Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Preview and More

My favorite Call of Duty game is Call of Duty 2. I played it both on the Xbox 360 and the PC (I really loved the PC version). I have not liked a single Call of Duty game that has come out since. World at War was tolerable. Black Ops introduced some cool new features. The issue I have is the gameplay. It is just not as solid and logical as Call of Duty 2. In Call of Duty 2, when I shot someone, they died. If I got shot, I died. The end. It made sense. The guns all worked, yet had unique characteristics to them. I even loved the map layouts. The Call of Duty franchise is much more rich and famous now. Still, I have not liked the direction the series has gone and I figured that it would never change since what they have been doing since the “Modern Warfare” arc started has been netting them huge profits.

Shockingly, it appears I was wrong in that thought. Recently, our very own Torrence Davis attended the Call of Duty XP event and came back singing the game’s praises (check out his post HERE!!!). Of course, I figured his view was tainted by the fact that he was at the event in the first place. I then noticed that the more I see of Modern Warfare 3, the more I see what I have wanted to return to the series may actually return. The benefits of running at 60 fps are evident seeing this game’s pace in action. People were dropping from 1-3 bullets, depending on the location of the shots. High ground and player movement effected shots. Even the levels looked interesting to me. Now, I am not saying I am full on board for Modern Warfare 3. I am, however, saying that the game looks to be heading in the right direction and has my interest. I will definitely be giving it a try. For those of you who are curious about Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 and Call of Duty Elite, look not further.

One of the most anticipated games of the year and set to be the most epic Call of Duty game ever, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 will hit shelves worldwide on November 8th, delivering a multiplayer experience that aims to continue raising the bar by focusing on fast-paced, gun-on-gun combat, along with innovative new features that support and enhance different styles of play. In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3’s multiplayer, the player defines the experience through masterfully engineered Strike Packages and Weapon Proficiency Systems, helping them play through one of the most intense multiplayer experiences available. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare has a ESRB Rating of M for “Mature” due to Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, and Strong Language. Parents should actually take heed of this. Here is a small tidbit of additions and changes made in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 straight from Sledgehammer Games themselves:

[spoiler]MULTIPLAYER RE-IMAGINED

ALL-NEW STRIKE PACKAGES: Killstreaks have been redesigned to reward different play styles and skill levels through unique Strike Packages. Completing game mode objectives now counts towards your Pointstreak progression. For the first time ever, kills are not the only way to earn Pointstreaks.

This also allows Pointstreaks to cater to more unique play-styles:
-
Assault Strike Package – Pointstreaks within this package chain and are designed for more direct damage (Predator, helicopter, etc), just like in Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® 2. Your streak resets on death.

- Support Strike Package – Pointstreaks within this package do not chain. However, streaks do not reset on death. Streaks are more support oriented (UAV, Counter UAV, SAM turret, etc)
-
Specialist Strike Package – Pointstreaks designed for the expert players. Rewards come in the form of additional perks. A player activates additional Perks as they progress in a Pointsreak. These perks last until death.

Strike Packages include (not limited to):

Assault:
~Streak count resets on death~


- 5 kills: I.M.S.


- 9 kills: Strafe Run


- 9 kills: AH-6 Overwatch

-
10 kills: Assault Drone

-
15 kills: Juggernaut

Support:
~Streak count does not reset on death~

-
5 kills: Ballistic Vest

-
5 kills: Airdrop Trap


- 10 kills: Recon Drone

-
14 kills: Stealth Bomber

-
18 kills: Juggernaut Recon

Specialist:
~Unlock one additional Perk at 2 kills, a second additional perk at 4 kills and your next at 6 kills. These perks operate in addition to the standard 3 assigned to the custom load out chosen at the beginning of a match.~

Death Streaks make their return in Modern Warfare 3 and include (but not limited to):

- 4 – Juiced (run faster)
-
5 – Revenge (last person to kill you is visible on radar)

- 5 – Hollow Points (increased bullet damage for 1 kill)

- 6 – Dead Man’s Hand (player falls into last stand with C4)

NEW WEAPON RANKING SYSTEM: MW3 evolves your gun progression

* Modern Warfare 3features more than 40 of the most high-speed weapons that are either in-use or being field-tested by special forces:
o Primary: Assault: SMG, LMG, Sniper Rifles, Shotguns and Riot Shield
o Secondary: Machine Pistols, Handguns and Launchers

* The new weapon progression is designed to improve specific weapon leveling unlocks (attachments, reticules, and camos) and Weapon Proficiencies

* Weapon Proficiencies allow players to specialize their weapons with new attributes (some unique to weapon classes)

Proficiencies (not a comprehensive list):

- Kick – Reduced recoil when firing
- Attachments – Two attachments on Primary weapon

- Focus – Reduced flinch when hit

- Stability – Reduced sway when ADS

Attachments (not a comprehensive list):

- Red Dot Sight

- Silencer

- Holographic sight

- Dual Scope (Close Range/Long Range Optics)

NEW PERKS

- Recon
– Explosive damage paints the target on the mini map

- Blind Eye – Undetectable by air support/sentries

- Assassin – Undetectable by UAV, portable radar, thermal, heartbeat

- Quickdraw – Faster aim down sight
-
Stalker – Move faster while aiming

- Marksman – Identify targets at longer range

NEW GAME MODES
Fan favorite game modes make their return (Free-for-All, Team Death, Match, Domination, etc.), and a series of new modes make their introduction to the Modern Warfare® series:

Kill Confirmed – Collect dog tags from killed players. Prevent the other team from collecting yours

Team Defender – Grab the flag and protect the flag carrier to increase your team’s score

NEW GAME MODES FOR PRIVATE MATCH

- Infection – The infected kills enemies to recruit them for the infected team.

- Drop Zone – Hold the Drop Zone for Team Points and Care Packages.

- Team Juggernaut – With the support of a juggernaut, kill players on the opposing team. The first team to reach the score limit wins.

- Juggernaut – Kill the Juggernaut to become the new Juggernaut

- Gun Game – Be the first to dominate with every gun

- One in the Chamber – Gain ammo by eliminating enemies. Be the last to survive.

CUSTOMIZABLE GAME MODES FOR PRIVATE MATCH

* Private matches have been significantly enhanced to allow players to create new, customizable game modes in addition to the new modes for private matches (listed above) and share newly created games modes with friends.

* Through ELITE, subscribers can vote on favorite new modes and those modes could make their way into public playlists.

MULTIPLAYER MAPS: 16 Maps – including the maps shown at Call of Duty® XP:

- Resistance

- Dome

- Underground

- Village

- Arkaden

DEDICATED SERVERS: Modern Warfare 3 will support dedicated servers on Day 1

*
Players will be able to: browse, filter, favorite, and join Call of Duty®: MW3 dedicated servers of their choice

*
Players will be able to setup their own server and administer their MW3 dedicated servers with direct control over features such as game rules, setup and ban lists.

SPECIAL OPS (CO-OPERATIVE GAMEPLAY)

Having made its introduction in Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® 2, Special Ops makes its return in Modern Warfare 3 with a bevy of additions that innovate as a stand-alone mode, but also serves as an effective springboard into multiplayer action.

Survival Mode: – Making its first appearance in MW3, Survival Mode is the New Special Ops mode in which players face wave upon wave of attacking enemies. Acquaint yourself with all 16 MP maps by playing through them on Survival Mode – a great way for players to prepare for online multiplayer.

Mission Mode: Mission Mode makes its return, allowing players to team up with a friend locally or online for 16 new time-trial and objective-based missions.

Ranking/Progression System: An independent rank progression system within Special Ops which spans both Mission and Survival based on the rank progression players encounter in multiplayer.

[/spoiler]

I am sure most of you have heard of Call of Duty Elite by now. Some of you may even be fellow beta testers of the feature. Call of Duty Elite is the new digital service for the Call of Duty® community, built expressly for the 30 million active online Call of Duty players around the globe. The platform acts as an integrated social and competitive hub for all Call of Duty players to help them Play Together Better. Call of Duty Elite will be accessible via console, smartphone, tablet and web when it launches in November as an integral component of Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare 3, (also backwards compatible with Call of Duty®: Black Ops) and is poised to take the multiplayer gaming experience to the next level.

Utilizing the integrated Call of Duty Elite service for the Call of Duty community (see below), Modern Warfare 3 introduces new social and competitive features that deliver unprecedented innovation in the multiplayer experience, allowing gamers to connect and Play Together Better. Gamers will be able to access the Call of Duty Elite via their consoles of choice to check stats, connect with other friends, and engage in competition. Modern Warfare 3 players also have the ability to identify Facebook friends and fellow Elite members in-game, leading to another level of social and competitive gaming. Additionally, for the first time ever, players will be able to sync custom load outs to game, engage in daily live competition to win real-world prizing, rewards and more. For those that are confused, think of what Bungie.net and Bungie Pro did for the Halo series. Call of Duty Elite is poised to do the same thing for the Call of Duty franchise in a slightly different fashion. It is free at the base service level (bungie.net), while costing about $49.99 annually for premium membership (bungie pro). Expect the service to launch simultaneously with the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3: November 8th, 2011. For more info, check out the video and read the info below directly from Beachhead Studio themselves:

[spoiler]KEY FEATURES

• CONNECT: A true, franchise-exclusive social gaming platform, Call of Duty Elite gives players unprecedented control and flexibility over their multiplayer experience. Members can join and create Groups based on their hometown, gameplay style or favorite sports team, and then discover players who share that same Group in-game, encouraging Call of Duty MW3 gamers to play and compete with others of similar interests or affinities. Elite users can also create and manage a private Clan, as the platform enables players the ability to track their Clan mates from virtually anywhere, including in-game. The Connect features also include the Elite Theater service, which allows players to upload and share HD video directly from the game.

• COMPETE: Multiplayer competition forms the core of the Call of Duty Elite feature set. The service hosts community-wide events and Operations for players of all skill levels. Casual and hardcore Call of Duty fans alike can battle for bragging rights, trophies and real-world prizes like iPads, LCD TVs, even a custom Call of Duty Jeep! Multiplayer competition and exclusive event programming will be available and managed by a live service team 24/7, year-round. Elite is built from the ground up to thrill the multiplayer combat seeker.

• IMPROVE: Call of Duty Elite is a stat-freak’s dream, dynamically tracking a vast array of performance statistics at the individual, friend/clan network and community-wide levels. Players can enlist this comprehensive, always-on cache of data to improve their gameplay, target and outmatch the accomplishments of friends or put their skills to the test in numerous Elite Operations and events. Players will also have access to exclusive expert video strategies and detailed map and weapon breakdowns to help hone their Call of Duty skills even further. And, after studying these expert advice and strategies, players can configure and sync customized load-outs via the web or Elite apps for iPhone, iPad and Android directly to MW3, and changes will be ready ingame the moment they boot up their console.

Free and Premium Call of Duty Elite Membership Features

Free: At launch, Call of Duty Elite will offer the most feature-rich gaming service on the planet. The free tier includes:

Performance tracking, custom leaderboards, support for Clans and the ability to create custom Groups within the service, enabling users to identify and play with like-minded players. All Elite users may also browse the Call of Duty Theater for high-definition programming, or upload their own media to Elite. Players can also access detailed strategy guides to help shape their game. In addition, the free component allows for custom class creation via a range of mobile apps for smartphones and tablet, and the opportunity to meet and invite Facebook and Elite friends to battle in-game.

Premium: Call of Duty Elite membership is an unbeatable value, amplifying the Call of Duty experience like no other service to date. Incorporating all the benefits of the free tier, the premium membership also includes:

Modern Warfare 3 DLC, including all the MW3 map packs, with twenty pieces of new content that will be made available to Elite premium members on a monthly basis during the 9-month DLC season (Map Packs still remain available a la carte). With the premium membership, you will get tons of new content, and get MW3 DLC first and it’s yours to keep. New features include the ability to level up a Clan with competitions and Clan Operations available exclusively to premium members. In addition, premium members can also compete for real world prizing daily (including iPads, LCD TVs, Jeeps, etc.) via an expanded list of Operations, official leagues and events, only available to premium users. The highly-anticipated Call of Duty Elite TV will deliver premium episodic video content and exclusive entertainment crafted by top Hollywood talent (Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Executive producers Ridley and Tony Scott) for premium users, while members can also upload more and have 8x HD video capacity than free users.

[/spoiler]

For those of you who want more footage of the game, I have you covered on that front as well. Below, I have shared screenshots, links and videos of gameplay for you all to give a gander. I have also included a bonus set of videos that are fanmade, yet officially endoresed by the Call of Duty people themselves (I even found them on the Official Call of Duty YouTube page). If you have any thoughts or questions, that’s what the comment feature is for. Take advantage of it. Be sure to check back on TheBitbag for more Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 info and our inevitable review.

For more videos, pictures, updates and everything Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 straight from the source, check out Activision, Sledgehammer Games, and Beachhead Studio’s Call of Duty sections here:
Websites: http://www.callofduty.com/mw3 & http://www.callofduty.com/elite & http://fourzerotwo.com/
Facebooks: http://www.facebook.com/mw3 & https://www.facebook.com/callofdutyelite
Twitters: http://twitter.com/fourzerotwo & http://twitter.com/CallOfDutyElite