I really wish that Steam had a neutral option for reviews, because this isn't a black and white opinion.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. It's still the same CoD4 that you remember. The same campaign with its memorable (though overshadowed by MW2 and 3's campaigns.) The same multiplayer with atrocious perks that are rage-inducing to deal with. The same few good maps surrounded by absolutely stinkers. The same guns that mostly sucked except for a few that everyone used. The same lack of interesting camos except for the red and blue tiger ones. The same old everything... Except Prestige, since that wasn't in this PC port for some absurd reason. Yay, even less of a reason to keep up with a multiplayer experience from 2007.

Do I hate this game? Absolutely not. CoD4 was a very important game to me, as it came out during a very bad time in my life. My very late adolescence was terrible--worse than most people's, but this hunk of golden age multiplayer from the aughts, was there for me alongside several other decent releases from that year. But I'm not gonna go off about that, you're here for a review about CoD4.

The campaign is your usual Call of Duty stuff: Overly linear missions with frustratingly boring combat encounters, and those juicy bits of story that keep you going. Cool set-pieces, cool weapons, and some real cool characters. We love you forever, Captain John Price.

Multiplayer is just as you remember: Frustrating, chaotic, toxic, and absolutely replayable. There's not a day that goes by without yours truly remembering some absurd, insipid moment from playing this game. Getting a taste of Martyrdom, Juggernaut, Last Stand, and the most infamous weapons, and of course, the Godforsaken sniper culture that was born here. Those crazy killstreaks with a bizarre class setup you experimented with for laughs one day, or just having a really hot match that made you look real good in front of a bunch strangers over the internet. I personally remember a great match on Ambush, in which I went 45 and 3 with the Mini-Uzi, and then scavenging other players' weapons until that score limit was reached.

CoD4 is a beautifully simplistic game, that while not the best aged multiplayer experience out there, pretty much appealed to everyone. Now whether that was a good thing, is really up to you; I understand that Call of Duty isn't particularly liked by many a gamer due to its negative impacts on the FPS market and gaming industry, but I'm not here to discuss that.

Do I recommend Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare in 2025? No.
Now, now. I understand that I just talked positively enough about this game earlier, but I have to be honest and admit that this game is just too barebones by a lot of peoples' standards, even later CoD game standards. There's only a handful of good perks that don't make you come off as a cheap dork, most of the maps just turn into spawn-camp, vantage point camping, grenade spamming, nightmares. While I praised the chaotic nature of this game's multiplayer earlier, I don't really think most people with actual lives are looking to do crazy arcanic rituals, just to have a decent match without overly cheap BS.

You will find that the statement: "If you can't beat them, join them," rings incredibly true with this funny game.

I'm not an overly crude 17 year old anymore, I can't just sit down and trash talk people in this, while abusing obnoxious class setups and acting like I'm a king. And as much as I miss those days, I can't find the magic with this game anymore, but I can keep the memories and nostalgia, and as should you.

Overall: Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is a solid 6.8/10. Nothing is perfect, and CoD4 reflects this perfectly. An above-average experience with a lot of nostalgia and genius game design that appealed to everyone, despite the M rating and disdain for where it took the FPS scene. And while I said "no," as a recommendation earlier, I still ask that you interact with this before just taking my opinion at face value, and moving on. This is coming from someone who was very fond of this game, and still is.

I really wish that Steam had a neutral option for reviews, because this isn't a black and white opinion. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. It's still the same CoD4 that you remember. The same campaign with its memorable (though overshadowed by MW2 and 3's campaigns.) The same multiplayer with atrocious perks that are rage-inducing to deal with. The same few good maps surrounded by absolutely stinkers. The same guns that mostly sucked except for a few that everyone used. The same lack of interesting camos except for the red and blue tiger ones. The same old everything... Except Prestige, since that wasn't in this PC port for some absurd reason. Yay, even less of a reason to keep up with a multiplayer experience from 2007. Do I hate this game? Absolutely not. CoD4 was a very important game to me, as it came out during a very bad time in my life. My very late adolescence was terrible--worse than most people's, but this hunk of golden age multiplayer from the aughts, was there for me alongside several other decent releases from that year. But I'm not gonna go off about that, you're here for a review about CoD4. The campaign is your usual Call of Duty stuff: Overly linear missions with frustratingly boring combat encounters, and those juicy bits of story that keep you going. Cool set-pieces, cool weapons, and some real cool characters. We love you forever, Captain John Price. Multiplayer is just as you remember: Frustrating, chaotic, toxic, and absolutely replayable. There's not a day that goes by without yours truly remembering some absurd, insipid moment from playing this game. Getting a taste of Martyrdom, Juggernaut, Last Stand, and the most infamous weapons, and of course, the Godforsaken sniper culture that was born here. Those crazy killstreaks with a bizarre class setup you experimented with for laughs one day, or just having a really hot match that made you look real good in front of a bunch strangers over the internet. I personally remember a great match on Ambush, in which I went 45 and 3 with the Mini-Uzi, and then scavenging other players' weapons until that score limit was reached. CoD4 is a beautifully simplistic game, that while not the best aged multiplayer experience out there, pretty much appealed to everyone. Now whether that was a good thing, is really up to you; I understand that Call of Duty isn't particularly liked by many a gamer due to its negative impacts on the FPS market and gaming industry, but I'm not here to discuss that. Do I recommend Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare in 2025? No. Now, now. I understand that I just talked positively enough about this game earlier, but I have to be honest and admit that this game is just too barebones by a lot of peoples' standards, even later CoD game standards. There's only a handful of good perks that don't make you come off as a cheap dork, most of the maps just turn into spawn-camp, vantage point camping, grenade spamming, nightmares. While I praised the chaotic nature of this game's multiplayer earlier, I don't really think most people with actual lives are looking to do crazy arcanic rituals, just to have a decent match without overly cheap BS. You will find that the statement: "If you can't beat them, join them," rings incredibly true with this funny game. I'm not an overly crude 17 year old anymore, I can't just sit down and trash talk people in this, while abusing obnoxious class setups and acting like I'm a king. And as much as I miss those days, I can't find the magic with this game anymore, but I can keep the memories and nostalgia, and as should you. Overall: Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is a solid 6.8/10. Nothing is perfect, and CoD4 reflects this perfectly. An above-average experience with a lot of nostalgia and genius game design that appealed to everyone, despite the M rating and disdain for where it took the FPS scene. And while I said "no," as a recommendation earlier, I still ask that you interact with this before just taking my opinion at face value, and moving on. This is coming from someone who was very fond of this game, and still is.