Modern Warfare 3
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''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'' is a 2011 first-person shooter game developed by
Infinity Ward Infinity Ward, Inc. is an American video game developer. They developed the video game '' Call of Duty'', along with seven other installments in the ''Call of Duty'' series. Vince Zampella, Grant Collier, and Jason West established Infinity W ...
and
Sledgehammer Games Sledgehammer Games, Inc. is an American video game developer company formed in 2009 by Glen Schofield and Michael Condrey. The pair formerly worked at EA Redwood Shores and are responsible for the creation of ''Dead Space (2008 video game), Dead ...
and published by
Activision Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
. The game was released worldwide in November 8 2011 for
Microsoft Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
, the
Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
,
PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It is the successor to the PlayStation 2, and both are part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. The PS3 was first released on ...
,
Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America, and in December 2006 for most other regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major home game console, f ...
, and
OS X macOS, previously OS X and originally Mac OS X, is a Unix, Unix-based operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple since 2001. It is the current operating system for Apple's Mac (computer), Mac computers. With ...
. It is the sequel to '' Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2'' (2009), serving as the third and final installment in the original ''Modern Warfare'' trilogy and the eighth ''Call of Duty'' installment overall. A separate version for the
Nintendo DS The is a foldable handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens worki ...
was developed by
n-Space n-Space Inc. was an American video game developer founded in 1994 by Erick S. Dyke, Dan O'Leary, and Sean Purcell. It developed games on nearly a dozen different platforms, but was mostly focused on Nintendo consoles and handhelds in particular ...
, while
Treyarch Treyarch Corporation ( ; formerly Treyarch Invention LLC) is an American video game developer based in Los Angeles with Additional studio locations in Vancouver, Canada; and Austin, Texas. Founded in 1996 by Peter Akemann and Doğan Köslü, it ...
developed the game's
Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America, and in December 2006 for most other regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major home game console, f ...
port. In
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,
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published the game with a separate subtitled and dubbed version. The game's campaign follows ''Modern Warfare 2'' and begins right after the events of its final mission. Similar to ''Modern Warfare 2'', it is centered on Task Force 141, which contains
Captain Price Captain John Price is a character from the ''Call of Duty'' series of video games published by Activision. First appearing in ''Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'' (2007) as Captain of the 22nd Special Air Service, SAS Regiment, he later joins the in ...
,
Soap MacTavish ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2'' is a 2009 first-person shooter game developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision. It is the sixth installment in the ''Call of Duty'' series and the direct sequel to '' Call of Duty 4: Modern War ...
, and a newly introduced playable character, Yuri. Alongside the
Delta Force The 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta (1st SFOD-D), also known as Delta Force, Combat Applications Group (CAG), or within Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) as Task Force Green, is a Special operation forces, special operat ...
and
Special Air Service The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling, and in 1950 it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terr ...
, they hunt Vladimir Makarov (the main antagonist of the trilogy), a Russian terrorist who leads the Russian Ultranationalist party. He led several terror attacks across
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
, triggering a large-scale war between the Ultranationalists and friendly forces. For the game's multiplayer mode, new mode types and
killstreak A winning streak, also known as a win streak or hot streak, is an uninterrupted sequence of success in games or competitions, commonly measured by at least three wins that are uninterrupted by losses or ties. In sports, it can be applied to tea ...
choices were brought in. Improvements were also made to the mode that solved issues that appeared in ''Modern Warfare 2''. Using an enhanced version of ''Modern Warfare 2''s
IW engine The IW engine is a game engine created and developed by Infinity Ward, with the current iteration developed in its studio in Kraków, Poland for the Call of Duty, ''Call of Duty'' series. The engine was originally based on id Tech 3 by id Softwa ...
, development for the game began in 2010 with more than one developer studio. Prior to development, Infinity Ward co-founders Jason West and Vince Zampella left the company to form
Respawn Entertainment Respawn Entertainment, LLC is an American video game development studio founded in 2010 by Jason West and Vince Zampella and owned by Electronic Arts since 2017. West and Zampella previously co-founded Infinity Ward and created the ''Call of D ...
. Other members had been fired or had left the company following the duo's departure. Sledgehammer Games had joined the ''Modern Warfare 3'' development force, with Raven Software also developing the game's multiplayer mode. Following a large leak containing detailed information about the game, multiple teaser trailers were released, with each showcasing a location featured in the game's campaign, leading up to a full reveal. ''Modern Warfare 3'' received positive reviews from critics, with praise for its gameplay, campaign, and multiplayer, although there was some criticism for its story and lack of innovation. It won the award for Best Shooter at the 2011
Spike Video Game Awards The Spike Video Game Awards (in short VGAs, known as the VGX for the final show) was an annual award show hosted by American television network Spike from 2003 that recognized the best computer and video games of the year. Produced by '' GameT ...
, as well as Action Game of the Year at the
15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards The ''15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards'' was the 15th edition of the Interactive Achievement Awards, an annual awards event that honored the best games in the video game industry during 2011. The awards were arranged by the Academy of I ...
. It was a massive commercial success. Within 24 hours of going on sale, the game sold 6.5 million copies in the United States and the United Kingdom and grossed $400 million, contemporaneously making it the largest entertainment launch ever.


Gameplay

''Modern Warfare 3'' is a
first-person shooter A first-person shooter (FPS) is a video game genre, video game centered on gun fighting and other weapon-based combat seen from a First person (video games), first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action directly through t ...
video game much like its predecessors. ''Modern Warfare 3'' for
Microsoft Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
has
dedicated server A dedicated hosting service, dedicated server, or managed hosting service is a type of Internet hosting in which the client leases an entire server not shared with anyone else. This is more flexible than shared hosting, as organizations have ...
support.


Campaign

The player assumes the role of various characters during the single-player campaign, changing perspectives throughout the progression of the story, which, like its predecessors, is divided into three sets of missions called "Acts". Each mission in an act features a series of objectives that are displayed on the
heads up display A head-up display, or heads-up display, also known as a HUD () or head-up guidance system (HGS), is any transparent display that presents data without requiring users to look away from their usual viewpoints. The origin of the name stems from a ...
, which marks the direction and distance between such objectives and the player. Damage to the player is shown by the visualization of blood-spatter or red-outs on the screen. The player's health regenerates over time as long as the player character avoids taking damage for a limited time. Mission objectives vary in their requirements, ranging from having the player arrive at a particular checkpoint, to eliminating enemies in a specified location, to standing their ground against enemy squadrons, directing remote-operated weapons, and planting explosive charges on enemy installations. The player is also accompanied by fellow soldiers who cannot be issued orders. Like its predecessor, the game includes an interactive scene of a terror attack against civilians, which the player is given the option of skipping due to the portrayal of graphic and potentially upsetting content, including harm to children.


Cooperative

''Modern Warfare 3'' features a new mode, called Survival. This mode allows between one and two players to fight massive waves of enemies, with each wave becoming increasingly difficult. It differs from the Nazi Zombies mode in '' Call of Duty: World at War'', principally in that enemies no longer spawn at fixed locations as the zombies do, but instead appear at tactical positions based on the current location of the player. The mode is available on all multiplayer maps in the game. Players earn in-game cash for items such as weapons, upgrades, ammo, air/ground support, and equipment if they kill or assist in killing enemies, while more items can be unlocked by earning XP which is also increased by killing enemies. ''Special Ops'' also returns from ''Modern Warfare 2''. These challenge missions feature up to 48 stars, unlike its previous installment, which featured 69. Some weapons in Spec Ops are exclusive to that game mode and are not available for play in multiplayer mode.


Multiplayer

The entire ''Killstreak'' reward system has been altered to make it more difficult for players to get early unlocks. Killstreaks are now known as ''Pointstreaks'', and kills are no longer the only way to increase the player's point streak. Completing objectives such as planting a bomb or capturing a flag in ''Capture The Flag'' awards points towards the player's Pointstreak. Pointstreak rewards are organized into three different "strike packages" called ''Assault'', ''Support'', and ''Specialist''. The ''Assault'' strike package works the same as the Killstreak reward system in ''Modern Warfare 2'' and ''Black Ops'': the player must earn more and more points without dying. Once the player is killed, their points are reset to zero. Likewise, the ''Specialist'' strike package rewards players with perks after every second consecutive kill. Upon death, however, the player loses all the perks and the points are reset to zero. In contrast, the ''Support'' strike package is awarded based on the total points that the player has earned over the entire match, regardless of how often the player dies. If a player switches to a custom class with a different reward system (either ''assault'' or ''specialist'') during gameplay, all points are automatically reset to 0. Players are allowed to choose which Pointstreak rewards they want to use when they gain it during the match, rather than choosing them between rounds. Along with revamping the entire Killstreak reward system, ''Modern Warfare 3'' also has a completely modified Ranking and Unlocks system, which does not use a currency system for unlocks. The player's primary weapon levels up alongside the player, and unlocks a number of "Proficiency" perks such as ''Attachments'', (allows two attachments and is a successor to the "Bling" and "Warlord" perks), ''Kick'' (reduced recoil while aiming down the player's sight) and ''Focus'' (reduced flinching while under fire). Only one Proficiency can be put on a primary weapon. Another new addition is the ability to equip "Hybrid Scopes" on a weapon, such as a
holographic sight A holographic weapon sight or holographic diffraction sight is a non- magnifying gunsight that allows the user to look through a glass optical window and see a holographic reticle image superimposed at a distance on the field of view. The hologram ...
with a
red dot magnifier A sight magnifier is an optical telescope that can be paired with a non-magnifying optical sight on a weapon to create a telescopic sight. They work with the parallel collimated reticle image produced by red dot sights and holographic weapon ...
, allowing players to switch between magnified and non-magnified. ''Modern Warfare 3'' introduces a new "Prestige Shop" which will unlock only after the player has selected the option to prestige for the first time. The "Prestige Shop" allows Prestige players to use tokens they gain from using the Prestige option to buy exclusive features such as double XP and an extra custom weapon class. The player is able to Prestige 20 times. Several controversial perks in ''Modern Warfare 2'', accused of being too overpowered, have been removed in ''Modern Warfare 3''. Diving from standing to prone, known as "dolphin diving", has been removed due to balancing issues. ''Modern Warfare 3'' utilized Treyarch's hot fix system to fix bugs and glitches. ''Modern Warfare 3'' features a local and online split-screen option. (Not available for the
Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America, and in December 2006 for most other regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major home game console, f ...
version.) New game modes were added: *Kill Confirmed: players must collect floating
dog tag Dog tag is an informal but common term for a specific type of identification tag worn by military personnel. The tags' primary use is for the identification of casualties; they have information about the individual written on them, including ...
s from the corpse of a downed enemy before the kill can be registered. However, the opposing team can pick up the dog tag as well to deny the other team a kill, which denies the other team a point. *Team Defender: both teams attempt to capture a flag dropped by the first person who is killed when the match starts, the team of the person who holds the flag will get double points for their kills; while the team without the flag only gets the default number per kill. *Private matches also now include pre-made game modes including: "Infected" (where the infected kill enemies to recruit them to their team), "Drop Zone" (where the player must hold a drop zone for points and care packages), "Team Juggernaut" (each team plays alongside an AI Juggernaut character), "Gun Game" (be the first to get one kill with every gun in the game), "One in the Chamber" (in which players are only allowed one pistol with one bullet and three lives where they can only get more bullets by killing other players), and "Juggernaut" (free for all against a juggernaut, kill the juggernaut to become it). Along with this, players are allowed to create their own game modes with customized settings such as number of players and time limit.


Special Ops

The Special Ops game mode from ''Modern Warfare 2'' is present in ''Modern Warfare 3'', and includes new features which make it more replayable and similar to other game modes, such as Nazi Zombies from previous ''Call of Duty'' games, and Hordes from ''
Gears of War ''Gears of War'' (also referred to as ''Gears'') is a media franchise centered on a series of video games created by Epic Games, developed and managed by The Coalition (company), The Coalition, and owned and published by Xbox Game Studios. The ...
''. The two main Special Ops modes include one that is generally the same as the last Modern Warfare game, and a new wave-based game, Survival, where the player is inserted into a multiplayer map alone or with a single partner and defends an area against waves of enemies. The players can buy support options unlocked with money earned during each round via the means of killing the enemy and completing the optional objectives on each wave, which vary from getting multi-kills to not taking damage. You gain experience for killing them which allows for more weapons to be unlocked, as well as other support options. The model also works with the DLC multiplayer maps.


''Call of Duty: Elite''

''Call of Duty: Elite'' was an online service developed by Beachhead Studios for the multiplayer portion of ''Modern Warfare 3'' (as well as the previous installment in the series, '' ''Black Ops''). It was first showcased at
E3 2011 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2011 (E3 2011) was the 17th E3 held. The event took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California. It began on June 7, 2011, and ended on June 9, 2011, with 46,800 total attendees. E3 20 ...
and was released on November 8, 2011, to coincide with the release of ''Modern Warfare 3''. The free version included features such as lifetime statistics and social networking integration. It included monthly
downloadable content content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can be added for no extra cost or as a form of video game monetization, enabling the publisher to gain ad ...
. The service was shut down by Activision on February 28, 2014, and did not support '' Call of Duty: Ghosts''.


Downloadable content

The
downloadable content content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can be added for no extra cost or as a form of video game monetization, enabling the publisher to gain ad ...
(DLC) available for ''Modern Warfare 3'' is an assortment of additional
multiplayer A multiplayer video game is a video game in which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time, either locally on the same computing system (couch co-op), on different computing systems via a local area network, or ...
maps, Special Ops missions, and Face-Off Maps that came as part of the
Call of Duty ELITE Call of Duty: Elite was an online service created by the Activision subsidiary Beachhead Studios for the multiplayer portion for the first-person shooter video game series ''Call of Duty''. The service featured lifetime statistics across multiple ...
Premium membership. Downloadable content was split into four unique "Content Collections," each with 2-3 content packs. During the release of ''Modern Warfare 3'' and ''Call of Duty''s ''Elite'' service, premium members of the service were promised 20 pieces of DLC over a 9-month period, with content releases for each platform every month. This number was increased to 22 on ''Call of Duty''s official Elite Content Calendar. Initially, all downloadable content was only available to '' Call of Duty: Elite'' premium members.
Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
users received all DLC about a month before
PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It is the successor to the PlayStation 2, and both are part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. The PS3 was first released on ...
users regardless of Elite membership due to a special contract between
Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company, technology conglomerate headquartered in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 1975, the company became influential in the History of personal computers#The ear ...
and
Activision Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
. As an example, the first Collection dropped on Xbox 360 on January 24, and on February 28 on the PS3. Content Drops were released monthly exclusively to all ''Call of Duty: Elite'' premium and founder members. There were a total of 9 monthly DLC releases up until the end of ''Modern Warfare 3'' 2012 content season. September was the last month DLC was released for Xbox 360, and October was the last month for PlayStation 3. Since ''Call of Duty: Elite'' was not available for PC gamers, DLC was only released in the form of Content Collections. On May 9, 2012, it was announced that the Face-Off mode would be introduced to Modern Warfare 3. It included smaller maps, which promoted fast gameplay matches. Face-Off included options for
1v1 Since the origin of video games in the early 1970s, the video game industry, the players, and surrounding culture have spawned a wide range of technical and slang terms. 0–9 A ...
, 2v2, and 3v3 battles. Two free Face-Off maps became available for all
Xbox Live The Xbox network, formerly known and commonly referred to as Xbox Live, is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Gaming for the Xbox brand. It was first made available to the origina ...
Gold subscribers on May 15, 2012, regardless of ''Call of Duty: Elite'' membership.


Story


Characters

The game sees the return of Task Force 141 members Captain John "Soap" MacTavish (
Kevin McKidd Kevin McKidd (born 9 August 1973) is a Scottish actor and television director best known as Dr. Owen Hunt in ''Grey's Anatomy'' and Tommy Mackenzie in Danny Boyle's '' Trainspotting'' (1996). McKidd played Colin in the 2008 film Made of Hono ...
),
Captain John Price Captain John Price is a character from the ''Call of Duty'' series of video games published by Activision. First appearing in '' Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'' (2007) as Captain of the 22nd SAS Regiment, he later joins the international special ...
( Billy Murray) and Russian loyalist "Nikolai", who are on the run after killing the rogue General Shepherd, the main antagonist of the previous game. Task Force 141 was officially disavowed due to Shepherd's death, with the truth of his involvement in igniting
World War III World War III, also known as the Third World War, is a hypothetical future global conflict subsequent to World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). It is widely predicted that such a war would involve all of the great powers, ...
known only to Price, Soap, and Nikolai. For most of the game, the player controls Yuri, an ex-
Spetsnaz SpetsnazThe term is borrowed from rus, спецназ, p=spʲɪtsˈnas; abbreviation for or 'Special Purpose Military Units'; or () are special forces in many post-Soviet states. Historically, this term referred to the Soviet Union's Spet ...
operator and former associate of Russian Ultranationalist terrorist Makarov, who joins Task Force 141 on their hunt for Makarov, who returns as the game's main antagonist. Several playable characters have been added, including
Delta Force The 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta (1st SFOD-D), also known as Delta Force, Combat Applications Group (CAG), or within Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) as Task Force Green, is a Special operation forces, special operat ...
operator Staff Sergeant Derek "Frost" Westbrook;
Special Air Service The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling, and in 1950 it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-terr ...
Sergeant Marcus Burns; and Andrei Harkov, a Russian FGS agent tasked with protecting the Russian President. Just like President Al-Fulani in
the first game ''The First Game'' is a painting by Arnold Friberg, and was commissioned in 1968 by Chevrolet Motor Division as one of four paintings to commemorate the then-upcoming centennial celebration of college football in the United States. It depicts ...
, Soap is only "playable" during the game's opening sequence; while Price becomes the player character in the game's final mission, and is the only character in the trilogy who speaks while playable. The player also takes brief control of a civilian tourist in London, seconds before he and his family are killed by a chemical agent; as well as an
AC-130 The Lockheed AC-130 gunship is a heavily armed, long-endurance, attack aircraft, ground-attack variant of the C-130 Hercules transport, fixed-wing aircraft. It carries a wide array of ground-attack weapons that are integrated with sensors, nav ...
TV Operator during the Battle of Paris. New non-player characters (NPCs) include Delta Force operatives "Sandman" (
William Fichtner William Edward Fichtner (born November 27, 1956) is an American actor. Born in New York, he started his career with supporting appearances in '' Virtuosity'' (1994), ''Heat'' and '' Strange Days'' (both 1995). A prolific character actor in film, ...
), "Truck" (
Idris Elba Idrissa Akuna Elba Order of the British Empire, OBE ( ; born 6 September 1972) is an English actor and musician. He has received a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for three BAFTA Awards and six Primetime Emmy Awards, Emmy Awards. He w ...
), and "Grinch" (
Timothy Olyphant Timothy David Olyphant ( ; born May 20, 1968) is an American actor. He made his acting debut in an off-Broadway theater in 1995, in ''The Monogamist'', and won the Theatre World Award for his performance, and then originated David Sedaris' '' ...
), who serve as Frost's squadmates. Captain MacMillan briefly returns from ''Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'' as Baseplate.
Craig Fairbrass Craig John Fairbrass (born 15 January 1964) is an English actor, producer, and screenwriter. He has made appearances in ''For Queen and Country'' (1988), ''London's Burning (TV series), London's Burning'' (1990), ''Cliffhanger (film), Cliffhang ...
, who originally voiced the characters
Gaz Gaz may refer to: Geography *Gaz, Kyrgyzstan Iran * Gaz, Darmian, village in South Khorasan province * Gaz, Golestan, a village in Bandar-e Gaz County * Gaz, Hormozgan, a village in Minab County * Gaz, Kerman, a village * Gaz, North Khorasan, a ...
and
Ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...
, returns to voice SAS operative Sergeant Wallcroft, who originally had a minor role in the first ''Modern Warfare''. Locations featured in the game include
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
,
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...
, the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
,
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,
Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
,
Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
, and the
United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
.


Plot

In August 2016, Soap and Price are extracted by Nikolai to a safe house in
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
, but are soon attacked by Makarov's forces. At Price's request, Nikolai contacts his "best man," a former Spetsnaz operator named Yuri, with a common grudge against Makarov. Concurrently, a
Delta Force The 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment–Delta (1st SFOD-D), also known as Delta Force, Combat Applications Group (CAG), or within Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) as Task Force Green, is a Special operation forces, special operat ...
squad codenamed "Metal" assists the defending American forces in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
from the Russian military. After taking down a radio jammer atop the
New York Stock Exchange Building The New York Stock Exchange Building (also NYSE Building) is the headquarters of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), located in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is composed of two co ...
, Team Metal aids
Navy SEALs The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the United States Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main funct ...
in hijacking an Oscar II-class submarine and using its missile payload to destroy the
Russian Navy The Russian Navy is the Navy, naval arm of the Russian Armed Forces. It has existed in various forms since 1696. Its present iteration was formed in January 1992 when it succeeded the Navy of the Commonwealth of Independent States (which had i ...
in
New York Bay New York Bay is the large tidal body of water in the New York–New Jersey Harbor Estuary where the Hudson River, Raritan River, and Arthur Kill empty into the Atlantic Ocean between Sandy Hook, New Jersey, Sandy Hook and Rockaway Point. Geogr ...
. With air superiority reestablished and the enemy fleet destroyed, the United States goes on the offensive. As a result, Russia withdraws all its forces from the East Coast. Three months later,
Russian President The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the Federal State Council and the supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian Armed Forces. I ...
Boris Vorshevsky flies to
Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
to take part in peace talks with the United States, however, his security detail is ambushed by Makarov’s forces aboard the plane, forcing it to crash land. They assault the crash site, kill the remaining FSO agents guarding Vorshevsky, and kidnap him. Makarov demands he relinquish Russia's nuclear launch codes, threatening the life of his daughter, Alena, if he does not comply. Additionally, Makarov smuggles chemical bombs from
Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...
to several
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
member capital cities and military bases, with Task Force 141 failing to prevent the deadly cargo from leaving the country. The SAS identify one of the bombs as it is shipped into
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
but are unable to intervene in time as it detonates, along with the rest across the continent. With NATO crippled by the attacks, Russia, now under Makarov's control, invades Europe. Team Metal rescues the
Vice President of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest ranking office in the Executive branch of the United States government, executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks f ...
in Hamburg while NATO scrambles to repel the Russians. Task Force 141 acquires a lead from MacMillan that a Somali
black market A black market is a Secrecy, clandestine Market (economics), market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality, or is not compliant with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the set of goods and services who ...
warlord named Waraabe is associated with the chemical weapons. The team assaults his compound in
Bosaso Bosaso (, ), historically known as Bender Qassim is a city in the northeastern Bari province ('' gobol'') of Somalia. It is the seat of the Bosaso District. Located on the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden, the municipality serves as the region ...
, cornering and interrogating the warlord into revealing that a man, Viktor "Volk" Khristenko, CEO of Ultranationalist
front company A front organization is any entity set up by and controlled by another organization, such as intelligence agencies, organized crime groups, terrorist organizations, secret societies, banned organizations, religious or political groups, advocacy gr ...
Fregata Industries, was responsible for constructing the bombs and is located in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. Price then executes Waraabe and relays the intelligence to Team Metal, who are deployed to capture Volk with assistance from the
GIGN The GIGN ( ; ) is the elite police tactical unit of the French National Gendarmerie. Among its missions are counterterrorism, hostage rescue, surveillance of national threats, protection of government officials, critical site protection (such ...
. Volk is captured, and under interrogation, he reveals that Makarov is meeting with his associates in
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
. Price, Soap, and Yuri infiltrate the city, but the meeting turns out to be a trap, during which Sergeant Kamarov, a Russian loyalist and close contact with Price, is killed by Makarov, who addresses Yuri as "his friend." In the ensuing fight, Soap suffers an injury that causes the knife wound he sustained while fighting with Shepherd to reopen; he dies of blood loss just after revealing Makarov's association with Yuri to Price. An enraged Price interrogates Yuri at gunpoint, demanding to know his past with Makarov. Yuri explains that he was present in
Pripyat Pripyat, also known as Prypiat, is an abandoned industrial city in Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine, located near the border with Belarus. Named after the nearby river, Pripyat (river), Pripyat, it was founded on 4 February 1970 as the ninth ''atomgrad'' ...
during Zakhaev's attempted assassination in 1996 and became disillusioned with the Ultranationalist cause following the nuclear detonation in the Middle East in 2011, with Makarov revealed to have personally detonated the bomb. Yuri attempted to thwart the Moscow airport massacre but was critically wounded by Makarov upon discovering his betrayal before being rescued by security forces. After learning this, Price begrudgingly continues to work with Yuri. Receiving further help from MacMillan, the two infiltrate Makarov's castle base in rural
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
to acquire intel on his whereabouts, learning that he has located Alena Vorshevsky in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
and intends to kidnap her. Price relays the intelligence to Team Metal, who, despite assistance from the
Bundeswehr The (, ''Federal Defence'') are the armed forces of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. The is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part consists of the four armed forces: Germ ...
, fail to reach her before Makarov's men capture her. They track her and the President to a diamond mine in
Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...
, launching a rescue operation with Task Force 141. Team Metal sacrifices themselves to hold off Makarov's forces long enough for President Vorshevsky, Alena, and 141 to escape as the mine collapses on top of them. With the President safe and Makarov's machinations publicly revealed, relations between Russia and the U.S. come to peace, the war in Europe ends, and Makarov goes into hiding. In January 2017, Nikolai, Price, and Yuri track Makarov to a hotel in
Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
. The latter two don modified EOD suits, assault the building, and corner Makarov on the rooftop. He gains the upper hand in the ensuing struggle and prepares to execute Price but is distracted by Yuri, whom he kills. Price then tackles Makarov and wraps a steel cable around his neck before plunging him through a skylight,
hanging Hanging is killing a person by suspending them from the neck with a noose or ligature strangulation, ligature. Hanging has been a standard method of capital punishment since the Middle Ages, and has been the primary execution method in numerou ...
him. A victorious Price then lights a cigar as first responders approach the hotel.


Development

A 2010 Q3 earnings call from
Activision Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
confirmed that the eighth installment of the franchise was currently in development by
Sledgehammer Games Sledgehammer Games, Inc. is an American video game developer company formed in 2009 by Glen Schofield and Michael Condrey. The pair formerly worked at EA Redwood Shores and are responsible for the creation of ''Dead Space (2008 video game), Dead ...
and
Raven Software Raven Software Corporation (trade name: Raven; formerly Raven Software, Inc.) is an American video game developer based in Middleton, Wisconsin, and part of Activision. Founded in May 1990 by brothers Brian and Steve Raffel, the company is most ...
and due for release "during the back half of 2011". This was revealed to be
Infinity Ward Infinity Ward, Inc. is an American video game developer. They developed the video game '' Call of Duty'', along with seven other installments in the ''Call of Duty'' series. Vince Zampella, Grant Collier, and Jason West established Infinity W ...
's ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'', with the latter developers co-developing multiplayer. ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'' was known to be in development after a legal dispute between Infinity Ward co-founders Jason West and Vince Zampella and Activision resulted in the pair being fired from the company. Several dozen Infinity Ward employees followed West and Zampella as a result of the ongoing dispute, causing Activision to enlist the services of Sledgehammer Games and Raven Software to assist in the development of the title. The game was said to have been in development since only two weeks after the release of their previous game, '' Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2''. Also reported was that Sledgehammer was aiming for a "bug free" first outing in the ''Call of Duty'' franchise, and also set a goal for
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
review scores above 95 percent. ''Modern Warfare 3'' utilizes the MW3 Engine, unofficially the IW 5.0 Engine. Improvements include better streaming and audio. Sledgehammer Games announced the game to be the first entry in the ''Modern Warfare'' series to have built-in support for color-blind gamers. The ''
Official UK PlayStation Magazine An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of thei ...
'' lent credence to speculation that ''Modern Warfare 3'' would be a prequel starring fan-favorite character Ghost. The magazine's sources strengthened a rumor which first reared its head online early in January 2011. On the Rumor Machine page in its issue (055), OPM points to "insider whispers" which suggest: "Infinity Ward's next ''Modern Warfare'' title will be a prequel, with Ghost in the lead role." According to ''
PSM3 ''PSM3'' (short for ''PlayStation 3 Magazine'') was a video game magazine specializing in all Sony video game consoles and handheld gaming platforms. It was published by Future plc, a UK-based publishing company. The magazine launched in Octob ...
'', the first snippet of ''Modern Warfare 3'' gameplay would be revealed in mid-April. According to the publication's May 2011 issue, insider rumors say "the next in Activision's megaton FPS series will be announced in mid-April". On May 13, 2011, the video game website
Kotaku ''Kotaku'' is a video game website and blog that was originally launched in 2004 as part of the Gawker Media network. Notable former contributors to the site include Luke Smith, Cecilia D'Anastasio, Tim Rogers, and Jason Schreier. History ...
revealed the existence of ''Modern Warfare 3'' following a massive leak. According to Kotaku, this leak came from multiple sources who may or may not work at Activision and Infinity Ward. The leak contained thorough information about the game, confirming that it would be a direct sequel to '' Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2'', as well as details regarding weapons, levels, and modes found in the game. In response to the leaks, Robert Bowling tweeted "A lot of hype & a lot of leaked info on ''MW3'', some still accurate, some not. To avoid spoiling the experience, I'd wait for the real reveal." Just hours after the leaked assets appeared on Kotaku, four teaser trailers were released on the official ''Call of Duty''
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
page, separately titled "America", "England", "France" and "Germany", indicating the various locales of the game.


Marketing

On May 23, 2011, Activision released the first gameplay trailer for ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'' on YouTube ahead of its official premiere during the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
Western Conference Finals. On May 31, 2011, Activision announced '' Call of Duty: Elite'', a new social service for the ''Call of Duty'' community to track and compare statistics, create videos and access premium content. The service is fully integrated into ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'', and launched on November 8, 2011, to coincide with the game's release. On June 6, 2011, at 11:00 AM (PDT), the first live gameplay demo of ''Modern Warfare 3'' was presented by Robert Bowling and Glen Schofield at
E3 2011 The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2011 (E3 2011) was the 17th E3 held. The event took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California. It began on June 7, 2011, and ended on June 9, 2011, with 46,800 total attendees. E3 20 ...
. On June 14, 2011, 12:35 PM (EST), the first live gameplay demo of the new Survival Mode was played by
Jimmy Fallon James Thomas Fallon (born September 19, 1974) is an Americans, American comedian, television host, actor, singer, writer, and producer. Best known for his work in television, Fallon's breakthrough came during his tenure as a cast member on the ...
and
Simon Pegg Simon John Pegg (; born 14 February 1970) is an English actor, comedian and screenwriter. He came to prominence in the UK as the co-creator of the Channel 4 sitcom ''Spaced'' (1999–2001), directed by Edgar Wright. He and Wright co-wrote the ...
on ''
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of the '' Late Night'' franchise. Hosted by Jimmy Fallon,
''. On August 9, 2011, the trailer for the new Survival Mode was released on YouTube. On September 2, 2011, the multiplayer world premiere trailer was released on YouTube. On September 3, 2011, another multiplayer trailer was released on YouTube showing off the heads-up display along with various weapons, perks, and killstreaks. On October 6, 2011, a second full-length cinematic trailer was released. On October 22, 2011, the launch trailer was released. On July 19, 2011, UK distributor Lygo unveiled a range of Turtle Beach Ear Force ''Modern Warfare 3'' gaming headsets that launched in November 2011. The headsets are distinguished by custom audio presets designed by the audio teams at developers Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games "in order to provide the ultimate immersion into the cinematic world of ''Modern Warfare 3''". On August 24, 2011, Activision revealed the official ''Modern Warfare 3'' sunglasses. These ''Call of Duty''-branded glasses come from technology eyewear manufacturer GUNNAR – in a licensed partnership with Activision – and join its "Advanced Gaming Eyewear" line. They come with a limited edition ''Modern Warfare 3'' carrying case and cleaning cloth. The product is sold exclusively in North America at Best Buy retail locations and at select European retailers. Microsoft released two limited-edition ''Modern Warfare 3''-themed accessories on October 11, 2011, a wireless controller and a wireless headset. On September 29, 2011, Munitio announced a partnership with Activision in order to make a special edition ''Modern Warfare 3'' 9 mm "billet" earphone featuring the ''Modern Warfare 3'' logo, among other things. The earphones were available for pre-order and were released on October 23, 2011. On October 18, 2011,
Logitech Logitech International S.A. ( ) is a Swiss multinational manufacturer of computer peripherals and software. Headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, the company has offices throughout Europe, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas. It is a component of ...
announced a partnership with Activision in order to make a special edition ''Modern Warfare 3'' mouse and keyboard which feature many things, including the ''Modern Warfare 3'' logo. On September 2, 2011,
Jeep Jeep is an American automobile brand, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with other assets, from its previous owner, American Motors Co ...
announced a partnership with Activision for the second year in a row, to make a special edition ''Modern Warfare 3'' Jeep based on the Wrangler Rubicon model. The Jeep comes with various features including the interior and exterior being designed with a ''Modern Warfare 3'' theme. Jeep dealers started selling this model in November 2011. On August 24, 2011, the
PepsiCo PepsiCo, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, multinational food, snack, and beverage corporation headquartered in Harrison, New York, in the hamlet of Purchase, New York, Purchase. PepsiCo's business encompasses all aspects of the f ...
-owned brand
Mountain Dew Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew in some countries and colloquially known as Dew in some areas, is a soft drink brand owned by PepsiCo. The original formula was invented in 1940 by Tennessee beverage Bottler (company), bottlers Barney and A ...
officially announced on their Facebook page that they would be promoting the game with their "Game Fuel" soda variants, which would be cherry-citrus-flavored (the original Game Fuel that promoted ''
Halo 3 ''Halo 3'' is a 2007 first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie for the Xbox 360 console. The third installment in the ''Halo'' franchise following '' Halo: Combat Evolved'' (2001) and ''Halo 2'' (2004), the game's story centers on th ...
'' in 2007 and brought back in 2009 to promote ''
World of Warcraft ''World of Warcraft'' (''WoW'') is a 2004 massively multiplayer online role-playing (MMORPG) video game developed and published by Blizzard Entertainment for Windows and Mac OS X. Set in the '' Warcraft'' fantasy universe, ''World of War ...
'') and Tropical-flavored (a new flavor that was tested by 500 Dew Labs members). The drinks featured codes to give the player double experience points in-game, depending on the size of the drink. Another PepsiCo-owned brand,
Doritos Doritos () is an American brand of flavored tortilla chips produced by Frito-Lay, a wholly owned subsidiary of PepsiCo. The concept for Doritos originated at Disneyland at a restaurant managed by Frito-Lay. In 1966, Doritos became the first ...
, promoted the game with its "Cool Ranch" and "Nacho Cheese" flavors and also followed the same rules as the Mountain Dew promotion. Both promotions started on October 10, 2011, and ended on December 31, 2011. In Australia, 500 ml cans of V Energy Drink have been branded with the ''Modern Warfare 3'' logo, along with a branded code which can be used for downloads and previews. To promote the game, Activision held a two-day event called '' Call of Duty: Experience 2011'' (''Call of Duty: XP'' for short) which took place in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
from September 2–3, 2011. It featured many things including the reveal of the new multiplayer which attendees were able to play for the first time. In addition, all attendees received the Hardened Edition for free as a gift for attending. At a ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'' VIP party in Amsterdam, Dutch porn star and avid fan of the series Kim Holland was originally invited to attend the event until she was suddenly uninvited when Activision discovered her profession. In her blog, she shared her opinion and feelings towards Activision's sudden decision, writing: "People murdering people is neat, ..but love-makers are dirty?" Activision did not respond to any comments about the subject. Activision had planned to set up an official website to promote the game, however, the domain name "ModernWarfare3.com" had already been taken and was used for an anti-''Call of Duty'' website and redirecting users to
Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by former Apple Inc., Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry ...
's game ''
Battlefield 3 ''Battlefield 3'' is a 2011 first-person shooter game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. It is the sixth main installment in the '' Battlefield'' series and a follow-up to '' Battlefield 2'' (2005). The game was released on Micr ...
''. Activision filed a US$2,600 complaint against the site with the
National Arbitration Forum Forum, formerly known as the National Arbitration Forum (NAF) is an American organization that provides arbitration and mediation services to businesses, based at its Minneapolis headquarters and offices in New Jersey. The organization was founde ...
. On September 8, 2011, Activision won the complaint and acquired the rights to the domain name. In November 2011, actors
Jonah Hill Jonah Hill (born Jonah Hill Feldstein; December 20, 1983) is an American actor. List of awards and nominations received by Jonah Hill, The accolades he has received include nominations for two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, BAFTA ...
and
Sam Worthington Samuel Henry John Worthington (born 2 August 1976) is an Australian actor. He is known for playing Jake Sully in the ''Avatar'' franchise (2009–present), Marcus Wright in '' Terminator Salvation'' (2009), and Perseus in '' Clash of the Titan ...
(who voiced the main character Alex Mason in ''Black Ops,'' the previous game to ''Modern Warfare 3''), and NBA athlete
Dwight Howard Dwight David Howard II (born December 8, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Superman" for his athletic prowess, he is an NBA champion, eight-time All-Star, eight-time All-NBA Team honoree, five-time All-Defen ...
starred in commercials advertising the game.


Release

Two weeks before the release of the game, it was reported that half of the PC version had been uploaded online after being stolen from a warehouse in Fresno, California. Investigators working on behalf of Activision searched torrent websites for traces of the game as well as visiting people who had downloaded a copy across the United States and requested that they remove it or they would face a fine of US$5,000. As early as late October, reports were already surfacing about copies being sold early to people with gameplay videos uploaded online. On November 3, 2011, it was reported that copies of the game were already being sold early in the United States.
K-Mart Kmart ( ), formerly legally registered as Kmart Corporation, now operated by Transformco, is a department-store chain and online retailer in the United States and its territories. It operates four remaining Kmart big-box department stores ...
had already started selling copies of the game before its scheduled release date with copies already appearing on
eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...
and
Craigslist Craigslist (stylized as craigslist) is a privately held American company operating a classified advertisements website with sections devoted to jobs, housing, for sale, items wanted, services, community service, gigs, résumés, and discussi ...
. This was due to an error made by one of the shipping companies that told Walmart to sell copies of the game immediately after receiving the shipments. However, Activision contacted K-mart about this and had the issue resolved. French site
TF1 TF1 (; standing for ''Télévision Française 1'') is a French commercial television network owned by TF1 Group, controlled by the Bouygues conglomerate. TF1's average market share of 24% makes it the most popular domestic network. TF1 is part ...
News reported that a truck suffered a collision with a car on November 6, 2011, in
Créteil Créteil () is a Communes of France, commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, Île-de-France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. Créteil is the ''préfecture'' (capital) of the Val-de-Marne Departments of France, dep ...
, south
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, before two masked individuals emerged from the car. The criminals reportedly used tear gas to neutralize the truck drivers before hopping in and making off with the video game shipment said to be worth 400,000 Euros. A separate report said the truck contained a delivery of 6000 copies of ''Modern Warfare 3''. Shortly after the game's release, a man from
Aurora, Colorado Aurora (, ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, Arapahoe, Adams County, Colorado, Adams, and Douglas County, Colorado, Douglas List of counties in Colorado, counti ...
who did not receive a copy of the game at his local Best Buy, despite pre-ordering it, claimed to be so angry that he "could blow this place up". He was also reported as having threatened to shoot employees once they left the store. Lomon Sar, age 31, was issued a citation and court summons by police responding to the disturbance. The game was released for OS X on May 20, 2014.


Retail versions

''Modern Warfare 3'' was released in two different retail versions across the
PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It is the successor to the PlayStation 2, and both are part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. The PS3 was first released on ...
and
Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
platforms: Standard and Hardened. The standard version consists of the game and an instructional manual and is the only version available for the Microsoft Windows platform. Contents within the Hardened Edition include the game disc with "unique art", one-year membership to Call of Duty: Elite, "special founder status" on Call of Duty: Elite which includes an exclusive in-game emblem, player card, weapon camouflage, clan XP boost, and more exclusive benefits, premium collectible
Steelbook Optical disc packaging is the packaging that accompanies CDs, DVDs, and other formats of optical discs. Most packaging is rigid or semi-rigid and designed to protect the media from scratches and other types of exposure damage. Jewel case A ...
case, exclusive animated timeline theme for PS3 only, exclusive Spec Ops Juggernaut
Xbox Live The Xbox network, formerly known and commonly referred to as Xbox Live, is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Gaming for the Xbox brand. It was first made available to the origina ...
avatar outfit for Xbox 360 only, and a limited edition, collectible field journal, which chronicles "the entire saga with 100+ pages of authentic military sketches, diagrams, and written entries." Robert Bowling of
Infinity Ward Infinity Ward, Inc. is an American video game developer. They developed the video game '' Call of Duty'', along with seven other installments in the ''Call of Duty'' series. Vince Zampella, Grant Collier, and Jason West established Infinity W ...
confirmed that there will be no Prestige Edition of ''Modern Warfare 3''. In the past, the Prestige editions of previous ''Call of Duty'' games have included physical items such as a remote-controlled car for ''Black Ops'', a pair of night vision goggles and a life-sized plastic head to put them on for ''Modern Warfare 2''. On August 19, 2011, UK retailer
Game A game is a structured type of play usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or video games) or art ...
announced an Intel Pack of ''Modern Warfare 3''. It comes with a British special forces avatar for both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions, as well as a Brady strategy guide. On September 3, 2011, Activision and Microsoft jointly announced a special, limited ''Modern Warfare 3'' version of the Xbox 360 with a 320 GB hard disk. The unit is designed by the ''Call of Duty'' team and includes two custom wireless controllers, a copy of ''Modern Warfare 3'', and features custom sounds when the console is turned on/off or when the disc tray is ejected. A one-month subscription to Xbox Live Gold is also included, as well as exclusive avatar items.


Reception


Critical response

''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'' received "generally positive" reviews, according to
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, except for the Wii, where it received "mixed or average" reviews. ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...
'' gave the game's Xbox 360 version 5 stars out of 5, stating that even as "the series has always been renowned for elements like the excellent sound design, the gloss, polish, and compulsion of its gameplay," it is "a game that not only lives up to the brand hype but exceeds it. A game where the mass appeal is justified and the expectations are met." Gaming Evolution gave the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions a 9.0 out of 10, stating "Modern Warfare 3 lives up to the hype. It is proving itself one of the best FPS the genre has to offer." ''
IGN ''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
'' gave the game's Xbox 360 version a 9.0 out of 10.0, pointing out that the game offers "great multiplayer, fun campaign, tons of content, but lsoa forgettable story." ''
GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
'' qualifies its review, stating that "the series' signature thrills have lost some of their luster. ''Modern Warfare 3'' iterates rather than innovates, so the fun you have is familiar", but concludes by affirming that "fortunately,
he game is He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter call ...
also utterly engrossing and immensely satisfying, giving fans another reason to rejoice in this busy shooter season". ''
Eurogamer ''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 alongside parent company Gamer Network. In 2008, it started in the formerly eponymous trade fair EGX (Eurogamer Expo until 2013) organised by its parent company. Fr ...
'' gave the game an 8/10 noting that it is a "ferocious and satisfying game that knows exactly what players expect, and delivers on that promise with bullish confidence" but with "an outmoded single-player campaign". Reviews for the Wii version of the game have been less favorable, with ''IGN'' rating it a 4.5 out of 10, noting the lacking graphics and poor friend code system.


Player confusion between ''Modern Warfare 3'' and ''Modern Warfare III''

Following early critical reaction of the 2023 game '' Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III'' (essentially the third in a separate reboot series) before its official release, this game was subjected to
review bombing A review bomb is a malicious Internet phenomenon in which a large number of people or a few people with multiple accounts post negative user reviews online in an attempt to harm the sales or popularity of a product, a service, or a business. Whil ...
bringing the Metacritic user score as low as 3.5. IGN attributed this as players' confusion between the two titles and confirmed Metacritic was in the process of removing these reviews.


Sales and revenue

Activision has said that it believes ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'' day-one shipments were the largest for any game ever. "The record number of pre-orders from ''Modern Warfare 3'' drove the largest day-one shipments in our history, and in the industry's history," said Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg during an earnings call on November 8, 2011. Hirshberg said more than 1.5 million people queued at 13,000 shops at midnight on Monday to buy ''Modern Warfare 3'', "making it the largest retail release in Activision's history and in the industry's history". Activision reported sales figures for ''Modern Warfare 3'' in the U.S. and UK being more than 6.5 million copies sold on launch day and grossed $400 million in the US and UK alone in its first 24 hours, making it the biggest entertainment launch of all time. It is the third year in a row that the ''Call of Duty'' series has broken the same record. 2010's ''Black Ops'' grossed $360 million on day one; in 2009, ''Modern Warfare 2'' brought in $310 million.
Activision Blizzard Activision Blizzard, Inc. is an American video game holding company based in Santa Monica, California. Activision Blizzard currently includes three operating units: Activision, Blizzard Entertainment and King (company), King. Founded in July 2 ...
president and CEO
Bobby Kotick Robert A. Kotick (born 1963) is an American businessman who served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Activision Blizzard and its predecessor, Activision, from 1991 to 2023. He became the CEO of Activision through a hostile takeover during ...
stated that "the launch of ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'' is the biggest entertainment launch of all time in any medium, and we ctivisionachieved this record with sales from only two territories." The title grossed more than $775 million globally in its first five days of availability, exceeding the $650 million record set by 2010's ''Call of Duty: Black Ops'' and the $550 million one achieved by 2009's ''Modern Warfare 2''. To be exact, it has beaten theatrical box office, book, and video game sales records for five-day worldwide sell-through in dollars. ''Modern Warfare 3'' went on to gross $1 billion throughout the world in 16 days of availability, beating ''Avatar'''s record of 19 days, according to Activision. According to
NPD Group Circana, Inc., formerly known as Information Resources, Inc. and the NPD Group (previously National Purchase Diary Panel Inc. and NPD Research Inc.), is an American market research and technology company headquartered in Chicago. In 2017, NPD ra ...
, ''Modern Warfare 3'' was November's biggest-selling game of the month in the U.S. ''Modern Warfare 3'' sales surpassed first-month sales of the 2010s ''Black Ops'' by 7 percent, and sales for November sit at around the 9 million unit mark. In November 2013, ''IGN'' confirmed that ''Modern Warfare 3'' sold 26.5 million copies, becoming the highest-selling game in the ''Call of Duty'' series. ''Modern Warfare 3'' topped the UK video game sales chart in its first week, becoming the biggest video game launch in history by revenue. By November 21, 2011, the game remained the bestselling title in the United Kingdom, despite sales dropping by 87%. ''Modern Warfare 3'' held the top spot on the UK charts for four weeks running. It was replaced by '' The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim'' in its fifth week on the market. The PlayStation 3 version of ''Modern Warfare 3'' also topped the Japanese chart in its first week on sale, shifting 180,372 copies, while the Xbox 360 version sold around 30,000.


Awards

''Modern Warfare 3'' received the "Best Shooter" award at the 2011
Spike Video Game Awards The Spike Video Game Awards (in short VGAs, known as the VGX for the final show) was an annual award show hosted by American television network Spike from 2003 that recognized the best computer and video games of the year. Produced by '' GameT ...
; it was also nominated for "Best Multiplayer Game". During the
15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards The ''15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards'' was the 15th edition of the Interactive Achievement Awards, an annual awards event that honored the best games in the video game industry during 2011. The awards were arranged by the Academy of I ...
, ''Modern Warfare 3'' was awarded with " Action Game of the Year" by the
Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) is a non-profit organization of video game industry professionals. It organizes the annual Design Innovate Communicate Entertain Summit, better known as D.I.C.E., which includes the presentation ...
; it also received nominations for outstanding achievement in " Connectivity", " Online Gameplay", and "
Sound Design Sound design is the art and practice of creating auditory elements of media. It involves specifying, acquiring and creating audio using production techniques and equipment or software. It is employed in a variety of disciplines including filmmaking ...
".


Notes


References


External links

* {{Authority control 2011 video games Activision games
Modern Warfare 3 ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'' is a 2011 first-person shooter, first-person shooter game developed by Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games and published by Activision. The game was released worldwide in November 8 2011 for Microsoft Window ...
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