Gameplay Sound    Graphics Value Reader Reviews 17 reviews. Average Rating: 7.29 Read the reviews • Write a review Publisher: Aspyr Media    Genre: Action Mac OS X: 10.4    Mac OS Classic: Not Supported CPU: Intel @ 2000 MHz    RAM: 999 MB    Hard Disk: 9000 MB    DVD-ROM    Graphics: 128 MB VRAM

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare October 24, 2008 | Jack Shiels

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I ran the game on a Macbook Pro (early 2008) 15" test computer. After fiddling around with the settings I managed to get single player moving along at a solid 30 frames per second through most of the game. Unfortunately I could not take advantage of the fairly high-res screen on the laptop. I only really managed to get it running steadily at 1024 by 640, a little paltry if you ask me. Keeping in mind the fact that I hit the recommended settings exactly on the mark, I was expecting a little more performance. Multiplayer is a different affair. I was able to run it at max resolution (1440 by 900) while keeping a relatively decent speed up. This is probably due to the smaller map size.

Models are fairly detailed and player faces are clear and recognizable, a nice change from the usual. The texturing was extremely good and every surface looked genuine. I did find, however, a few blobby low res ones here and there, but it's no big deal when you are trying to survive a grenade. The environments are very atmospheric, from the ruined streets of crossfire to the underbrush of overgrowth, it all looks fantastic.

Physics are handled by Havoc, a company based in my home town in Dublin, Ireland. Recently the big fuss in the gaming world has been over physics, but how exactly do they apply to a video game?

Physics manage to accurately calculate how every object in a game moves. Instead of a set animation showing a grenade bouncing on the ground, physics work out how it should move depending on its weight, bounciness and the object it is hitting. This lends itself to a much more realistic experience, a world were things fall and roll correctly, something that was very hard to do in the past. The physics have been implemented very well. Bodies roll around very convincingly, while objects like fruit or crates feel just the right weight. A great job with very little of the common glitches we have come to expect from physics heavy games.

Animations are top class in COD4 and every bit as believable as reality. I was very impressed in this area, especially when your comrades kick down doors. You can see that they are putting real force into the blow and they burst open the entrance with suitable gusto.

Graphics are going to get a nine. Overall I was very pleased with them, but the game engine used to develop COD4 was primarily aimed at console versions, which were engineered to run at 60 frames per second. This means that they weren't as perfect as the likes of Crysis or Far Cry 2. They still impressed me though, especially in the filtering techniques used.

Every segment of dialogue is well acted and clear. I found the voice acting to be superb, though I did find that some phrases were shouted multiple times by the enemy. This kind of takes away from the realism a little, but most people won't care. Captain Price and his British companions have suitably genuine accents, an achievement in itself from a game made by an American studio.

The music is also very well composed. Every now and then the game will play a hard rock riff, especially in an intense scene, which is quite a departure from the standard orchestral tunes the series has come to accustomed to. This is not to say there isn't any, but they certainly have embraced a new style.

My favorite tune was in the main menu. It plays out with a dramatic string section that builds to a driving beat surrounded by futuristic textures. Some 60 tracks were created for this game, an amazing amount by any standard.

Sound is getting a 10, due to its powerful score and excellent voice acting.

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