The Modern Warfare series is back, and after an impressive blockbuster campaign and positive reception to its DMZ mode, my expectations were heightened going into Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer. The game feels highly familiar and gets a lot of the fundamentals right, but the lack of innovations and persistent problems hold it back.
One of the better changes in Modern Warfare 4 is to weapon progression. In recent titles, weapon levelling has been a tireless and rather unenjoyable way to unlock the attachments you want to use on your weapons. Now, you only have to unlock an attachment once to be able to use that same attachment on another weapon, rather than having to unlock it again and again. Since XP tokens now only count down when you’re in a game, levelling up just got even better. Naturally, the adjustment also leads to less attachments crowding the gunsmith, making it easier to craft a build according to your playstyle.
New to the gunsmith are Apex attachments, which are a special kind of attachment tied to almost every primary and secondary weapon in the game. The usefulness of some of the Apex attachments is debatable, but they can provide and even encourage you to test out alternative playstyles.
The Hyeon Hyperburst Apex attachment changes the fire rate of the Hyeon Burst assault rifle to a fast three-round burst, decreasing to slow, fully automatic fire, rewarding accuracy. There’s also the KG-7 Drillcharge Apex attachment for the KG-7 Vulkan, loading the sniper rifle with Drillcharge rounds that drill into surfaces, allowing you to deal damage to enemies behind cover.
Despite weapons supporting a maximum of five attachments, Apex attachments don’t take up a weapon slot, so you can give the gun conversions a whirl without hindering your build.
A relatively small, but useful loadout change is the integration of killstreaks into individual loadouts. Veteran series fans may recognise this from Call of Duty: Ghosts, and it allows you to assign a unique set of killstreaks to every custom class. This means you can switch up the killstreaks you’re using mid-match to suit the needs of the team.
By far the most unique attribute in Modern Warfare 4 is its Kill Block game mode. It’s an ever-changing map with three modular sections that snap together to form a new combat configuration after each match. There are over 500 layout combinations available that physically switch up combat, routes, and lines of sight for infinite replay value. Each section can be completely different, ranging from muddy trenches, to courtyards, and even sections depicting staple maps such as High Rise and Crash. At launch, Kill Block only supports Gunfight, but it’s expected to be integrated into more modes in the future, which would make for the most diverse and interesting multiplayer map the series has ever seen.
Other new game modes (and I use that term loosely) that are worth talking about are Collateral, which is similar to Heist in Black Ops 4. It’s essentially Search and Destroy, but with an economy like that of Counter-Strike, where you can purchase weapons, perks, armor, and equipment between rounds. Of course, it’s nowhere near as fleshed out as its inspiration, but it can be a good enough switch up for Search and Destroy fans. Additionally, there’s Hijack, reminiscent of Uplink from the jetpack days, where you fight over a data spike to deliver it to the enemy data tower, and you can even throw the spike to pass it between teammates.
Although I massively prefer the Black Ops series over Modern Warfare, I think Infinity Ward delivers the best gunplay in the Call of Duty franchise, and Modern Warfare 4 is no different. Shooting is as intuitive and responsive as ever, while the handling feels genuine. This is the greatest aspect of Infinity Ward’s focus on delivering realism, but that same approach slows down multiplayer a lot.
After two years of omnimovement, the shackles have been placed back on, and you can no longer slide in any direction, dive backwards, or take advantage of any of the other freedoms omnimovement provided. Therefore, the movement is notably slower, but it’s saved by the fact that it feels smooth and fluid. Even though the breaks have been applied to movement, the same can’t always be said about the gameplay.
There are 12 core 6v6 maps at launch, and they offer a mix of compact spaces, long lines of sight, and follow mostly medium-sized layouts that keep the action going. The maps themselves, though, are dull and unimaginative, which is a shame considering the Korean setting could’ve amounted to creative and memorable battlefields. There isn’t a single map I enjoy, and when I queue into a match, I find myself discontent with whatever map I’m assigned.
If the maps don’t aggravate you, the spawns definitely will. Whether you’re spawning away from your team, facing your own spawn, or into gunfire, fixes are definitely needed to improve the multiplayer experience.
Just like questionable spawns, another aspect of Modern Warfare 4 that you can’t ignore is skill-based matchmaking. I won’t harp on it too much, because it has been a hot topic in the community since Modern Warfare 2019, but it’s there, and it’s strong. Unlike Black Ops 7, Modern Warfare 4 doesn’t have Open Matchmaking, so you have no choice other than to play highly competitive matches. The new matchmaking system is meant to prioritise connection, and there’s some transparency in the way available servers and their pings are displayed when you queue into a match. However, that hasn’t stopped the matchmaking from being unforgiving.
Apart from Kill Block, Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer feels like the same old story, and that’s my biggest drawback. I didn’t expect to come down with a case of Modern Warfare fatigue on launch weekend, but I guess that’s what happens when the gameplay loop feels the exact same as the last three Modern Warfare entries.
Modern Warfare 4 suits fans who prefer to play slower, more tactically, and prioritise positioning, but it is less appealing if speed and movement are the main attraction. The poor map design and matchmaking dampen the experience from the get-go, and are enough to drive away returning fans, who have been dealing with these issues year after year. I’d describe the game as not particularly good or bad, just “decent,” but working my way through prestige levels, challenges, and the return of Shipment on October 27 will be just enough to keep me coming back for more for a little while.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer: A recognisable return to an iconic franchise, Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer follows the formula you'd expect, but the absence of impactful innovations and disappointing maps hold it back. – Lauren Sayles
Thank you to Activision for providing GameScout with a code for review.
Consider checking out our previous Call of Duty review:
