Hindsight

Unfortunately, no Achievements for this one: I finished the single player campaign on Call of Duty 4, for PS3.

Some background: I’ve not finished any previous Call of Duty games and I got into just two hours of Call of Duty 2 when it debuted for the 360. Having to jump into the shoes of different characters didn’t stick well with me, and I lost interest fast. With COD4, however, I was compelled to keep playing. After three visits to my friend’s PS3, I completed the single player mode.

The decision to depart from the saturated WWII genre was definitely needed, and the blockbuster, Hollywood moments throughout the campaign are fantastic (the title theme is composed by Harry Gregson-Williams for that ultimate cinematic touch).

I didn’t get a chance to try multiplayer on the PS3 version but did participate in the multiplayer beta over Xbox Live. I do recall an excellent ranking and challenge system which I’d like to revisit if I get my hands on the 360 version.

COD has always been about frantic firefights and COD4 just raises the chaos bar even higher. I’m used to shooters that happened to be “quieter” or central to the player. It’s jarring at first then much more immersive after the initial shock. Ridiculous amounts of gunfire, explosions and yelling in deserts, marshes, forests and mountains. The game just takes you everwhere.

It’s definitely worth checking out, especially if you love multiplayer - all of my friends are on it while I sit around with DiRT, Halo 3 and Mass Effect. It’s an amazing month for gamers.