After Treyarch's somewhat "meh" Call of Duty 3, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare saw the return of developer Infinity Ward, which brought with it a new level of realism and storytelling for first-person shooters. A departure from past games in the series, which dealt with World War II, Call of Duty 4 took a more contemporary approach using modern weaponry and current global crises. It also introduced perks, gameplay-enhancing bonuses that could be earned through online play, which extended CoD4's life through a carefully measured online ranking system that paid real benefits the longer you played.
Gabe: Call of Duty 4 came at a time when there were so many excellent games vying for time in my 360 that few had much hope of occupying it for long. Yet, the superb single-player story and even more gratifying perks of multiplayer ensured that CoD4 would be the only game that I played for months.
Gerald: I've probably logged more hours in Call of Duty 4's multiplayer than I have with any shooter since Half-Life: Counterstrike. It's well-balanced, insanely fun, and highly competitive. I really enjoyed the single-player campaign, don't get me wrong, but the strength of the multiplayer is unmatched on the platform as far as I'm concerned.Gabe: And I think it's really important to point out what a crowded, contentious field multiplayer is on the 360, because CoD4's year-old multiplayer still wins out over games released very recently, like Left 4 Dead. I'd say that its success is largely due to the impressive balance that you mentioned, and that in the face of so many different "character builds" afforded by the perks system.Gerald: I love the perk system, but Martyrdom was a constant pain in my ass. I can't tell you how many times I pulled off the perfect assault on some sniper diaper-wearing campers only to get killed by a martyrdom 'nade as I took defensive position to reload. Want to know the best feeling in the world, though? It's being a millisecond faster than your opponent when you both pull out the knives.
