Ive had this game for some time now, and its time i review this for those who are considering buying the game....
Gameplay: If youve played previous call of duties made by Infinity Ward (excluding call of duty 3) then this game is right at home for you. I myself was shocked when they annouced that the game would be in modern times, and had very mixed reations, but when i finally got to sit down with the game, it was like i just jumped in a time machine. The gameplay feels just like the first two pc games, and if you're into immersive, spectacular kind of gameplay, then this is for you.
Sound: Guns blazing, nades, cars, helicopters, even explosive barrels all sound great. Even the high pitched ringing after getting hit by a stun grenade makes the game feel like you're more involved within the game. Each gun has a different and unique sound allowing other players to recognize the different weapons you carry.
Graphics: Hope your computer can handle this game. If you have a nice box running this game, then you're in luck. Unfortunatly my video card is barely passing, but I have played on more higher tech computers. Everything looks great and as always in the call of duty franchise, i could imagine running through smoke in the game, is like running through smoke on the real battlefield, just without the "I might really really die" instead of "i might get fraged and have to go a different route next time"
The game might not be crysis, but it sure as hell beats a majority of the games to date. Check out the screenshots that gamespot has if you aren't convinced. Those are just some of the spectacular scenaries within the game.
Single-Player: The first time i got my hands on this game, i played through about 2 mission, then dove into multiplyar for a long time and didnt get back to single player until I had gained a few promotions online. (ill mention that later) It wasnt until I finished playing the single player did i realize how great it really was. The situation is grows into chaos as you play as the Marines and the British Sas in the fight to protect the world from terrorists. I quickly became invovled with this story, and when i finally finished about 6 hours later, i just wanted more. It was like an epic movie, or a really good book if you read. If you decide to purchase the game, make sure you play on a level that is challenging to you, as the more you work to play the game, the better you feel when you actually complete it. Try the harder difficulties rather then just zipping by with the easiest one. Some missions are pretty difficult and I myself did have to restart the mission multiple times. It is short, but at least the game is good at being short.
Multiplayer: Let me take a few seconds of a finger break as i get ready to write about the amazing mulitplayer. ..............sigh, ok. Multiplayer for every call of duty game on the pc is fantastic. The franchise has an incredible re-playablility factor in it. ( i still scrim in cod 1 and 2) If you like fast paced shootin and frantically sprinting around to take down the enemy, you've got that in this game. If you like tactical shooting while feeling like you're in real war and your lives do count, then you also have that too. There are thousands of different servers with different types of gameplay. Modes include but certainly arent limited to: the classics, deathmatch, team deathmatch, capture the flag, search and destroy ( those in all pc call of duties) along with some new ones like domination and sabotage. Like i said, those arent the only modes as people in the world like to invent new maps, and gameplay called mods. There are different type of i guess, ways to play, as you can play with a hud, or what i prefer, hardcore mode, where you have nothing but the gun in front of you, and every single weapon is deadly. (unlike the regular mode, where guns are limited to the powerful ones, if youre good) These can change many things in the game and you might just find a new creative favorite game mode for your call of duty 4 playing.
The system: What i mean for the system in call of duty 4, is how ranking, weapons, achievements, and teamplay come into the multiplayer. I made this a separate topic to explain the most fun you'll have in this game.
Ranks: you start as private, a level 1, and work your way to the top as general at level 55. It doesnt take too too long to be a level 55, but playing time is required. I took about a week of casual playing on the search and destroy gametype. Sure with ranks comes a little bit of pride, but just about everybody is level 55 and working on their second accounts just for fun. The real reward in leveling up is the weapons you unlock. As you gain ranks you gain access to every weapon in the game. Sure you can pick up somebody's level 49 .50 cal semi-auto sniper for a round, but when you actually reach level 49, you get to spawn and respawn with it every round.
That being said, we move on to weapons and other goods.
Weapons: Weapons come in every size and shape. If you like the big guns then go big, if you like the mini uzis and mini guns, then thats fine too. (i prefer the skorpian, a small sub-machine gun) Snipers can go happy to know that there isnt just one gun. Semi-autos, bolts, different traits for each offer up to 5 different gun, each having the options to go acog scope. In the regular mode, i found some guns to be hard to use against other people's big hitters, but on hardcore mode, everygun is a good choice. Not only can you pick from a large variety of weapons, but you can attach red dots, acog scopes, silencers, and grips to your choice of guns. Each gun is separated into different categories, assault rifles, sub machine guns, light machine guns, shotguns (2 of them) and Sniper Rifles. As you kill more people with a certain gun, you unlock those add-ons, and as you get more headshots, you can even unlock different camos for your gun. (want your ak-47 to be gold? then just complete every single achievement in the assault class) Bottom line, these guns rock.
Achievements: there are many achievments in this multiplatform title. You dont need Xbox live to earn these. Along with the weapons achievements, there are certain situations such as, survive a whole match, or shoot the c4 through the wall, and kill somebody. All of these, giving you expierience points for your level, and i guess bragging rights if you happen to complete them all. Its not easy to complete every single one of these, but it can be done.
Perks: perks are a new addition to the call of duty series. Perks can range from extra ammo, c4, claymores, rpgs, and other equipment. Others include special ones like longer sprint time, faster reloading, faster shooting, more health, and much much much more. Perks are what make this game so different for multiplayer as everybody can customize to their very own liking. If you like first person shooters and like to get involved in a clan, then perks also come to many different roles to play.
So far, thats all the topics that i think i can cover now on to the Bad.
The Bad: ummm...... im thinking right now, and..... Oh, i got one, recently, the people of call of duty 4 announced a new map pack with 3 maps including a remake of the classic from call of duty 1 and 2, carentan. The bad part is... its only for the playstation 3, and Xbox 360. If you really really want to buy these maps, then the pc version isnt for you. I personally still prefer the gameplay of pc and dissapointed about this.
Thats all i can think of right now, this took me some time, and i hope that you enjoyed reading this.