Previews// Modern Warfare 3: Paris

If you go to a consumer show like GAMEfest in Birmingham’s NEC, you’ve got to expect that the biggest queues will go to the biggest games. And there’s no bigger game looming on the horizon than Activision’s Modern Warfare 3.

Naturally, there was a metric fuckton of gamers lined up waiting to have a pop at Spec Ops mode, but this grew even greater when people realised what they were about to play - a brand new stage, Paris. I was told this level is so brand new, it wasn’t even showcased at Acti’s recent Call of Duty XP convention in America.

And it looks incredibly pretty. With cobbled brick pavements, blue skies and flowerbeds everywhere, it captures the charm and pomp of stereotypical Parisian cafes and streets. It makes for some good tactical play as well. A long hilly road at the back of the map allows for some easy flanking (or epic standoffs) while the enclosed plaza at the bottom is the perfect place to hide and create surprise attacks.

Flowerbeds and small steps to higher roads provide multiple vantage points, and a subway entrance is married with a large set of stone steps. I can see many battles happening here for contention of the top of said stairs. It gives you quite a nice viewpoint to scope incoming hostiles.

Speaking of hostiles, you’re tasked with taking out loads of them in Spec Ops mode. If you’ve never played it before, think of it as a first-person Horde scenario from Gears of War, only this is in REAL LIFE. Sort of. Well, it’s not really (I’m obliged to clarify that just in case the Daily Mail gets a hard on about Games Transfer Phenomena or something).

You start the game with a limited amount of cash, and a piddly little popgun to defend yourself with. Your armoury can be upgraded by spending said money at one of three laptops dotted about the map. Each computer is linked to a category of weaponry - guns, explosives and miscellaneous stuff like Air Strikes and special Perks.

More money can be earned by capping as many enemies as you possibly can, but you have to adapt your approach every so often as different kinds of hostiles come at you in later waves. At first you’ll just be fending off thick soldiers, which will then be accompanied by SWAT-style padded soldiers. Then attack dogs. Then massive helicopters. It can all be a bit overwhelming if you’re not prepared.

If you end up falling - and I did many times over, to the point where I think I irritated my co-op buddy who was on the other half of the map trying to stay ‘in the zone’ - you have a limited amount of time to be revived by your teammate before you bleed out.

Both players’ screens will be alerted in the form of some yellow text, so you can’t really miss it. I think my new friend was just politely ignoring it as some Russians laughed at my crippling corpse in an almost bukkake-style ritualistic circle of manly men.

I had the last laugh at the end though - when one person fails to get revived within the time limit, both players lose and it’s instant Game Over. Suck on THAT! Oh right, it was Game Over for me too.

All in all, Paris is looking like a lovely addition to the selection of maps you can expect to find in Modern Warfare 3. And Spec Ops is still oodles of arcade fun. Roll on November!