Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019 video game)

Did You Know?

• The game was later released on Steam on March 8, 2023.
• It was made available in Xbox Game Pass on April 17, 2026.
• A fourth game in the reboot sub-series, Modern Warfare 4, is scheduled for release on October 23, 2026.

Synopsis

The campaign takes place over several days in late 2019, with Special Ops and multiplayer continuing into 2020. The story centers on a conflict between Russia and the fictional Republic of Urzikstan, involving Western forces. Players control three protagonists: SAS Sergeant Kyle 'Gaz' Garrick, former Delta Force officer turned CIA operative Alex Keller, and Urzikstan Liberation Force leader Farah Karim. The Special Ops and multiplayer seasonal story follows the campaign, with players as operatives for a joint alliance called the Armistice, divided into Coalition and Allegiance factions. They face Al-Qatala under new leader Khaled Al-Asad and Russian terrorist Victor Zakhaev. New allies include former CIA agent Mara, Spetsnaz operator Nikto, Task Force 141 recruits Simon 'Ghost' Riley and John 'Soap' MacTavish, and Shadow Company mercenaries.

Development

Infinity Ward began development after their 2016 title Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, following the franchise's three-year development cycle. Additional development came from High Moon Studios, Beenox, Raven Software, and Sledgehammer Games. The game uses a brand-new engine developed over five years by studios in California and Poland, enabling detailed environments, advanced photogrammetry, volumetric lighting, and ray tracing. Narrative director Taylor Kurosaki stated that Captain Price appears in a retconned narrative where previous Modern Warfare events have not occurred. Studio art director Joel Emslie described the narrative as more mature, designed to elicit emotional responses through depictions based on contemporary events like terror attacks in London and the Syrian Civil War, rather than bombastic set pieces. Campaign gameplay director Jacob Minkoff expressed a desire for games to explore taboo topics, citing Homeland, American Sniper, and Sicario as influences. Half the game involves morally complex choices, and several playtesters cried during the narrative.

Controversies

The inclusion of white phosphorus strikes as a multiplayer killstreak drew criticism. White phosphorus use is regulated by the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons' Protocol on Incendiary Weapons, which prohibits its use near civilian areas. Former U.S. Marine John Phipps told IGN that the game fails to realistically portray white phosphorus effects, calling its use as a killstreak a glorification of a violation of the laws of armed conflict. GameSpot reviewer Kallie Plagge listed the white phosphorus killstreak as a negative aspect, stating it goes against the campaign's values. The game's Metacritic user scores were affected by review bombing from those angered by the campaign's depiction of the Russian military, with the PlayStation 4 version dropping to 3.0/10 and the Windows version to 2.4/10. Sony Interactive Entertainment chose not to sell the game on the PlayStation Store in Russia.