'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III' Introduces Open Combat Missions

Source: Activision / Sledgehammer Games / Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III looks like it will live up to its $70 premium price point. Today, Activision gave COD fans a treat by dropping the gameplay reveal trailer for Modern Warfare III while also noting that when this game arrives, it will be a game of many firsts for the franchise. For the first time in back-to-back years, Call of Duty Modern Warfare III’s campaign will serve as a direct sequel and picks up immediately after the events of 2022’s Modern Warfare II. Ultranationalist Vladimir Makarov is back, but thankfully Captain Price and Task Force 141 are on the job to see that they stop him and his terrorist organization from wreaking havoc around the globe. Like previous installments, fans can expect the usual cinematic action-packed experience, but with a slight twist, player freedom.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III Will Introduce Open Combat Missions

Source: Activision / Sledgehammer Games / Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War flirted with the idea of players being able to make choices during missions in the campaign. In Modern Warfare III, there will be “Open Combat Missions,” which Activision says is “a new innovation that empowers player’s decisions like never before.”

Open Combat Missions will enhance the cinematic campaign missions and will “emphasize player choice with numerous additional paths and choices to complete objectives,” the Call of Duty blog reports.

With Open Combat Missions, there is truly no one style to play. You can go in quietly or run and gun, giving COD players the choice of how they want to take down Makarov.

Speaking with The Washington Post’s Gene Park, narrative director for the Call of Duty franchise and a veteran actor, Brian Bloom spoke about how Open Combat Missions changed the game for him when working on Modern Warfare III.

Per The Washington Post:

“If you could picture a screenplay page where action would ordinarily be written, the typical version would be ‘See X as we approach X, and X are moving toward X,’” Bloom said. “Now, I had at the very beginning in a bracket for every action that says, ‘if/when.’ That’s an exciting development for us.”

Bloom said the game includes branching dialogue trees that vary and react to player decisions, or even indecision. Discovering new areas in the game will trigger speech that you may miss the first time around. Sometimes, character lines will vary depending on whether the player is standing still, in a firefight or performing any kind of action. Bloom said the cast recorded lines in loud and soft tones, depending on how the player approaches situations.

“They’re not just saying the same lines quietly or with a projected voice. There are things that would sound better in stealth, maybe would be more curt,” Bloom said.

Call of Duty Zombies Will Feature An All-New Open World

Source: Activision / Sledgehammer Games / Call of Duty Zombies

Call of Duty Zombies returns with an all-new open world for fans to experience and, for the first time, will allow players to team up with other squads to battle swarms of the undead in what Activision says will be the largest Call of Duty Zombies map ever. Treyarch is behind the development of the fan-favorite mode and says that the open-world PvE extraction survival experience will also feature “the biggest enemies in Call of Duty history.”

What About Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III’s Multiplayer?

Source: Activision / Sledgehammer Games / Call of Duty Multiplayer

Of course, the multiplayer will get some love. It’s only fitting. When the game arrives, it will be on the 20th anniversary of Call of Duty. It will feature “one of the greatest collections of Modern Warfare multiplayer maps ever assembled – both fan favorites and all new ones, plus additional maps for Ground War, Invasion, and War mode.” It will also introduce “carry forward,” allowing players to transfer content from previous COD titles to Modern Warfare III. Everything coming to MWIII’s multiplayer is listed below:

Legendary Maps & Modern Gameplay

All 16 launch maps from the original Modern Warfare 2 (2009) have been modernized with new modes and gameplay features and will be available at launch to get everyone started, while over 12 new core 6v6 maps will fuel post-launch live seasons.
Players will be able to play fan-favorite game modes like Hardpoint and Kill Confirmed and the brand-new Cutthroat Mode (3v3v3) on core maps where these modes have never been experienced before.

New Systems & Mechanics

Players will experience new movement mechanics, including the brand-new Tac-Stance designed for tactical close-quarters combat.
Gunsmith evolves with the addition of After-Market Parts, allowing players to have enhanced customization and create new weapon combinations.

Core Features

Modern Warfare lll brings the return of features like classic Minimap behavior with red dots indicating when an enemy is firing an unsuppressed weapon and map voting, allowing players greater autonomy over their Multiplayer matches.
Faster Aim Down Sights (ADS) out of the slide, reload cancel, and slide cancel has been refined.
All perks will be available at the start of a match, including the new silent movement perk, Covert Sneakers. Core Multiplayer Health is increased, lengthening Time-to-Kill (TTK).

Carry Forward

For the first time in Call of Duty’s history, a vast amount of content from a previous Modern Warfare game will transfer – or “carry forward” — and be available in the next Modern Warfare title.
All weapons and Operator content previously unlocked or currently available to players in Modern Warfare II will carry forward between Modern Warfare II and Modern Warfare III.

New Maps

In addition to the 16 core launch maps, Modern Warfare lll will launch on day one with four huge environments containing a host of new play spaces.
Three brand-new Battle Maps – large-scale locations where Modern Warfare III’s Ground War and Invasion game modes will be fought.
One War map that will support the epic return and evolution of the popular War Mode that first debuted in Call of Duty: WWll (2017).
In a robust post-launch offering, over 12 new core 6v6 maps will also be available.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III arrives on November 10, 2023. — Photo: Activision / Sledgehammer Games