Call of Duty 3 Vs. Call of Duty 4

Call of Duty 3 and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (hereafter referred to as CoD 3 and CoD 4, respectively) both feature the fast-paced action that defines the Call of Duty franchise, but CoD 3 is a hard sell, particularly to those who have already played CoD 2, as the more recent game is only a slight upgrade. On the other hand, CoD 4 brings new life to the franchise with a modern setting and a story that is easily the best offered by the Call of Duty franchise to date.

Campaigns: Setting and Story

While CoD 3 shares the World War II setting of its predecessors, and numerous other video games across every imaginable genre, CoD 4 eschews this tradition in favor of a modern setting, in which radical Russian militants, in league with their Middle Eastern allies, seek to return Russia to the glory days of the Soviet Union, aided by a stockpile of nuclear weapons and various paramilitary forces.
Without giving too much away, comparing the campaigns of CoD 3 and CoD 4 is much like comparing a World War II documentary to a modern day political thriller.

Campaigns: Gameplay

While CoD 3's campaign effectively captures the intensity that the Call of Duty franchise is known for, despite having been developed by Treyarch rather than Infinity Ward, the finished product simply does not constitute a major move forward from CoD 2, as you'll often find yourself capturing and holding areas and using explosives in order to fulfill mission objectives much as you have before.
In contrast, CoD 4 allows you to assault a number of interesting locales, including a TV station, a ship amid stormy seas and Pripyat, a Ukrainian city abandoned in the wake of the Chernobyl disaster. CoD 4 also contains several jaw-dropping moments, which would be a shame to spoil for anyone who has yet to play that game.
Unfortunately, CoD 4's campaign is extremely short, capable of being beaten in fewer than five hours. It does, however, contain enough memorable moments that it bears repeating.
CoD 3's campaign, on the other hand, will require between eight and ten hours to complete but is rather forgettable.

Multilayer

The multilayer modes follow much the same pattern as the campaigns. CoD 3's multilayer game is an improvement on CoD 2's, allowing 24 player matches where CoD 2 only allowed 8 player matches, sporting six modes and introducing player classes and vehicles.
CoD 4 also has six modes, which are a mix of death match and objective-based modes, similar to what is offered by CoD 3, but CoD 4 also has a number of enhancements that are a substantial step forward.
The class system has been refined, now allowing you to create your own class, while the game now rewards you with new weapons and perks, which can range from health increases to giving you the chance to take a few final shots with your pistol after being killed, based on experience.
Moreover, achieving uninterrupted killing streaks grants access to special tactics, which range from showing you enemy positions on your radar to calling in helicopter gunships.
However, CoD 4 scales the number of players back to 18 and removes the drivable vehicles.

Mechanics

Neither CoD 3 nor CoD 4 takes many risks from a mechanical standpoint, as both largely stick to the straight-up action that has made the franchise popular.
While CoD 3 did experiment with some new mechanics, such as where an enemy soldier would ambush you in close quarters, necessitating some quick button-mashing, as well as other sequences involving bomb planting and oar paddling, these did little to add to the game.

Pricing

All of these points do little to vouch for CoD 3 over CoD 4. However, if price is a major concern for you, it may be worth considering that even a used copy of CoD 4 will go for roughly $30 while a used copy of COD 3 can be yours for less than $10, provided you look in the right place. New versions of COD 3 and COD 4 will cost around $30 or $50, respectively.

References

• Ace Gamez
• GameSpot

Resources

• Games for Purchase