E3 2011: COD: MW3 (Hands On)

by: Sean - posted: 6/11/2011 2:52:00 PM

Game: COD: MW3
Developer: Infinity Ward, Sledgehammer Games, Raven Software
Release Window/Date: November 11, 2011
What's Polished: New gameplay features like Survival Mode were fun...
What Needs Polished: ...but I didn't see a whole lot of visual improvement over MW2.

Yep, I got to play MW3. Jealous? You probably should be.

I texted a friend after I finished the demo to rub it in, and when he asked if it was better than MW2 I didn’t know how to respond. Visually, it’s been redesigned, but the quality of the visuals that I saw in the Dome multiplayer map weren’t very different than what came before. So in that sense, I can’t say the graphics are an improvement, though they have positively changed. The gameplay, though? That’s pretty great.

Settling into a cooperative Spec-Ops match with a developer, we started a Survival Mode match, which is essentially Nazi Zombies for the MW series, but better. Instead of the cheesy power-ups and electric doors, the players have to counter wave after wave of increasingly more difficult enemies, who receive back-up like dogs and assault helicopters. Fortunately the players have access to three chests: weapons, equipment, and support. Players can purchase and upgrade weapons with points earned in the match, equipment like gun turrets and claymores, and call in helicopters, airstrikes, and even AI backup.
I had a great time with it, plain and simple, and with an infinite number of increasingly difficult levels (you could, theoretically, play long enough that you encounter a wave of 20 juggernauts, dogs, and assault helicopters), MW3 is looking to be an iterative improvement over MW2. It’s not more of the same, but more of something similar, and if it’s similar to something great, is that a bad thing?

Find out in November.