ver since its inception in the early 1990s, the shooter genre has been through plenty of phases in terms of settings. It started with the majority being either sci-fi or fantasy with games like Doom, Quake, Heretic, Hexen, and System Shock. These settings went for years and it created great games. Along with the above, there were also games like System Shock 2, Half-Life, SiN, Duke Nukem 3D, and countless more. Then in the early 2000s, the genre shifted from fantasy and sci-fi to a more dark setting: World War 2. While Wolfenstein 3D was the first WW2 shooter, it was more underground. Thanks to the efforts of games like Medal of Honor and Hidden and Dangerous, it shifted the shooter focus to the Axis and Allies. Just like the 1990s, the early-to-mid 2000s created new franchises thanks to this new setting. Modern classics like Medal of Honor, Brothers in Arms, and Battlefield were born in this era, and are mostly going strong today.

One series that spawned during this time was Call of Duty. Released in 2003 for the PC, developed by Infinity Ward, and running on a modified version of the id Tech 3 engine, it was a heavy contrast from the other shooters on the market. This was because Call of Duty focused on AI teammates assisting the player as well as a cinematic experience with plenty of scripted sequences. It all went for a more realistic and immersive experience that took real WW2 battles and fictionalized it a bit for gameplay purposes. The result was an enjoyable shooter with a singleplayer with originally unknown intensity and a fun multiplayer component (though lacking in complexity when compared to games like Battlefield 1942). However, the series' later titles, which consisted of third-party spinoffs and official numbered entries from Infinity Ward, didn't improve or change much, leaving the series to lose popularity. In fact, it was close to dying.

Then 2007 came along, and everything was changed forever.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was not the first shooter to be set in the modern day. Games like Battlefield 2, Soldier of Fortune, and Counter-Strike were previously released games that were set in more modern settings. That being said, they didn't do anything truly special with this. They really just seemed to use it for aesthetic reasons. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was the first game to do something truly special with this shift in setting. With the series back in the hands of Infinity Ward, they changed the series so much in terms to setting, that you may have not recognized it as being a part of the same series, which may have been the point. Running on the updated IW engine, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare moved the series and the genre to the modern day, with many other games and even its own sequels trying to reignite the spark of its success. However, these often failed and dragged both the series and genre into mediocrity. But this didn't apply, and still doesn't apply, to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Even 8 years later, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is both the best game in the series and one of the best shooters ever. In fact, thanks to flawless presentation, tight and intuitive gameplay, an intense campaign, and phenomenal campaign, it may just be the best shooter ever made.

In terms of graphics, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare runs on the IW 3.0 engine, the newest iteration of the IW engine, which is a heavily modified id Tech 3 engine. This engine, which would later be called the Call of Duty 4 engine, was used to power the series' later games, as well as third-party games such as Quantum of Solace. For a game as old as it is, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare still looks great, even when compared to later titles on the engine. It could even be argued as the best looking game on the engine. Surprisingly diverse and detailed environments, faithfully recreated gear, detailed textures, and the best night vision can be found in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. What's even better is the consistent framerate. On the Xbox 360 and PS3, the game runs consistently at 60 frames-per-second, which is impressive for a console game. Plus, when the graphics settings on the PC and Mac OS X versions of the game are bumped up to their limit, it looks incredible. It's honestly quite surprising to see this amount of graphical quality in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, especially since the later games would become repetitious.

The sound design in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is also great, especially in the sound effects and the soundtrack. The sound effects pack a real punch in the game's faithfully recreated arsenal. From the crack of an M16A4 to the sheer power of a nuclear bomb, all of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare's arsenal, both usable and not, is both powerful and authentic to the real-life counterparts. Then there's the incredible soundtrack. Composed by Stephen Barton and Harry Gregson-Williams, the soundtrack is full of dynamic songs and guitar riffs that amplify the already intense action on-screen. There's also the game's voice acting, which is still really good. Notable performances include Billy Murray as Captain Price and Craig Fairbrass as Gaz. Overall, the sound design shows a lot of polish that is worthy of either surround sound or a great pair of headphones.

As the game's title more than suggests, the story in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is set in the present day of warfare. Specifically, the story starts in the year 2011. A civil war has brewed in Russia between the government and a group led by Imran Zakhaev. Meanwhile, a separatist group led by Khaled Al-Asad has started in a country in the Middle East with the task to take it over. After the assassination of the country's president by Al-Asad, the US Marines have been sent in to deal with the group. Meanwhile, a team of the British SAS have been on two operations: One is to a ship to find evidence involving the dealing of a nuclear bomb and the other is to rescue an informant from Russia. Now, it's up to the marines to stop Al-Asad and the SAS to find the bomb.

The story on display in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is actually surprisingly good. The story has always been a downfall of the series, with the exception of the Russian missions from the previous titles. They've always been cliched and boring in terms of objectives. Thankfully, not only does Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare change this for the better, but it makes up for the previous games. This is thanks to three things that Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare does in its storyline: the cinematic events, pacing, and characters. Throughout the game's campaign, the player will experience scripted sequences in the vein of Half-Life. These segments show the player the events in other areas of the story, while adding its own twists to the story. These twists are not only well done, but they are legitimately jaw-dropping when they occur. These segments are truly shining examples of shock and awe in the best way possible. Then there's the excellent pacing of these games. In both the story and gameplay, it's done in such a way as to prevent boredom. It makes boredom far from possible and makes Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare very enjoyable. Finally, there are the excellently written characters. Imran Zakheav, the main villian of the game, is written in such a way that he has no redeeming qualities at all. This makes him an excellent villian, especially in comparison to the lame and failed attempt at a sympathetic villain in the later Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. Another great character is Captain Price, the head of the SAS team. He's shown to be a tough guy, but caring for both his friends and squadmates. He's a great and likeable character. But arguably the best character in the game is Gaz, a good soldier who is serious, but finds time to joke around and quote Aliens.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare's gameplay is split into two parts: the singleplayer campaign content and the multiplayer component. The singleplayer campaign continues the Call of Duty tradition of having the player play through multiple perspectives of the combat. This time, though, they're all connected by the story rather than being 3 separate stories. The two characters the player will tackle for the majority of the game are Sgt. Paul Jackson for the US Marines and Sgt. John "Soap" MacTavish, the FNG for the SAS. The changes and differences between the campaigns are really significant and also welcome. The marines take a more "shoot first, ask questions later" attitude, while the SAS take things a bit more tactically and stealthily. Like the pacing of the story, these changes in the gameplay from character to character prevent boredom. Each team also gets their own equipment, with the Marines going loud with bigger guns and the SAS going with silenced weapons. There's also equipment like weapon attachments, different kinds of grenades, C4 explosives, and night vision.

However, you won't play as these characters the whole time. A few missions have you play as other characters. The opening credits sequence, for example, has players in the role of President Yasir Al-Fulani moments before his execution. But two missions, in particular, stand out. One has players in the role of an AC-130 gunner as you assist the protagonists through a village. The radar screen combined with the chatter over the radio makes for a fun and truly immersive experience. The other level is a flashback that puts players in the role of Captain Price while he's on a mission in Pripyat. This entirely stealth-based mission is excellently executed and one of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare's many highlights.

Thankfully, the campaign is heightened by the excellent AI in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. The AI for both your squadmates and the hostiles is well programmed and balanced. Your squadmates will help take out hostiles often, which is a shift from most games. The enemy AI is also pretty smart and challenging on all but the game's Recruit difficulty mode. The game handles these difficulty modes in a different way from most games. In the first level, players, in the role of Soap, are taught the basics of combat and forced to run an obstacle course. Your time and skill on it gives you a recommended difficulty mode among the 4 available. Plus, you have the ability to rerun the course if you don't like your time.

On the game's Regular difficulty setting, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare will take the better part of 10-12 hours to beat, with the Hardened and Veteran difficulty modes tacking on a few hours more. But thanks to these difficulty modes and collectible intel items scattered in the levels, most players might find incentive to reply for 100% completion. But some will just return to run through the amazing campaign again. After beating the campaign, you also get access to an Arcade Mode and a bonus mission called Mile High Club. The Arcade Mode has players replaying the campaign, but with each kill (and each kind of kill) earning the player points. The Mile High Club mission is a bonus mission set after the main campaign. Playing as the Task Force 141 (who would start in a bigger role in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2), players are tasked to rescue a VIP from a plane and escape. It's a challenging mission, to say the least, and worth playing to challenge yourself.

It's by this point that most players will start migrating to the game's included multiplayer component. For many people, myself included, this was Call of Duty multiplayer at its absolute finest. With 20 maps and 13 customizable game modes on offer, you'll certainly have fun in this mode. The multiplayer in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is much more simplier than the more recent titles, which is not a bad thing. The recent games have been filled up with so many customizable weapons, microtransations, and perks, that it lost what this game had. What Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare had was skill-over-gear gameplay, something the series has all but lost recently. It still has unlockable weapons, gear, and perks. But it still requires actual skill. The only potential issue new players may have is that the game still has a large and dedicated community. This isn't bad, in that you'll always find a game to play. But it means new players will likely be killed a lot by people who know the game backwards and forwards. It's not a dealbreaker by any means, but it can be potentially frustrating.

To quote The Dark Knight Rises, "You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain." This phrase really applies to the recent years of the Call of Duty series. For years, it's tried to recapture the greatness of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. But these attempts have always failed, since the series just seems to use the same material over and over again. It's become the textbook definition of rehashing and reusing the same concepts. But they don't see what made Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare the critically acclaimed masterpiece it was: the unique and new feel of the game. Trying to reuse concepts that were cutting edge and new in 2007 won't bring that spark back, and the games will just end up getting worse and worse. But Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare isn't one of those games. It's an incredible game with a unique feel, flawless presentation, and great gameplay in its intense campaign and incredible multiplayer. It's a shooter that needs to be played by anyone who's a fan of the shooter genre.