighting, animation and gameplay came together to create a level of realism almost unmatched in the series.

Equally the multiplayer makes it easier to see the visual improvements and sheer level of detail in a map like ‘Favela’ is almost sensory overload, but whether it is a change in art direction or the visuals are just softer than before, making MWIII a great looking game, but no longer the technical showcase I’d invite my mates round to witness.

In terms of audio, Call of Duty still remains in the upper echelon when it comes to making the most of a high-end setup – directional audio and being able to hear footsteps or the source of gunfire genuinely give you the upper hand during a skirmish, and this installment remains no slouch in delivering that.

Music is suitably epic – albeit a little forgettable courtest of Walter Mair…but if you pony up a few CoD points, you can purchase the amazing Hans Zimmer score from 2009’s MW2 (sorry for bringing up that title yet again!) to play throughout the online modes.

It was available in last year’s entry and in Warzone and will carry over to this year’s installment if purchased.

So all in all, definitely not a dip in production values in the audio-visual department, it simply feels like with such steep competition in the space, what was stellar for prior entries now has CoD merely keeping up.

 

Verdict

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III is a worthy successor to the rebooted sub-series, delivering a thrilling and immersive campaign, a revamped and expanded multiplayer, and a groundbreaking open-world zombies mode.

Fans of the original Modern Warfare trilogy will appreciate the return of familiar faces, locations, and gameplay features, while newcomers will enjoy decent graphics, fluid mechanics, and varied options.

The game is not without its flaws, however, as some of the open combat missions can feel a tad repetitive if not entered into the right spirit of experimentation and exploration, the story can be predictable at times, and the zombie mode can be overwhelming for solo players.

Despite these minor drawbacks, Modern Warfare III is a must-play for any first-person shooter enthusiast, offering hours of action-packed entertainment and a satisfying coda to the saga of Task Force 141.