The Evolution of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
- Posted October 9th, 2009 at 09:53 EDT by Mike Harradence
- 30 Comments
Over the past few years, Activision’s mammoth selling Call of Duty franchise has effortlessly cemented itself among the cream of the crop of World War II shooters, racking up plaudits its seamless blend of cinematic gameplay and gritty set pieces, sumptuous visuals and comprehensive online functionality. Following the release of Call of Duty 3, though, it became abundantly clear that a change was necessary in order to stimulate both sales and consumer interest in the series, a task which was ultimately appointed to long time franchise collaborator, Infinity Ward. As a result, in 2007, this talented bunch of coders decided to pack up their troubles, swap their kit bags for a pair of night vision goggles and – as the game’s subtitle emphatically proclaims – distance itself from the tired and tested WWII formula. The result? Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
A roaring success, Modern Warfare offered the shot in the arm that the CoD brand desperately required, combining the series trademark realism, immaculate visual offerings and insanely addictive online play with the contemporary sensibilities of a modern day shooter. As a result, the game enjoyed an unprecedented stay in the public consciousness, remaining a staple on the multiformat videogame charts months after its release, and ultimately went on to secure a re-release under the Game of the Year moniker back in spring 2008. Modern Warfare eventually went on to stack up a whopping 13 million copies sold globally as of May 2009, garnered universal acclaim and scooped up a multitude of awards, including the prestigious Overall Game of the Year at the Academy of Interactive Arts & Science. Essentially, Modern Warfare was good. Very good. And it printed stacks of money to boot.
Fast forward to 2009, and anticipation among eager punters has reached fever pitch as the videogames market gears up for the release of the hotly anticipated Modern Warfare 2, tipped by many to become the biggest selling game of all time. As a result, PSU felt obliged to induct the Modern Warfare brand in to our on-going ‘Evolution of…’ series, offering a visual juxtaposition of MW2 and its predecessor in order to witness how the team at Infinity Ward are shaking things up for the sequel. Here, our objective isn't simply to depict any inevitable graphical advancements in the series (as the screens below were not chosen solely with this in mind) but rather illustrate the disparity between both games from a variety of perspectives including battlefields, weaponry, gear and numerous other elements inherent of the series on offer. Essentialy, this should give us all a clear idea as to how the sequel differs from its predecessor. Those of you who have yet to clap eyes on our previous features in this area may want to have a gander at our previous efforts, where we scrutinize the likes of God of War and Assassin’s Creed under the microscope.
Without further ado, check out the Evolution of Modern Warfare below.
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(Click for full size)
Character detail
Explosions
Close quarters combat
Multiplayer
Sight
Scenery
First person view
Moving out
By Mike Harradence and Joseph Lustig
Comments
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PsychoMantis |
KuruptX- 10:00am BST - October 9th, 2009
- 1
Nothing noticable just the 1st and last pic. #1
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PS3-The Ultimate Machine
- 11:44am BST - October 9th, 2009
- 6
Wow,i was expecting a at least noticeably better textures,but if you look at the snow in the second last pic,and the building in the fourth pic,you get to see the GIGANTIC leap of 0.00000 difference between the two.
btw i'll be picking it up when it gets cheap,cuz i wanna see what the whole deal with the MW online really is.(i haven't played MW 1,and i guess i'll skip over that now that the sequel is almost out).
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danyal1985 |
danyal1985- 11:50am BST - October 9th, 2009
- 7
there is no freaking difference, you want to see difference, compare uncharted and uncharted 2 or killzone and killzone 2.
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Mike_Harradence
- 12:04pm BST - October 9th, 2009
- 9
Guys, please read over the text before the actual screenshots. We're not aiming to show any huge visual leaps, we're showcasing the differences between both games in terms of scenario, locations, weapons, equipment, clothing, etc. Basically, how each game differs while still clearly maintaining the Modern Warfare experience we've come to know and love. That's why we've picked similar shots for both games where possible -- to show it's still Modern Warfare, it's just evolving. :)
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lordAlucard |
Sympozium_666- 12:18pm BST - October 9th, 2009
- 11
I'm sure there's more stuff to report on the news these past months have been really poor like wheres the previews!!
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tadpole3159 |
faulkner8991- 3:18pm BST - October 9th, 2009
- 17
no.4
no picture no.1 was taken from the E3 trailer me thinks
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davin_g
- 6:09pm BST - October 9th, 2009
- 21
The only evolution in this series is gutting Call of Duty gameplay to the cheapest easiest form possible. MASSIVE APPEAL is what they aim for. This is achieved by making the game easy to pick up and feel successful. Exploitable perks, over abundance of greanades and auto-aiming/no scoping mean people just run around guns blazing with no skill required. True fans of the Call of Duty franchise that purchased the first three WW2 games remember the excellent balance of gameplay between the power and accuracy of the M1 Grande and the percision of the Gewehr or the excellent close quarter efficiency of MP40. This series has lost everything that made it great in sacrifice to $$$. I know everyone loves it now but this game used to have an excellent following among fans of the series. Now it has been boiled down to an arcady shooter. So expect this game to evolve by adding more easy kills (sticky grenades), more unrealistic exploitable perks (double wielding machine guns), and continue to make using sights or scopes a thing of the past with steady aim perks and allowing subs to be accurate at incredibly rediculous distances. P90s across a map.
As far as the pics are concerned....of course it hasn't lept ahead. It is being made on the 360. How much further advanced can they get technique wise on that machine. To keep it even they build the for weaker machine and dumb down the PS3. What do you expect. This game will never look as good as Uncharted or Killzone because they have to dumb it down for the 360. Now unfortunately they have also dumbed down the gameplay as well to sell to the masses. I loved my Finest Hour. The Big Red One was enjoyable. Cod3 was designed poorly but it did have pretty fair and balanced gameplay. Then....well they sold out. Great for casual gamers and for making money. Bad for us gamers that loved everything COD used to be.
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I_am_Arsenalgunner27
- 6:17pm BST - October 9th, 2009
- 22
such a shame that I cannot buy this because of the f u c k i n g s h i t t y YLOD...however. I blame SONY for not providing a better solution for the user to re-aqquire a new PS3. at least reduce the cost of the refirbishment by at least 50%
Apart from that. I dont think I'll get a PS3 for the release of this game. such a shame
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coverton341 |
groovy341- 6:20pm BST - October 9th, 2009
- 23
Meh. I really hope this game doesn't get "best selling game of all time" status. I mean I am sure it will be a great entry into the COD series as MW1.5 and I am sure the multiplayer is going to be good. I mean when you make the same multiplayer experience with some new perks and maps then you are sure to make a hit since the first MW multiplayer was so good.
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Diehard-gamer
- 10:44pm BST - October 9th, 2009
- 26
Same graphic Engine just little shapper in the new one. well what can u do when u have to work with a 8.5gig disc, PSN brownmouse
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PSX_Legend |
KillZone3000- 5:43pm BST - October 12th, 2009
- 30
Everything is better on MW2 specially the scenery.
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