---
title: 'Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 Review Crew: A Great Campaign, But There''s a Catch'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=kXOkAUTCfm8'
video_id: 'kXOkAUTCfm8'
date: 2026-10-29
duration_sec: 3442
channel: 'IGN'
---

# Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 Review Crew: A Great Campaign, But There's a Catch

> Source: [Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 Review Crew: A Great Campaign, But There's a Catch](https://youtube.com/watch?v=kXOkAUTCfm8)

## Summary

The Review Crew panel discusses Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, the final installment in the Modern Warfare reboot quadrilogy. The consensus is that the campaign is a strong return to form, praised for its pacing, variety, and grounded storytelling, while the multiplayer, particularly its maps and spawn points, is seen as lackluster. The new DMZ extraction mode is highlighted as an innovative and additive feature that could attract new players to the genre.

### Key Points

- **Campaign Score and Multiplayer Impact** [00:45] — Simon Cardi initially gave the campaign an 8/10 and the multiplayer a 7/10, noting that the multiplayer pulled the overall package down. He described the campaign as the best Modern Warfare since the 2019 reboot.
- **Favorite and Least Favorite Parts** [01:37] — Cardi's favorite part is the open map mission in the campaign, which he finds innovative for Call of Duty. His least favorite part is the multiplayer maps and spawn points, which he finds problematic.
- **DMZ as a Simplified Tarkov** [02:04] — Jared Green compares DMZ to Escape from Tarkov but notes it simplifies the experience, offering the intensity of urban combat without the punishing survival mechanics like broken legs and slow bleeds.
- **Rihanna's Favorite Modern Warfare Campaign** [03:11] — Rihanna Emanuel Pñena states this is her favorite Modern Warfare campaign, citing its immersion and the fact she played it in two sittings, which is unusual for her.
- **Return to Blockbuster Storytelling** [04:05] — Cardi believes the campaign marks a return to Call of Duty's trademark blockbuster storytelling, crediting the longer development time (Infinity Ward) compared to the rushed Modern Warfare 3 by Sledgehammer.
- **Campaign Pacing and Variety** [05:50] — The panel praises the campaign's pacing, noting that it constantly introduces new mechanics and set pieces, from open-world maps to close-quarters combat, aerial missions, and emotional infantry moments.
- **Nightclub Scene and Production Values** [08:40] — The early nightclub scene is highlighted for its impressive production values, including blood splatter effects and an art installation reminiscent of Team Labs Tokyo, showcasing the game's visual polish.
- **Melee System Criticism** [09:20] — Cardi criticizes the melee combat as imprecise, especially on harder difficulties, and notes it appears in two of the campaign's big emotional moments, which detracts from the impact. Rihanna echoes this, saying it broke immersion even on normal difficulty.
- **Captain Price vs. Korean Soldiers** [10:01] — Cardi admits he cared more about the Korean soldiers' plight than Captain Price's storyline, feeling the past two games have mishandled Price's character. Rihanna agrees, finding the Korean unit's story more empathetic and grounded.
- **Mads Mikkelsen as the Villain** [13:36] — The panel discusses Mads Mikkelsen's role as 'The Archer,' noting he has minimal screen time (less than 5 minutes) and is underutilized, drawing comparisons to Lenny Kravitz in the Bond film 'Die Another Day'.
- **Stranded Mission as DMZ Tutorial** [15:09] — Rihanna describes the 'Stranded' mission as a DMZ training ground, allowing players to explore a large map, complete objectives in any order, and customize loadouts, effectively introducing extraction mechanics in a low-stakes environment.
- **Open Levels Success** [18:41] — Jared, who traditionally dislikes open levels, admits the Stranded mission worked well because it tried something new and gave freedom of approach, unlike previous attempts that felt like multiplayer maps with story.
- **Korean Setting Refreshing** [22:49] — The panel appreciates the Korean setting, noting it makes the game feel distinct from previous Modern Warfare titles, which have looked similar for 15 years. The modern Korea backdrop feels tangible and current.
- **Multiplayer Maps Lackluster** [25:43] — Cardi expresses disappointment with the multiplayer map selection, stating no map has made him think 'wow,' and he's already looking forward to Shipment 24/7. He finds the maps lifeless and spawn points problematic.
- **Killblock and Gunfight Mode** [29:55] — Cardi highlights 'Killblock' as a standout map, an advanced training facility for the Gunfight mode, which he finds exciting due to its RNG elements and variety, comparing it to Titanfall 2's training mission.
- **Skill-Based Matchmaking Debate** [34:26] — The panel discusses skill-based matchmaking (SBMM), with Cardi noting it's been a feature since the original Modern Warfare in 2007 but was tweaked in 2019. He suggests the game should be more transparent about how it works.
- **DMZ as an Extraction Shooter** [38:29] — Jared explains DMZ's appeal: it offers a paced, self-directed experience with optional PvP, contrasting with the reflex-heavy traditional multiplayer. He notes it simplifies Tarkov's realism while retaining intensity.
- **DMZ Story Missions** [43:46] — Jared finds DMZ's story missions interesting, citing an escort mission where you wheel a patient out of a hospital, which feels like a campaign set piece but within the dynamic extraction framework.
- **Truce System and Cutthroat Play** [46:03] — Jared shares an anecdote about a truce system in DMZ, where players can agree to temporary alliances. However, he notes that Call of Duty players are inherently cutthroat, and the truce was broken at the extraction point.
- **Bounty System in DMZ** [48:25] — DMZ features a bounty system where players who kill many others get a price on their head, visible on a leaderboard, attracting hunters. This adds a layer of strategy and risk to PvP engagement.
- **DMZ as Additive to the Package** [50:16] — Jared believes DMZ is additive to the overall package, as its design choices (like mantling and dynamic weapon movement) are integrated throughout the game, and it doesn't feel tacked on.
- **Final Thoughts and Scores** [53:50] — Rihanna places the campaign in her top 10 Call of Duty campaigns, calling it a satisfying conclusion. Cardi slots it at nine on his personal list, and despite multiplayer criticisms, he still enjoys the game overall.

## Transcript

me an assault rifle in the game. Do you want to comment? >> Yeah, I know. Yeah, [music] let's let's specify it. What's up everybody? Welcome to or welcome back to Review Crew. This is our
with other media and creator personalities to discuss their reviews of the latest games. Today we're diving into Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 fourth and final installment in the Modern Warfare reboot quadrilogy,
out with a bang. Let's introduce the crew. I am IGN host Damon Hatfield, and I'm joined by Simon Cardi in the UK, who reviewed the Modern Warfare 4 campaign and general multiplayer for IGM. He initially gave the campaign an 8 out of
10, calling it the best Modern Warfare has been since its 2019 reboot by quite finalized his review with the multiplayer component in mind, he landed on a seven. So, it sounds like the multiplayer pulled the overall package
>> I would say that's fair. Yeah, I thought the campaign itself was great, but yeah, multiplayer, I would say it's okay. By fun to be had there, but yeah, not
enough for me to keep that overall eight score going, I think, in the end. >> Okay, real quick in just a couple of sentences, what's Cardi, what's your uh whole package? >> Of the whole package of Modern Warfare
>> Of the whole package of Modern Warfare 4? Oh, my favorite part is maybe controversially, I don't know. I think this one's split audiences. I really like the open like map mission in the campaign. I think it's actually
to see from Call of Duty these days. It's trying something new. It doesn't always pay off, but I think uh that does well. And my least favorite part is, I think quite easily, the maps in the multiplayer and the spawn points within
>> Interesting. We'll get into that more later. All right, Jared Green is review is still in progress, but I believe he is really digging it. Jared, what were your favorite and least favorite parts of DMZ so far? I think
with extraction shooters, especially the military ones, you kind of they all fall in line under Tarov, which is like super realistic. And every military one since
has been attempting to either do Tarov or simplify Tarov. And I think Call of that so far. >> Interesting. >> Um, you get the sort of relatively semime like uh running around. The
bullets are lethal. Uh, they go through walls. You kind of have to like play it but you don't got to worry about breaking your leg and trying to patch it up like before getting assassinated by some guy across the street. Um, so you
get the intensity of the sort of urban combat without the uh chores of trying to stay alive. Um, and I think that balances it really well. >> Interesting. We'll get into more DMZ in a bit. And Rihanna Emanuel Pñena joins
this is her favorite Modern Warfare campaign. Is that correct? >> I stand by that. This is definitely the most entertained I have been by a Modern Warfare campaign. And there there are definitely moments that I don't feel
super comfy while I'm playing, but it does lend itself to the immersion that that I experience with this one. And yeah, I I couldn't stop playing it. Like, I played it in two settings, which is very unusual for me.
Warfare 4 currently sits at an 86 on Open Critic, indicating near universal praise. But is there any part of the package that misses the mark? Let's get into it. Carter, you gave Modern Warfare 3 a couple years ago a four out of 10. I
>> That was the campaign only. I should say >> that was campaign only. I think I think said they opted for a thin veil of openness and choice over Call of Duty's once trademark blockbuster storytelling. That one was developed by Sledgehammer.
Now it's back to Infinity War, the OG Call of Duty developer. We're talking about the campaign. Do you feel like this is a return to that u trademark blockbuster storytelling? >> I would say absolutely. And I think it's
a real show of when you give a studio more than a few months to piece together a game, you actually get a really good game. Uh, this is easily the best Modern
I would say this is just a touch below that for me personally and still a touch that for me personally and still a touch below the OG uh 2007209 Modern Warfare. They're still in my heart my favorites. But um this very much um follows the
pattern of Modern Warfare 2. As uh our colleague Matt Persley wrote a week or so ago, it's the kind of bones and framework of the original Modern Warfare 2 are followed here. You kind of get that mesh of big like warlike battles,
but also those like James Bond kind of levels which I'm always partial to. So yeah, this really is, you know, a return to what I love to see from Modern to what I love to see from Modern Warfare, which is a globe trottting, you
know, war, but also with some real set pieces in there. Yeah. I don't love to see globe trotting war gen [laughter] when I'm playing Modern Warfare, you >> I enjoy it. >> Yeah. I I'm someone who is returning to
Duty game in years. So, I was a little bit surprised by um just the traditional Battlefield boots on the ground stuff is deemphasized a little bit in favor of, you know, more variety of missions like you were saying, kind of 007 style.
There's a nightclub scene that's very reminiscent of close quarters, gunfu, there's car chases. So, there's just every every mission there's something new. Constantly throwing new things at you, constantly new set pieces. And like
exciting playthrough. like you barely get a chance to catch your breath the speak to us about your experience of playing through the campaign and what some of your favorite moments are. Spoiler-free moments.
>> Spoilerfree. Yeah, I I agree with you. And Damon, you already mentioned a are featured in this campaign. I'm honestly just impressed at the pacing in general and how you really do feel like you're trying something different every
hour almost. And um I know we'll get into it, but there's some explorations of larger openw world maps. There's the tighter close quarters fighting maps. We have, you know, aerial combat. You're taking out tanks and, you know, doing
the typical, you know, superhero action star. But then there's also these really moving moments where you're one of an infantry and you're seeing the devastation and the impact of one person in one of these kinds of conflicts. So,
it it it's it's the pacing and the engagement constantly keeping you on moments where, you know, you're playing through some family dramas and you're making some seemingly impactful decisions as you're playing through like
like I really liked how they mixed it up in this campaign and tried a lot of >> And Jar, I know you've been focusing on DMZ, but you've played a lot of the campaign as well. Are there any I guess uh are you also finding it enjoyable? Do
the set pieces stand out to you as well? I do find them enjoyable. I like you. I don't really play them um pretty often. I'm kind of like I see them on sale and really like a play them annually sort of guy. Um and Call of Duties kind of
exists especially their campaigns almost like a step apart from the rest of the industry now because no one really makes you know six to eight hour single player campaigns anymore. So, like where Call of Duty campaigns used to kind of be one
of many, now they're kind of the only one. Uh, so it was refreshing to get back to playing a single player shooter uh in any capacity, that was nice. Um, uh in any capacity, that was nice. Um, but I think one thing I struggle with,
though I enjoy, it doesn't always hit for me, and it's a thing that has always been true of Call of Duty, is like its perspective shifts. Um, sort of get perspective shifts. Um, sort of get treated like the moments of it. It's how
it paces this uh the campaign is who you're playing as. It doesn't really through hallways and shooting guys, but like the person you are and when you're story. >> Uh, and I feel that works well here in
most places, but then you have opportunities to like, well, now, you guy who isn't who you think you might be doing. And like maybe you will be able actually matter? Is there a better way to like having me do the thing? Is that
telling the story better than just like saying this happened? I don't know. But, uh, ultimately, I do enjoy this and I kind of missed it. Uh, five or 6 hours >> Uh, which is something I didn't think I'd say about Call of Duty, you know, 10
>> Yeah. I would say I I felt the same way. There's this early nightclub scene, which I think is a really cool showcase of the production values on display here. You know, when you shoot enemies, you'll get blood splatter on walls and
on glass. It looks really cool. There's this like art installation you walk through that reminded me of this like Team Labs Tokyo style u exhibit if can shoot through the glass. It doesn't shatter, but there's this like jagged uh
glass. It just all looks really really the melee system in this nightclub scene. And I I don't know that that were wanting. What What do you think about the melee system, Cardi?
>> Um yeah, that's one of my uh Yeah. what say one of my thumbs downs of the say one of my thumbs downs of the campaign. It's melee combat in first times when you're a studio that's been working on it for a long time. And I do
think it's quite it's not the worst I've ever played by any means, but it is thankfully you're only doing it a few times. It's quite imprecise, especially on harder difficulties. Blocking getting those parries in are difficult. I think
the problem is it rears its head in like two of what are meant to be big moments of the campaign that I think you're meant to feel some sort of emotional impact. I think in general this campaign thinks that the player base care about
the fate and storyline of Captain Price more than we actually maybe do. He's a But I actually, especially in this campaign, cared a lot more about the Korean, you know, soldiers and actually their plight than I did about Captain
Price, which is kind of I think a fault of the past two Modern Warfare games. They've kind of taken it down a road. I I didn't really want to see it go down. So, I feel like this is trying to make up for that in a way, but they do a good
hard to really criticize this game for the past two games mistakes. But yeah, uh, when it comes to the melee, I could with you. Yeah. >> Rihanna, how did the melee system hit
for you? >> Um, it it it hit I would say I was successful. I was playing on normal and it it was
definitely something that broke the immersion for me a few times because even on normal, I was replaying certain sections again with the imprecise pairing. I am not like a Soulslike player. I do not excel at pairing or
windows for blocks. So, I did have a few times where I failed and had to replay a very high stakes section of the game and it just kind of like landed like a wet towel because I was so bored by the time
I finally got it right. And that is something that broke a pacing for me unfortunately and indulled those high stakes moments. Um, but it was there and appreciate. >> Yeah. Yeah. We should talk about these
You're you're often Price who's on the run, uh, kind of on a mission of revenge, but then there's this this Korean uh, military unit that you're also working with. They have, it's kind of a mix of Korean and US soldiers.
playing through the Korean parts a bit more. Rihanna, is there a certain well? There are other characters you play as well too, but I think it's the Price and and and Park, the Korean soldier I think you play as the most.
>> Yeah, Park. I enjoyed I I did enjoy that that company quite a bit. Um, if not for anything but the Wuang references, which are fantasting
fun, but uh I did enjoy their dynamic. Obviously, they experience lots of loss, lots of challenge, lots of triumph, and seeing them start to gel together uh to
the point where they do feel like a true unit. I hope we see more of them in the future in some iteration. I don't know if there is plans for DLC with them, but I I do think their story is more engaging. Their their plight was a
little bit more um I [clears throat] don't want to say identifiable. I'm not going to be in that situation in my life. But it it definitely was a lot more empathetic than Price who's a superhero, right? Like he's that's it's
just a little bit more popcorn summer blockbuster of a feel gameplay, which I do appreciate from Call of Duty, especially in the Modern Warfare series. But I again I do like they took it back to some more grounded situations and
storytelling with this company. Um, and honestly, I would say maybe my favorite character was Dunn >> simply because he he came in as a bit of an a bit of a an everyman, maybe a little bit of a fish out of water, and
it's great to see his evolution throughout the the entire experience. >> Yeah. Yeah, he was great. Uh, Call of Duty has a um a tradition of casting well-known actors as villains. This time it's Mads Mickelson as the archer. Do
made good use of him or is it a Linny Kravitz in 007 first light situation? >> It's just the problem now. You see Mads Wilson face and you go, "Okay, he's playing Mads Wilm Wilkerson, right? Like and he's got that sort of like pan
European accent. I mean, he's Danish, but like you'd buy him as a Russian defense minister, you know, like he's he's kind of just he is your archetypical Bond villain, which like also adds to that feeling of his
sections of the game feeling like a Bond film, but um he you don't I mean, he's barely in it, isn't he? Let's be honest. And I feel like he I feel like they really dropped the ball with Marov. Like, I'm a huge like I said, the
original trilogy of Modern Warfare I'm a huge fan of. and Makarov was a real like great complex villain and the way they've done him this time and basically replaced it with Mad Mixson's character. I don't know how that came together. I
the overarching villain of this game and it would have easily made sense as well. to have Matt Wilson in your game, you take it and >> I don't blame them. But yeah, I never really He's good. It's not his fault.
he has a total of more than 5 minutes screen time in the whole thing. >> He is a Lenny Kravitz situation >> a bit. I mean look I I liked Lenny Kravitz in in Bond as well. So you know
who am I who am I to say? >> Uh let's talk about the Strand mission. I think uh Cardi had said this was maybe the standout mission for him. Rihanna you said it feels very like DMZ. Can you can you expound on that a little bit?
>> Absolutely. in um of trying to be as spoilerfree as possible, but essentially you have several key missions that you can take in any order and you can choose to either fast travel to them or traverse the larger map to get to them
and in between find different materials to upgrade and customize your loadout. So, it is a bit of like a DMZ training ground, I would say. like it's almost as if they took a DMZ tutorial and put it in the campaign but in a way that made
sense like with a narrative and it it also worked for me. I did choose a fast also worked for me. I did choose a fast travel to most of them but it it was a nice way to again mix up the gameplay like usually in Call of Duty you know
you find a gun on the ground from some enemy it has just enough uh ammo for you corridors and then you switch it up. There's not a lot of attachment to the actual weapon system. There's not a lot of favoritism that you're allowed to
really express as player choice. It really is just whatever you have at the moment and then move on really really quickly. I do like that it slowed down and gave you a chance to really investigate these attachments and figure
out what type of support you like to use and you know what what kind of ordinance is really working for your play style. in for people who don't have as much thought it was a really great way to introduce it in a very low stakes
situation where you're playing against, you know, the campaign enemies and you have some time to try and try again without feeling like you're spending a lot of time wasted. And I thought it was really successful for me.
>> Jared, have you have you made it to the DM or to the stranded level yet? >> Literally, it's like the scene that starts it. I have not played it yet. Um, but what I sound what it sounds like is Bond and Warfare 3's campaign was kind
of just the multiplayer maps with some story in it. It sounds like that, but uh just as one sort of >> level, long level, but done well, but done correctly. It's funny that DMZ also has story missions that sort of exist as
tutorializing DMZ itself. So, it's interesting that they found lots of ways to use this big space they've made >> to to [clears throat] narrativize your It seems like >> Yeah. I say when I entered this mission,
I was like, "Oh no, they're doing the thing they've tried doing many times before where they're kind of surreptitiously sneaking like, "Oh, did you enjoy this? You'll like all this other thing we put in the game." And I
think the thing that does work, as Rihanna mentioned, is that it does elegantly fold into the campaign. Like it makes sense that this situation would we're doing this now and suddenly, oh, you can do whatever you want. Like, and
it isn't quite like DMC. Like, it is it's definitely got its roots there, but it is it's different. It's not like there's, you know, um, like a big like stuff, but it is yeah, very much go out, forage, come back and craft. It does
really teach you the very basics of it which I like. But um Black Ops 6 did quite a similar thing. There was like a desert mission that was slightly smaller And Black Ops 6 in general campaign I really really enjoyed. And it's funny
campaigns to be quite on rails and just playable film make me feel like I'm in like the middle of a big action film. And I traditionally don't like the open levels, but this time I really did like
it because it did try something new with it and give you that freedom of approach. So yeah, I think it really worked for me this time around because outside of that, I don't think there's one standout like alltime mission. This
across the board, I think. But like when I look back to my favorite Call of Duty there's all Gillied Up. It's like death or above like 2019. You've got clean house. You've got these missions you know by name. I know Stranded by name
about it. But you know like it's not I don't think it's going to be you know when we see like top 10 Call of Duty missions of all time lists in like 10 will make it onto that list. But in general it all comes together in a good
way. There's no real like real like downs slopes. Okay Rihanna, do you feel campaign, but there isn't like an Alzheimer mission in here.
>> Um, thinking back on the leap to her me. Okay, so we're saying light spoilers, um, but I will say towards the
I would say last quarter of the game, there's definitely a mission where my jaw dropped >> when when I realized what was happening. game, actually, I think right around that club level, the relationship
between the the initial boss lady that that recruits you as Price, um, and their back and forth and their journey, together with her. I really enjoyed those. Um, maybe just cuz I like
parkour, but that that that is a really fun section for me that I remember. Um, I didn't have any fail states in that one and I actually went back and played was fun. I want to do it again." So, that was like a woohoo kind of mission
for me. Not necessarily like long-term top 10 impactful, but I had a lot of fun with it. It felt like a fun arcade moment for sure. Modern Warfare campaign, but what's your favorite overall Call of Duty campaign
over the I believe 23 games that have been released so far? >> That's crazy. There's 23. Um, [laughter] I feel like I'm missing some in there, I feel like I'm missing some in there, >> but uh it's Modern Warfare 2 like and
there's some missions that you just know by name. No Russian is just one of those that you can't forget. Uh, also that map in multiplayer is one of my favorite
maps of all time at the airport. >> So that is one that stuck with me. Like it gets such great twist moments with mock Robins. It's just I like CIA stuff. It's it's one that is probably going to be my favorite
find a way to top it again. >> Cardi, favorite favorite Call of Duty campaign overall? >> Uh campaign. Yeah. Um I think still the 2 is very close though, but Modern Warfare for me just like literally
changed the game. Um, so yeah, I'd still have that one number one for reasons I first time I played all Gillied Up, I was like, you know, this is this is what me. >> And Jared, how about you?
>> And Jared, how about you? >> Uh, probably Call of Duty 2 >> Yeah. Mhm. >> Um uh I feel like I've never that is a game that kind of made military shooters
military shooters like spectacle interesting for me. I they've been chasing that ever since. And like when they don't attempt to do Warfare, it works. When they attempt to do like D-Day again, like when they did
World War II uh a few years ago, it didn't really get the same. Mhm. didn't really get the same. Mhm. >> Um, it definitely played into a strength and it was there was no games like it then and I remember that maybe less
who I was when I played it at the time and that sticks with me. >> Before we move on to multiplayer, is there anything anyone wants to make sure >> I'm glad the setting I'm glad the setting changed. I'm glad we're I'm glad
Korea is so like modern Korea is such a center point in both the marketing and both like how much you play this and how much you see because Modern Warfare games look the same in screenshots. They look the same in screenshots for about
look the same in screenshots for about 15 years and this is the first you know of Duty that this game has looked different that Modern Warfare has looked different. I know Black Ops has done a lot. He did, you know, Advanced Warfare
or whatever years ago that was like very futuristic. But I I was happy to look at like press kits and marketed and feel like this game is different just by >> and then was happy to see it carry through and it also feels different and
setting. >> I think the marketing definitely hits for me because it feels like the most modern Modern Warfare if that makes sense. It's like it feels like obviously they're all set like near future or
they're all set like near future or their current state but it it because of stories a fish out of water in Korea like like north and south aggression like it it feels very tangible and it
may just be because I'm older now and I'm more aware of global conflicts but I'm more aware of global conflicts but it is the most I can see this happening in a entertaining way not in a scary way of all of the modern warfare uh plot
lines and so I felt like I could jump into it and in suspend disbelief the the easiest. I also really like the cut scenes and I know that there's some controversy of like how they look a little different than the game play, but
I enjoyed every single one of them. I never had the thought to skip them. let me go back and watch them again and I'm glad they let you do that from the I'm glad they let you do that from the menu. Um it it was a great movie
honestly like backseat playing this game would be really fun for me too. Um, and what I've experienced with Modern Warfare before. lot of the fundamentals. I think over the years we kind of take for granted
with Call of Duty. Like the gunplay, like I almost whenever I write a Call of years now, I sometimes forget to write about the gunplay cuz you almost take it for granted that, oh yeah, it feels amazing. But it does. It's every year it
still feels great. And also the sound design just still is just whether it's everything around you like there is a layer layer mission that does evoke that sort of D-Day feeling and just the amount of stuff going on around you and
it all just like runs flawlessly looks and sound amazing like I feel like happens every year it's like oh they're putting out the same game lazy and very very rarely does it ever feel like that like this is like incredibly wellcrafted
fresh thing every year is a different question, but like the amount of actual craft that goes into this game is is phenomenal, I think. So, yeah, I just like to shout out the fundamentals really. Let's move on to the multiplayer
multiplayer. Uh, overall, the package came out a seven. We're talking about maybe you're a little bit disappointed in the the multiplayer and maybe the the the maps the map collection this time around. Is that correct? Can you sort of
expound on that? Yeah, it's I always find it hard like less than a week or a week or so, but like there's been no map that I've played so far that I've been like, "Wow,
I want to get this." Like, just for full disclosure, we're recording this the day already like, [clears throat] "Yeah, get me into that." Like, I feel like they're they're almost caught in this sort of
many classic maps that people just enjoy with a playlist that just has one or two of those maps. Like if you give me Shipment Rust, I'd kind of be happier for a year. And that's kind of what But
every year. They can't just say like here's the old map again cuz like people would moan about that. But it is hard to like recreate these classic maps. And you can see like I think it's Transit is one that's kind of got that small type
buses and stuff in a in a square and gone it's kind of like shipment with buses I guess. But like I don't know, it's it is hard every year, but like nondescript, quite lifeless to me.
has some like great different locations and some feels that like the multiplayer maps do seem quite lifeless. Like there's no like little music, little atmosphere like they're all quite like either just snow or brown or gray like I
points which I haven't like, you know, done some real technical analysis on, feels, right? like you sometimes spawn, you're like, "Where's the rest of my team? They're nowhere near me and I'm suddenly dead." Like it does feel like
that happens more than it should. Um maybe if I didn't die as much, I I'm getting old. My wrists aren't what they used to be. So, you know, I'm taking four player killstreaks where I can these days. [laughter]
the map selection a little lackluster this time around? this time around? >> I haven't seen enough. Uh, I've played maybe fiveish hours of multiplayer and you know to your point like they
constantly feed me the same few over and over again same ones over and over again. I also don't play all of the gameplay types. Like I am not a search and destroy girly at all and so I I only see a handful to
begin with because I'm mostly just doing team deathmatch domination kill confirm. Uh, but I I I will say I there are so many really great maps in the game like you mentioned that I'm wondering and maybe I'm just missing it. Like the
trainard was really cool. I want to see more of the Korean sets like either north or south. Like maybe I'm just missing it and and I haven't played enough. But yeah, it's not as exciting as it has been in the past and there's
time to make up for that. So, I'm trying to give them a bit more runway to to get >> Yeah, I don't think I uh this is where my lack of sort of regular Call of Duty
my lack of sort of regular Call of Duty play kind of betrays me here. Um I I think they're fine. Uh I'm having an okay time in them. Um I think what I what I've also noticed is I'm not seeing a lot of like the Korean maps. I feel
like I'm uh you know with like Rihanna said, I think a lot of the natural flow of me like re-uping into matches is people kind of voting for the same like handful because I guess that's the ones they like and I
have no strong opinions. So I'm just going to vote what they're saying. Um this isn't um these aren't I don't have like a relationship with these maps that I I can even say
tell me that these are better or worse than maps I remember from the past. Um, I I won't know more until I know more. I know multi most of my multiplayer um campaign or multiplayer play has been in DMZ, so I don't really have a lot of
reps in just the regular multiplayer. Uh, I'm sure I will grow to have some sort of relationship with a few of these in time though. you and that was Kill Block. Is that right?
map. That's kind of like I don't know if everyone here has played the Titanfall 2 than I was going to say better than any gorge campaign. I don't want to put that statement out there. It's close. But um the uh [laughter]
the uh [laughter] the um training facility in like the uh Titanfall 2 where they're kind of piecing it together and you have to kind of has that feel to it. So, Killblock is a advanced training
of gunfight, which the only mode are adding the core modes to it later, shifts. So, it has three sections to it a one-armed bandit. So, every two round two rounds you're getting three
sometimes classic Call of Duty maps like the uh central like helicopter crash from Crash from uh Modern Warfare one or two. I've gone completely blank, but from back say, yes, from the first one. There we go. Uh, but yeah, that's kind
really know what you're getting. I'm always kind of a sucker for a bit of RNG people's nerves, but I like not knowing what's coming next. And gunfight, you knowing what gun and not knowing basically what map you're going to be on
that exciting. And I can feel like that one could be one that could have some legs. I mean, I think what I'm learning is people just really like quite basic maps in Call of Duty. Like, you know,
Shoot House is is a favorite. That is another training for, you know, like can see your enemy. I think that's what people need and a bit of mayhem. Uh cuz I don't know about you, I come for Call
of Duty just for like that kind of like snackable like quick dopamine hit when it comes to multiplayer. Like I'm not, you know, I've got thousand hours in know, if I want to do objective based stuff and like tactical stuff, I'll go
I do feel like this year is trying to have its cake and eat it a bit. Like it's got every single like do you want to do a bit of like Counter Strike? all these other modes? We've got all of it. Whereas like just stick to what Call
of Duty fans love and that's literally just running around a 10 m square shooting each other. Like I I don't want to like, you know, I'm all for innovation. and I want to see that, but I'm also like know what people want
>> and it's not necessarily a kind of halfbaked Valerant mode which is also included in this this game. So >> yeah, I think that I think the too down on it, but I'm like just strip it back to what people like. I think is
>> Well, >> to your point that like I definitely am missing that, you know, cross map initial gameplay grenade kill at some, you know what I mean? like there there's I might want to spawn kill someone. So
like there's a couple of things that I feel like could be tweaked but again I'm trying to give them the space to you know have this larger set of data and >> exactly we're dated plenty of time but right now
>> the map >> that's the thing like you know at this point does Call of Duty multiplay just become a platform where they rotate the 10 classic maps in everyone this is a whole separate conversation that you
know I guess a question I was I was going to ask I'm not familiar with Call of Duty multiplayer at launch. Like, is this is this is it common for features this is this is it common for features to kind of like be slowly sort of drip
or >> I don't know. I feel like the same with Call of Duty, right? Like the first week everyone's like everything's wrong. over time everyone's like do you know what? We're having fun. They've kind of
tweaked it. They've added all the maps we do like from the past back in and imagine in 6 months time, everyone's going to be having fun in Shipment Rust and Shoot House. And do you know what? Modern Warfare 4, we we gave it a bad
time at launch, which is maybe what I've done slightly, but it is still fun to the gunplay, like I said before, the campaign still feels fantastic. And, you know, those times I do get a lucky kill streak. I'm fully in on just uh getting
the um the crate now that just gives you a random kill streak. Uh, I just hit not getting like there was a time where I could get a 15 player kill streak. lucky with that and get given a big chopper gunner and fly around and I'm
happy. I'm a basic man. I'm a simple man. Give me an assault rifle [laughter] in the game. >> Do you want to comment? Yeah, I know. to comment on the skill-based matchmaking? I think you said it kind of
well. This is uh this is another debate that and I spoke to the uh multiplayer director of this game and I asked him is matchmaking and he basically said I don't think there is and like whatever
with it. Skillbased matchmaking has been a thing with Call of Ever since Modern Warfare the original in 2007. They retweaked it and ever since 2019 it's they tweaked the algorithms and made it a bit more stringent. But like I don't
people that are worse than you in every match you play I think. And I think overperform, if you have a really good couple of games, then you're just destined for a bad time in half an hour cuz you're going to be like put up
against people that you basically the game thinks you're better than you are, just any online game you play, you're going to lose games, you're going to win games, and like I don't know. You just got to take the rough with the smooth
really. Like yeah, like that's the fun of like sport, right? You don't know if the game. >> Simon, in your in your conversations with the developers, have you come across any indication that there's
a weight given to playing with party or without if you're playing with a teammate or two or three or four or five versus as a solo player? actually and I you know I'm sure you know I play with people and I'm better than some worse
than some and I would like to know yeah like who's being punished here in a way but um yeah I think it's more the fact that for a long time it's kind of been like very murky really like properly said this is how we do it and I feel
like if you're just more open about it it's like to hide really like you know everyone can help kind of make this right for everyone and they and let's play Call of Duty Multiplayer just play it and enjoy it and have a good time.
But like there there is enough people that I think want to know about especially in the more like you know hardcore professional scene. But um look I I can't say a science that that bothers me too much personally. But
>> You feel the same way Jared about skillbased matchmaking? >> No I think it's because I come from a I'm a fighting game player >> primarily. So like the entire thing is skillbased. I think I think where I can
skillbased. I think I think where I can where I can meet it halfway is that you really don't know in a fighting game is 1 v one. I my rank tells me I am this I I am at this level and everybody in this rank is at the
and everybody in this rank is at the same level more or less. Um but whatever problems I have in this match are mine and that guys. Um, in a shooter where and that guys. Um, in a shooter where teams are more than more than one, all
of these other sort of um algorithmic inputs that create a skill-based sort of match are all affected. You know, things get way more um out of your hands in a
team based thing. So, it can I can see how it can be very very frustrating >> uh going on a losing streak at a 5v5 game knowing that like there's only so much you could have done. Like I also have played, you know, MOBA's, you know,
league or Dota or whatever. So like I I am also like, you know, I this says I'm gold. I assume everybody else's gold, but is that true? >> Like some days you go feel gold, right? Some days that it's 1:00 a.m. I've lost
six games in a row. Is that true? Am I gold? Is it that Who am I? Uh I've definitely been there. Um, but I think like you said, the nature of playing a this lobby who are better than you and there people in this lobby who are
worse. And being able to find the the right assigned number to tell you how much better or worse is like a fool's errand because ultimately you just need to be better um >> or get friends that are better,
>> right? Or be carried by four people who are much better than you, which is also a great option. Finally, that brings us to DMZ. Call of Duty's take on the extraction shooter. Jared, his review is in progress, but I think you're enjoying
it. You want to speak to DMZ a little bit, Jared? >> I am enjoying it. I think um so to piggyback on probably getting too old to piggyback on probably getting too old to play uh multiplayer in its classic form.
I just don't have the reflexes. I think extra I think a that's probably why extraction shooters have become a big deal in the past 10 or 15 years just because uh 20 year olds who played Unreal are now like 40 and 50 year olds
who like you can't do that anymore. Um so you can choose to drop into a multiplayer sort of scenario and play at your pace, make your kind of own schedule or kind of make your own rules to solve objectives and whatnot. That's
like the value of the extraction shooter that and like the inherent risk of maybe you have and there's an option to engage in PVP um you have a level of agency to in PVP um you have a level of agency to engage in PVP that is uh that does not
exist in a multiplayer game where you're going to get shot at by other players. Um, I think they've, like I said, they've been kind of tracing the feel, the military sort of faximile of Tarov
without the sort of inherent punishing risk and realism. And I think Call of risk and realism. And I think Call of Duty gets the closest to this. I um for for IGN actually a couple years ago, I took a look at Delta Force. Um, a
Chinese team, Team Jade, uh, was bringing back Delta Force, and they were doing it in in a three-pronged approach. You're going to have a multiplayer mode that was kind of like Battlefield um and a little bit like Call of Duty with
bigger maps for like taking objectives and pushing the line or whatever. And they were going to have an extraction shooter um called Hawk Ops or whatever. Um and the and the campaign of Blackhawk Down again. This feels a lot like what
they were trying to do there but better. like Haw Ops was supposed to be or dropped in this big place. Um but you have instead of it being you know sci-fi or with like you know beat down old school guns or just like that sort of uh
oppression of nuclear fallout or whatever of collapse in Targo. This is like military action. You are PMC got high-tech guns and we're going to we're going to do it here. Um had objectives you run around you fill your bags full
bosses around if you want to if you choose to accept those fights. Um it was so much space in between everything that there wasn't a whole lot to do if you weren't doing two or three specific things. DMZ has figured out a way to
kind of like do that but also make every moment feel like you could be working always feel like you can choose to do that. um that is primarily sort of
that. um that is primarily sort of focused by um your dynamic objectives where you start off with one go across this, you know, hack this computer, take those codes to unlock this locker. Uh in that locker are explosives, take those
explosives, put it on this thing, blow it up, and leave. Um, there are so many of those things across the map that you can just kind of do that, select another one, select another one, and you have 30 minutes to get as
In between those things, there's so many side things to get involved in. Like maybe you want to um erect a UAV so that you can control the airspace around this thing, this objective you want to do. This is optional. You can just run in,
the best. or if you want to take a little bit uh some steps to preparation, there's all these side ops to kind of figure out with you and your squad. Um there are lieutenants that are mini bosses running around that are fights
you don't want to uh walk in unprepared and some of which you can go summon and then like gather your crew, gear up and like explicitly go do. But there are also some that kind of just show up to you and are there to make whatever you
were doing worse in every possible way. Um Um and all of that sort of colored by the fact that you know other people are trying to do this too. Um,
this feels like properly chaotic and properly dynamic, but also not like the the spiral if things go wrong in the spiral to the endgame does not feel like
um a slow sort of rot in the way that a a game like Tarov or some of the armor I mentioned earlier, you break a leg and now you got to like drag yourself into a building and hope these bandages because either you're going to bleed out slowly
or you are some or you're stuck. You can't do anything for the next three minutes and that feels bad. But here it's like listen things can go really to know and it's going to be over pretty quickly which can also be frustrating in
its own way but it's it doesn't trap you in this feeling of dread. It just you in this feeling of dread. It just you lost but you found some progress and >> U >> I'm I'm wondering cuz I've never I'm yet
properly grabbed me. Like I enjoyed a bit of Hunt Showdown a few years ago. I clipped for me. This does have story missions and I'm wondering like is that Like are these story missions good? And is the actual story it's trying to tell
worth seeking out in this mode? >> I don't know if the the story overall is like remarkable. But the missions themselves I do find interesting. There's one in particular where it's a um an escort mission essentially. You
have to get a guy out of a hospital, but this guy's like in a gurnie, so you have to wheel him out of this hospital. >> Um, and it it takes the the normal DMZ sort of framing. You dropped in uh the objective is over there. You can take
whatever path you can get to the objective. Um, if you want to stop, you your pockets or try to like, you know, upgrade your gear on the way there, you in. you can kind of figure out with the team, is it better to go in through the
you get in like, you know, a floor or two up in the window or somewhere? Um, once you get up to the top or to the, you know, the middle of the hospital and find him and then have to shoot your way out, that's a that is the kind of set
piece that doesn't exist in games like this normally. It normally only exists in Call of Duty campaigns. So, I found it like remarkable that they found a way it like remarkable that they found a way to put that here and make it feel like
um things are happening dynamically in the same way DMZ is. Now, I don't think smoke and mirrors. >> Um >> I do have another question, not you know, not to hijack the uh the show, but
director and he he as he was confident in this and I was kind of I'm a little bit skeptical. I feel like a game like Art Raiders has managed to almost like build and nurture a community, a code of conduct and almost its own language. And
Call of Duty players for almost 20 years now have been trained to, you know, shoot on site like anyone another player online. It's like they are my target, right? Whereas DMC is a mode that actually kind of sometimes rewards like
helping other players and like there's almost like you can like form like a bond or a truce with other players. It's not all just PvP. And how have you been finding like have the Call of Duty like players you've met like actually done a
actively in the game or is it quite cutthroat this this extraction cheater? cutthroat this this extraction cheater? >> A small antidote from my play yesterday where I was stuck kind of my team got killed attempting to do something we
shouldn't have been doing. >> Um but I stayed alive long enough to decide I'm just going to extract. Um, like any uh extraction shooter, um, the extraction points start to disappear as time goes on. So, we are all running
extraction points, which means any to be there. The later you spend, the more time you spend, the later you extract, the more chance you have to engage with someone else because they're
probably also trying to do the same thing. Um, there is a true system in this game. I'd say system where it's really just like a uh an emote. You can a truce and then someone can sort of ping it and agree to the truce.
>> Um someone was doing this in a building next to the extraction point to anybody people in this building are all people who are either stragglers or groups agreed to this truce. There's probably six or seven people on it. Now, because
there's such a hot bed of people in this building, all of which would have had their own, you know, emerging experiences out there, uh, the more you do stuff in the map, the more the map recognizes you, basically, and the the
bigger target the NPCs have on you. It's not as like explicit as a like a GTA star system, but the more havoc you cause, the more the NPCs are trying to find you. Uh, so it's seven of us who have all done different levels of
nonsense out in the field. We're now attracting NPCs to our location waiting for the respawn timer to go up so someone can go out there and reinitiate the extraction process again. So, we're all kind of hunkered up shooting at, you
know, North Korean NPCs. Um, then the helicopter comes, we hear him, he's starting to tell us 30 seconds, 15 seconds. When 15 seconds happens, floor of the building has started to violate the truce and it's killing me.
>> So now we're all like 10, we have 10 seconds to get into the helicopter. There are like North Korean tanks shooting at us and the helicopter, but there's also a guy upstairs. We don't know who yet who is just killing us. Uh
which is to say, yes, Call of Duty is just as cutthroat as it always is. I think what they kind of acknowledge this though in what is a sort of bounty though in what is a sort of bounty system. Um the more you kill people, the
more PvP you engage in, the higher price becomes on your head. Um and this carries over from match to match if you haven't been killed already. So like if you become a person who has 40 kills between all of your um deployments so
put on a leaderboard that everybody can read. You become a target. So, uh, every time you deploy, anyone can look at the player map and see who like
and decide to make you their objective instead. >> Um, >> so it it it does not prevent hunters from jumping into your game and ruining your game if you do not want to be a
hunter as well, but it does attract hunters to those people. Um, so hypothetically the uh the competitive um nature of the game follows that guy around. Um, which I guess becomes uh uh piggybacks off the
skill-based matchmaking sort of conversation. If this guy's in your different now. Whatever you plan to do is not going to be what you thought it was because the top leaderboard guy with 40 million credits on his head is in
your game now. Um, I think that's an interesting thing. This is not, we are Rakers here. That has not happened. >> It seems like they've layered in some interesting systems, especially cuz the first attempt at DMC wasn't that
successful, I don't think, and quite plain by comparison. But yeah, it's different things going on this time. So, yeah, I'm very intrigued to see how this does and whether it can have the sort of success that Call of Duty saw uh in
obviously not its own separate mode. Then it have to you have to buy more will this break out into its own thing next year? I mean, yeah, the next year >> Well, Jared, in Card's review, he felt the overall multiplayer brought the
overall package down just a little bit. What about DMZ? Is it additive? Is is the overall package better for having DMZ included? >> I think so. Um, it's kind of a wonder that it is included, but I guess not
when you consider that it is it shows up in other parts of this game in various ways. Like there's an entire mission that is like in this zone. So, it didn't feel like it was kind of tacked on. It feels like a lot of the design choices
feels like a lot of the design choices that went into this particular mode had DMZ in mind. In my review, I mentioned like the way mantling works now. You can kind of cancel out of mantles. um the way your weapon dynamically moves around
obstacles and stuff. This feels like um design choices made knowing you're going to be spending a lot of time in dynamic environments. Uh knowing that you can't and over a thing anymore because anything can happen around you. Um this
feels uh definitely additive to this product. Now, I am very curious how this holds up, you know, in comparison to its peers. Like, uh, Marathon is a great
example of a game I really like, but a game that seems to be struggling. Um, Destiny? Is it struggling because it's an extraction shooter in a world where extraction shooters are not like really put down like play through 60 hours of
put down games just kind of wants to be someone's forever game. You only have so >> um Call of Duty has a head start because it's Call of Duty, but like does it really compare to any of these things? I'm not sure. Um you know, Hunt has
stayed around for a long time because it's so unique. I don't know if DMZ is so unique that it will stay around forever, but also Call of Duty will will return. So DMZ might return in some other fashion as well. Uh but yeah, I I
am most curious like who drops Arc Raiders to come here. >> Jared, I'm actually curious to hear your thoughts of who dropped multiplayer for
>> I guess that's a good question. >> Is that like, you know, eating some of the same audience base? >> Hypothetically, yes. Um, but like like base who plays Call of Duty and all they want to do is run in run in this
10-meter place and shoot guns. This is way more than that. Uh, I'm not sure how many people want way more than that. Uh, if they've never done it before. Um, I wonder I guess the other problem is like does this
compete with other military shooters doing the same thing? Do do Tarov players move on from Tarov over here? I don't know. This does not this does not exactly stand in Tarov's shoes uh because people like what the like the
extra layers of complication that Tarov does. Uh and they don't exist here and does. Uh and they don't exist here and they shouldn't exist here personally. Um the best the best this can do is introduce multiplayer people to the
concept and then see how they feel about it. It's like um Rainbow Six Siege is sort of the multiplayer
um amalgamation of putting those kinds of missions in Rainbow Six games. Um you kind of got to like wean people into it. I wonder if this I wonder if this turns people into um extraction shooter players. I'm I am as curious as you are.
Uh today it's hard to know. Final thoughts on Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4. Rihanna, you said this is your favorite Modern Warfare campaign. It's the 23rd Call of Duty. About where would it fall on the list from best to worst?
it fall on the list from best to worst? Is it is it a top 10 Call of Duty? >> and a satisfying conclusion to the this Modern Warfare quadrilogy. >> I said it and then I immediately had to wait. Let me verify. [laughter]
>> Yes, it's a top 10. Okay. >> It may not be a top five or three. >> it's I think it's a satisfying conclusion. I'm I'm disappointed that it is a conclusion because it did a great job closing a lot of loops. I want to
see more from things that could offshoot. So, so in a way, yes, it's satisfying, but I do still want more, which I guess is a good place to leave don't give them everything. Leave them wanting war. Maybe there's a a side door
they could take in a DLC or some kind of spin-off. Um, and I would be here for it. Like I would love to see more, but yes, I am satisfied with how certain endings ended. >> Cardi, maybe a lackluster multiplayer
suite aside, uh, you feel like they they corrected the issues that you had with >> Yeah, so overall it's a good game, right? That's what seven means on our scout. It means it's good. Um, and you know, if I were to do the Moy period 6,
it's okay. So, it's okay fun. Whereas, you know, the campaign is a step above. I did, as part of my review, there is a um top 10 Call of Duty campaigns list. My own personal one, I slotted this in at nine, which means it's, you know, in
the bare half of the games, but there's quite a few I enjoy more than that, but better ones. Um, whereas, yeah, multiplayer and for all my bemoning of it, I'm still having good fun with it. I'll still, you know, hop on for an hour
some late night with some mates and just, you know, use it as a as a chat room, like I said, to mindlessly run around a 10 m box and uh shoot people. around a 10 m box and uh shoot people. So, um yeah, it's it's okay. I am maybe
I mean, that's too many games, but I am intrigued by GMC, but I also need people to play with, and I'm not going to play that solo cuz that that sounds like a horror game to me, to be honest. Um but yeah, it's Halloween, so who knows? Um,
but yeah, this is, yeah, one of the better Call of Duties, let's put it that >> We're recording this on Tuesday, October 27th. Jared, any can you give our viewers any sort of hint as to when your DMZ review will be finalized?
>> Okay. >> Uh, right now, um, you know, I just got I've played a lot more with players, which was kind of a big thing missing um from my impressions, which you know, I had before launch, so I didn't see a lot
of other players. I've played a lot of with a lot of other players now. Um it's changed some of my opinion of how these things work, but I would say this is absolutely this is a really this is a pretty good um extraction shooter just
shooter player, it might be worth your time. um regardless of how you feel about the campaign or the multiplayer. >> And that, my friends, is Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, a return to form, satisfying sendoff to the four-part
Rihanna. Thank you to everyone working behind the scenes to make this episode possible. My name is Damon. We'll see you on the next review crew.