Call of Duty 4 vs. Halo 3: Multiplayer showdown
Aarghh! Am I really going to do this?
This debate is a tough one for me personally. (WARNING: the following sentence makes little sense, but bare with me, I’ll try to explain.)
I like Halo 3 multiplayer better than Call of Duty 4’s, but I only want to play Call of Duty 4’s. There, I said it.
It’s tough, because I think Halo 3 is one of the greatest games to ever be released. The complete software package is incredible. The entire collection includes awesome single player, with four-player co-op, phenomenal in-house and online multiplayer, user created videos and editable maps. On top of that, the gameplay itself has always felt so visceral. When I melee someone with my gun it feels like I’m thwacking them, from my character’s animation to the reaction of my opponent’s character. The physics for the different grenades and the weapons and vehicles themselves just seem perfect as well.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare does not have all of that. But it is completely awesome, with great single-player and phenomenal multiplayer. It does not have all the bells and whistles, and while I love the feel of the online battles, it doesn’t feel as meaty as Halo 3. That said, I crave playing it more than Halo 3.
The difference lies in the online multiplayer world. When I was introduced to Halo 3’s online ranking system in the beta last May, I became even more excited for one of the most hyped games of all-time. As you fight you gain experience points and rank up in two different ways. You gain numbered levels per game type (deathmatch, capture the flag) but you also move up overall based on military ranks, like Sergeant, Captain, General, etc.
Then I tried Call of Duty 4 and was blown away, it’s got the same sort of ranking system, but it does so much more. I realize that a lot of people who may be reading this have played one game or the other, but there is a need to go into detail about Call of Duty 4’s online system. If every other shooter from now until the end of time does not incorporate what Call of Duty 4 has done in some way, they are completely missing the point about what makes a great game. Really Call of Duty 4 just RPG’d its shooter, and incredible is the only word that can describe it.
I’m not a huge fan of RPGs, I like controlling the action. I’m not a huge swords and sorcery guy (sports, guns and cars, please) but on the occasion I start into a good RPG (Oblivion) I become obsessed with the collection, skill leveling and sense of achievement. Call of Duty 4 capitalizes on this and nearly perfects it.
Speaking of achievement, as a side note, you can gain multiplayer achievements in Halo 3, but not on the Xbox 360’s Call of Duty 4. Usually getting points is a prerequisite for me to sink hours into a game. Not so when it comes to Modern Warfare.
Gobs of people have already played these games, but if you haven’t played either, you owe it to yourself to try them out. These are system-selling games as much as Grand Theft Auto IV and Metal Gear Solid 4 are.
Coming tomorrow, I’ll go into detail about why Call of Duty 4’s online is so addictive it is nearly perfect.
2 Responses to “Call of Duty 4 vs. Halo 3: Multiplayer showdown”
[...] I said above, this is a perfect decompression tool. I used to come home and turn on Call of Duty 4, shoot a bunch of people and go to bed. While that is relaxing, you don’t really know [...]
[...] only because I still have not completed the main game. It’s good, but the multiplayer — it mimics Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare’s — is where this game is at. If you’re Xbox 360 is not online, you’re results may [...]
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