Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023 video game)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023 video game)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III is an upcoming first-person shooter video game developed by Sledgehammer Games and published by Activision. It is the twentieth game in the Call of Duty series, and third entry in the rebooted Modern Warfare sub-series, serving as the direct sequel to 2022's Modern Warfare II. The game is scheduled to be released on November 10, 2023, for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Modern Warfare III retains the realistic and modern setting of its predecessors and continues the series' storyline. The story follows multi-national special operations unit Task Force 141 as they track down Vladimir Makarov, a Russian ultranationalist and terrorist planning to trigger a third World War. The game's multiplayer includes all 16 base maps from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009) remastered, with new maps planned for inclusion post-launch. A Zombies mode built around an open world with a player versus environment experience is also included, making Modern Warfare III the first Modern Warfare title to include a Zombies mode.
After developing Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021), Sledgehammer Games were assigned to develop an expansion pack for Modern Warfare II. During development, however, Activision chose to make the project a full, standalone entry in the Call of Duty series. Sledgehammer utilized the 9.0 version of the IW engine when developing Modern Warfare III. Treyarch, the lead developers of the Call of Duty: Black Ops subseries, also co-developed the Zombies mode. After a series of leaks in early-to-mid 2023, the game was officially revealed in August 2023, with a showcase event and public beta also taking place in October.
Gameplay
Modern Warfare III will feature similar gameplay to Modern Warfare II and other games in the Call of Duty series. Mechanics returning in Modern Warfare III include the return of slide cancelling. According to Activision, in addition to linear missions, the game's campaign will feature "Open Combat Missions", allowing players to freely choose how they want to approach their objectives.
In Multiplayer, all sixteen maps from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009) will be available at launch, alongside the ability to vote for maps while in a matchmade lobby (which was absent in some recent titles), and increased player health for longer "time-to-kill" (TTK). The "red dot" minimap that was absent in Modern Warfare (2019) and Modern Warfare II will also return, which will allow players to see enemies on their radar when the enemies fire a weapon without a suppressor. Classic game modes such as "Kill Confirmed" and "Hardpoint" will return alongside a new game mode titled "Cutthroat", where three teams of three players go head to head. In addition, the Ground War mode also returns with dedicated maps, as well as War mode, last seen in Call of Duty: WWII. The game will feature moderation powered by artificial intelligence, listening in on in-game interactions and immediately reporting any overly-toxic behavior. At least twelve new multiplayer maps have been confirmed to release post-launch.
An open world PvE Zombies mode, developed by Treyarch in collaboration with Sledgehammer Games, will also be included in the game. The game mode is structured similarly to the DMZ mode in Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0, rather than the round-based survival experience from older Zombies modes. Up to 24 players play together as separate squads in a large-sized map, Urzikstan, which is also set to be a new battle royale map for Warzone 2.0. Each team can tackle zombies, as well as AI-controlled human enemies, in order to complete objectives around the map, as well as collect loot and sell them at buy stations, or extract them via exfiltration. In place of rounds, the map is divided into "zones", with varying levels of threat indicating the difficulty. After 45 minutes of in-match time, an "Aether Storm" begins to expand and cover the map, leaving players with 15 minutes to exfil with their loot, which can be carried over into subsequent matches. Core mechanics from previous Zombies modes return, such as weapon wallbuys, Perk-a-Cola drinks, and the Mystery Box. Story quests are also featured in the mode, which further progress the narrative.
Premise
Campaign
Modern Warfare III's campaign is set to take place after the events of Modern Warfare II and its post-launch seasons, and features a number of fictional locations introduced in previous Modern Warfare games, including the city of Verdansk, Kastovia, and the country of Urzikstan. The game's primary antagonist is Ultranationalist terrorist Vladimir Makarov (Julian Kostov), who was teased at the end of the Modern Warfare II campaign. Task Force 141 returns as the central protagonists, comprising: SAS Captain John Price (Barry Sloane), Lieutenant Simon "Ghost" Riley (Samuel Roukin), Sergeant Kyle "Gaz" Garrick (Elliot Knight), and Sergeant John "Soap" MacTavish (Neil Ellice). Also returning from previous Modern Warfare games are: CIA Station Chief Kate Laswell (Rya Kihlstedt), and Urzikstan Liberation Force Commander Farah Karim (Claudia Doumit). Players take on the role of TF141 members as well as members of Makarov's private military company, Konni Group.
Zombies
The Zombies story takes place in Urzikstan in 2021, several months after the events of Modern Warfare (2019) and its post-launch seasons, and nearly 40 years after the events of Black Ops Cold War. In addition to Task Force 141 members, the mode features returning characters from both games, including: Victor Zakhaev, a Russian Ultranationalist arms dealer who was thought to have died in Verdansk; and Sergei Ravenov, a former Spetsnaz captain who has experiences with zombie incursions from the Cold War. New characters include: Jack Fletcher, commander of the private military company Terminus Outcomes, who provides support for Zakhaev; and Selma Greene, de facto commander of Operation Deadbolt, a CIA contingency plan formed after the events of the Cold War outbreak.
Development
Modern Warfare III is being developed by Sledgehammer Games, and is set to use a revamped version of the IW engine. Reports of the game's existence began to surface in February 2023, when Bloomberg reported that the next entry to the Call of Duty series would be a continuation of the rebooted Modern Warfare sub-series. Per the report, Activision planned to ship an expansion pack for Modern Warfare II in late 2023, assigning Sledgehammer to lead the production of the project. The expansion was intended to feature a new single-player campaign that would continue the story of Modern Warfare II, along with new content for the game's multiplayer component. During the development of the project, however, Activision chose to shift its direction, turning the expansion into a fully-fledged Call of Duty title. Fellow Call of Duty developer Treyarch was brought in to develop a Zombies mode for the new title, the first ever instance of such in the Modern Warfare sub-series.
In July 2023, Activision confirmed that Modern Warfare II operators, weapons and cosmetic items would carry over into the 2023 title, following a leak that suggested said title would be named Modern Warfare III. After confirming the game's title, a blog post was released, detailing the specifics of the carryover.
Leaks
A large amount of content for Modern Warfare III was leaked before being officially revealed. Around July 17, 2023, the "red dot" minimap, War mode, and new perks were leaked from an internal alpha build. On July 24, 2023, the game's key art was leaked in a Monster Energy promotion, featuring an image of Captain Price behind the Modern Warfare III logo. Around the time of the key art leak, several new weapons were datamined.
The game's key art leak was confirmed real by Activision, who issued copyright takedowns and acknowledged the leak via Twitter with a sarcastic tweet. Another joke tweet was published shortly after, featuring a stick figure with a gun on a red background with the title "MODERN WARFARE REDACTED?".
Music
The game's soundtrack is composed by Walter Mair. Mair has previously worked with the Call of Duty franchise on Call of Duty: Mobile. Rapper 21 Savage also released a song in promotion of the game, titled "Call Me Revenge" featuring singer d4vd.
Marketing
On August 7, 2023, a teaser trailer was posted, confirming the title. Around this time, a phone number was set up by Activision that was shared via social media. This phone number, after participants agreed to a few terms, would begin sending anonymous messages to participants, such as "we need someone like you, with experience in Al Mazrah." This phone number was noted to give unusual responses when sent the word "zombies" or the names of multiplayer maps from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (ex. "Rust"). On August 17, 2023, a full reveal took place inside of a Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 event and concluded with a reveal trailer. Pre-orders were also opened, with players being able to play the campaign up to a week early, as well as gain access to new operator skins and an open beta for the multiplayer mode.
Modern Warfare III is set to release on November 10, 2023. The confirmed platforms for the game are PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Notes
References
External links
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