English
Gamereactor
articles
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered Review Impressions

Raven's remaster is so good that it's borderline a remake.

Subscribe to our newsletter here!

* Required field
HQ
HQ

Let's make this clear: we're kind of surprised Raven Software and Activision decided to call this a remaster, and not a remake. Raven has done so much more than up the resolution and improve a few textures. They've changed certain environmental details, changed character models, recorded new dialogue, and so much more.

We'll use "F.N.G." as an example. Not only do the enhanced lighting and textures make the compound look realistic and beautiful, but new details make it feel more alive. The area is filled with soldiers working on their trucks, different kinds of vehicles, and even a new section where you can learn how to use explosives. These are all fairly minor details, but they make the game feel fresh and modern.

Raven most certainly knows that they've done a good job, and they've made a few changes to highlight this. We're talking removing gas masks from certain characters to show off the facial details, changing architecture to offer up more eye-candy, and similarly revealing tweaks. There are still a few jagged edges to be found, so it's not on par with the best looking games of today, but it definitely looks like a game made for this generation.

This is an ad:

The frame-rate is mostly very stable, with just a few dips down to around 50 on our PlayStation 4 version. Considering the extra details in the new version we're very impressed by this result.

HQ

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered also offers an update audio-wise, but not to the same degree. Sure, it still sounds awesome, but we're disappointed that they didn't fix certain issues the original had. Do you remember the truck that drives past you on the road when you're sneaking between hay bales in "Safe House"? Remember how the sound suddenly cuts off? It does the same thing in Remastered. Not a very big deal, but we think it's weird that they didn't fix it.

Raven hasn't done much in terms of gameplay. The guns feel the same, enemies react the same way, and the infinitely spawning enemies are still there. However, Raven knows that first-person shooters have gotten faster through the years, so they've implemented a 20 steps sensitivity scale in the control options. This was a real treat, especially in "Mile Hugh Club" where the extra sensitivity came in handy when playing on Veteran.

This is an ad:

We've also gotten a few new Intel cheats on top of the old ones. Making grenades explode with lemon juice splashing into the air, and soldiers flying to the sides when shot due to the increased ragdoll effect is a lot of fun. There are also some other interesting effects, including one that will make you hate Victor Zakaev even more (as every enemy looks just like him, and wields an RPG).

This remaster is one of the best of this generation. Raven has done a fantastic job of upgrading the game to today's standards. Being able to see every last wrinkle in Zakaev's face makes him seem more alive, while still keeping to the original design. Many remasters just look like they do in our heads after a while. This is not the case with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered. The changes are obvious from the very first second, and the extra detail heightens the experience even further. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare impressed us nine years ago, and it's impressing us still today. While we'd still argue that this alone isn't worth buying a special edition of Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare if you're not interested in Infinity Ward's upcoming game, but it's definitely a great bonus if you're going to buy it anyway.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare RemasteredCall of Duty: Modern Warfare RemasteredCall of Duty: Modern Warfare RemasteredCall of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered

Related texts



Loading next content