Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III is a 2023 first-person shooter game created by Sledgehammer Games and released by Activision. It is the twentieth game in the Call of Duty series and the third in the restarted Modern Warfare sub-series, following Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022). The game was released on November 10, 2023, for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Modern Warfare III continues the realistic, modern setting of earlier games in the sub-series and follows the story of Task Force 141, a group of special operations soldiers from many countries. They work to stop Vladimir Makarov, a Russian terrorist who plans to start a third World War. The multiplayer mode includes sixteen remastered maps from the 2009 game Modern Warfare 2, with at least twelve new maps planned for later addition. A Zombies mode is also included, developed by Treyarch and designed as an open world experience where players fight against enemies.
After completing work on Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021), Sledgehammer Games was asked by Activision to create an expansion for Modern Warfare II. This later became a full, standalone game in the Call of Duty series. In early-to-mid 2023, details about the game were leaked, and it was officially announced in August 2023. A showcase event and public beta were held in October. When it was released, Modern Warfare III received mixed reviews, with some criticism for its story. It became the second best-selling game of 2023 in the United States, after Hogwarts Legacy.
Gameplay
Modern Warfare III has gameplay similar to previous games in the Call of Duty series. The single-player campaign includes both linear missions, where players follow set paths, and open-world missions called "Open Combat Missions." In these missions, players can choose how to complete objectives, such as fighting directly or using stealth and ambush tactics. A map on-screen shows the area, including a tactical map that highlights objectives and locations of weapons, gear, and special equipment. Enemies in these missions search for players if they are out of sight and call for help when their numbers drop during combat.
In Multiplayer, all sixteen maps from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009) are playable. Players can vote to choose maps during a matchmade lobby, a feature not available in some newer games. Player health has been increased, making it take longer to kill enemies. A red dot minimap, which was missing in earlier games, returns to help players spot enemies on their radar when weapons are fired without a suppressor. Players can also stop sliding movements mid-action. Classic modes like "Kill Confirmed" and "Hardpoint" return, along with a new mode called "Cutthroat," where three teams of three players compete. A 32v32 "Ground War" mode and a "War" mode, which was in Call of Duty: WWII (2017), are also available. The game uses artificial intelligence to monitor in-game conversations and report toxic behavior. At least twelve new 6v6 multiplayer maps will be added after the game launches, and fan-favorite maps from Modern Warfare II will be included each season.
The game includes an open-world player versus environment (PvE) Zombies mode created by Treyarch and Sledgehammer Games. This mode is similar to the DMZ mode in Call of Duty: Warzone, not the older round-based survival format. Up to 24 players join as squads in a large map, which also serves as the new battle royale map for Warzone. Teams complete objectives, fight zombies, and AI-controlled enemies, collect items, and sell them at stations or leave the map with their loot. The map is divided into "zones" with different threat levels showing difficulty. After 45 minutes, an "Aether Storm" expands across the map, giving players 15 minutes to leave with their loot. Features from older Zombies modes, such as buying weapons from walls, drinking Perk-a-Cola, and using the Mystery Box, return. Players can collect "acquisitions" (items saved for future matches) or "schematics" (blueprints to craft items, with a cooldown period). Story quests are included to advance the game's narrative.
Plot
In November 2023, members of the Russian private military company Konni Group attacked the Zordaya Prison Complex in Verdansk, Kastovia. There, they freed Vladimir Makarov (Julian Kostov), an ultranationalist terrorist who was sentenced to life in prison after being captured by SAS operatives John "Soap" MacTavish (Neil Ellice) and John Price (Barry Sloane) during a terrorist attack at the Verdansk Stadium in April 2019. Hours later, Konni attacked a port in Urzikstan, where the Urzikstan Liberation Force (ULF), led by Farah Karim (Claudia Doumit) and ex-CIA officer Alex Keller (Chad Michael Collins), was planning to obtain ballistic missiles from the American PMC Shadow Company and their commander, Phillip Graves (Warren Kole). Graves had faked his death after a battle with Task Force 141 in Las Almas, Mexico. The missiles were stolen, but Farah placed trackers on them.
After learning of Makarov’s escape from CIA Station Chief Kate Laswell (Rya Kihlstedt), Price led Task Force 141 to an abandoned nuclear power plant to stop Konni from obtaining nuclear material left behind after General Roman Barkov’s death. Instead, they found chemical materials hidden by Barkov, which Makarov planned to refine into a deadly weapon. Konni escaped with the materials, detonating some to block 141 and nearly killing Price with chemical gas.
To learn Makarov’s plans, Laswell infiltrated the Arklov Military Base in Verdansk and met with Colonel Yuri Volkov (Raphael Corkhill), who gave her a flash drive containing information about Barkov’s chemical weapons. Laswell left the base as an attack began with the stolen missiles. Meanwhile, Makarov destroyed a Kastovian airliner using a vest bomb on a former ULF fighter. To avoid escalating tensions, Farah and Alex removed evidence of ULF involvement at the crash site in Urzikstan before local authorities arrived.
After the attacks, Price reluctantly accepted help from Graves and General Herschel Shepherd (Glenn Morshower), who wanted to return to the U.S. after hiding. Using their intelligence, Soap and Lieutenant Simon "Ghost" Riley (Samuel Roukin) located and interrogated Makarov’s financier, Milena Romanova (Tina Ivlev). Price and Sergeant Kyle "Gaz" Garrick (Elliot Knight) used Romanova’s information to track Konni operative Andrei Nolan (Nikolai Nikolaeff) in Saint Petersburg, leading them to intercept a convoy in Siberia carrying Shepherd, who had been captured by Makarov. Price gave Shepherd an ultimatum: share all intel on Makarov’s plans and testify before the U.S. Congress, or be left to freeze in Siberia. Shepherd agreed, revealing Makarov’s plan to destroy the Gora Dam in Verdansk to flood the city and kill its people.
While Soap and Ghost stopped Konni from destroying the Gora Dam, Farah, Alex, Price, and Kyle attacked a Konni base in Urzikstan, accepting help from Graves and Shadow Company. After resolving both issues, Shepherd and Graves returned to the U.S. to testify to Congress, though they argued during questioning. Meanwhile, 141 returned to London to continue hunting Makarov. Shadowing a Konni contact, the group discovered Makarov had received a flash drive to control the UK’s train network and planned to destroy the Channel Tunnel. Price led an assault to stop Makarov, finding a dirty bomb in the tunnel. He and Soap tried to defuse it but were ambushed by Makarov. Soap stopped Makarov from killing Price, shooting him in the head before escaping with reinforcements. Afterward, Price, Soap, and Ghost scattered Soap’s ashes off a cliff in Scotland. In a mid-credits scene, Price killed Shepherd in his office.
In 2021, during a raid on a hotel in Zaravan, Urzikstan, arms dealer Victor Zakhaev (Dave B. Mitchell) and ex-NZDF operative Jack Fletcher (Luke Cook) recovered two vials of "Aetherium," a substance from another dimension. As Zakhaev and Fletcher prepared to leave, police reinforcements arrived, killing most of their men. Zakhaev threw one vial at the officers before fleeing in an armored vehicle. The blast stunned the police and turned the dead into zombies. Weeks later, as part of Operation Deadbolt—a CIA plan to contain the undead threat—Soap and a strike team were sent by Laswell and SSO Selma Greene (Debra Wilson) to secure the Zaravan exclusion zone. Accompanying them was Sergei Ravenov (Andrew Morgado), a former Spetsnaz captain who had worked with the CIA’s classified task force "Requiem" to stop previous zombie threats.
After establishing their base, Deadbolt received a message from Zakhaev’s scientist, Dr. Ava Jansen (Denise Hoey), who requested extraction from Zaravan. The strike team helped her return to Deadbolt HQ, where Jansen claimed Zakhaev had weapons-grade Aetherium and that she was the only one who could stop him. Greene assigned the team to help Jansen build an Aetherium Neutralizer device, which could destroy Aetherium crystals. Though the first test was successful, Jansen noted Zakhaev had refined his Aetherium, requiring upgrades to the Neutralizer. She suggested acquiring research from Oskar Strauss, a former Requiem leader. The team attacked Zakhaev’s outpost in Zaravan, killing its commander "Legacy" Baranov (Luis Bermudez), who had Strauss’s data.
With the upgraded Neutralizer ready, Deadbolt attacked Zakhaev’s Aetherium refining plant. They faced Zakhaev’s forces and a giant worm creature named Orcus. Jansen activated the Neutralizer, killing Orcus and destabilizing Zakhaev’s vial. A vortex appeared, forcing Zakhaev and Fletcher to retreat. The vortex lifted Jansen into the air before an entity demanded entry. Jansen screamed and fainted, later showing a brief dark purple glow. Deadbolt drone pilot Lucas "Luke" Dobbs (Noshir Dalal) reported that undead contacts were reappearing in Zaravan, along with an energy spike in the "red" zone.
After Deadbolt’s battle with Zakhaev, Jansen researched Requiem-backed "Project Janus" and individuals like Samantha Maxis, an ex-BND agent who trapped herself in the "Dark Aether" dimension in 1985 to contain a powerful entity called "the Forsaken." Jansen confronted Ravenov about these discoveries.
Development
Modern Warfare III was created by Sledgehammer Games. It is the fifth main Call of Duty game the studio has made. Before this, Sledgehammer helped create Modern Warfare 3 in 2011 with Infinity Ward and developed Advanced Warfare in 2014, WWII in 2017, and Vanguard in 2021.
After completing Vanguard, Sledgehammer started early work on a sequel to Advanced Warfare. However, Activision decided to stop the project before it progressed far. Instead, Activision asked Sledgehammer to create an expansion pack for Modern Warfare II (2022). According to Jason Schreier from Bloomberg, the expansion was planned to include a small single-player story set in Mexico and new multiplayer content.
By Summer 2022, Activision changed its plan. It asked Sledgehammer to make a full sequel to Modern Warfare II, featuring a new version of Vladimir Makarov, an enemy from the original Modern Warfare trilogy. This decision gave Sledgehammer about sixteen months to develop Modern Warfare III, similar to the time they had for Vanguard. Treyarch, the studio behind the Black Ops series, was also asked to create a Zombies mode for Modern Warfare III, making it the first Modern Warfare game with this feature.
In another report, some Sledgehammer developers said they were not informed early about the plan to make a full game, which led to long work hours. Some developers were also upset with Infinity Ward executives, who made changes to the project during development. Aaron Halon, Sledgehammer’s leader, denied these reports, saying the game was planned long before finishing the previous game and called it a project they worked on for many years.
Before its official release, many details about Modern Warfare III were leaked. On July 17, 2023, an internal version of the game showed the "red dot" minimap, War mode, and new perks. On July 24, 2023, the game’s key art was leaked in a Monster Energy promotion, showing Captain Price behind the Modern Warfare III logo. Around this time, new weapons were also discovered. Activision confirmed the key art leak and responded with copyright warnings and sarcastic comments on social media.
Walter Mair composed the music for Modern Warfare III. He took over after Sarah Schachner left the project due to challenges working with Infinity Ward’s audio director. Mair has previously worked on Call of Duty: Mobile. The Zombies mode music was created by Jack Wall, who often works with Treyarch on Black Ops games. Additional music was composed by Steve Ouimette, who worked on the soundtrack for Modern Warfare II season 2.
The soundtrack for Modern Warfare III was released online on the same day the game launched, November 10, 2023. Rapper 21 Savage also released a song called "Call Me Revenge" with singer d4vd to promote the game.
Marketing and release
On August 7, 2023, a short video was shared, which confirmed the game's name. Around this time, Activision created a phone number that was shared on social media. This number sent secret messages to people who agreed to certain rules, such as "we need someone like you, with experience in Al Mazrah." The number gave strange answers when people sent it the word "zombies" or the names of multiplayer maps from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, like "Rust." A day later, on August 8, Activision announced that characters, weapons, and cosmetic items from Modern Warfare II would be available in Modern Warfare III. A blog post explained the details of this feature.
On August 17, a full introduction of the game happened during a Call of Duty: Warzone event, which ended with a reveal trailer. Pre-orders opened, allowing players to access the campaign up to a week early, receive new operator skins, and test the multiplayer mode in an open beta.
Modern Warfare III was released on November 10, 2023, for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Like Modern Warfare II, the campaign was available early for all digital pre-orders, starting on November 2. In July 2024, the game was added to Xbox Game Pass. In October 2024, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members could stream the game using Xbox Cloud Gaming.
As with other Call of Duty games, Modern Warfare III includes free seasonal updates. An in-game store sells cosmetic item bundles through in-game purchases.
Similar to past Call of Duty season updates, Activision works with media franchises to include celebrities and licensed characters in multiplayer and Zombies modes. New additions include: Paul Atreides and Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen from the film Dune: Part Two; A-Train and Firecracker from The Boys on Amazon Prime Video; Rick Grimes, Michonne, and Daryl Dixon from The Walking Dead on AMC; the comedy duo Cheech & Chong; basketball player Devin Booker; WWE wrestlers Rhea Ripley, Cody Rhodes, and Rey Mysterio; Eric Draven/The Crow from the film The Crow (2024); Michael Myers from the Halloween franchise; Art the Clown from the Terrifier film series; and Sam from the film Trick 'r Treat (2007). Themed cosmetic packs were also released to promote the Warhammer 40,000 franchise, the MonsterVerse film Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, the Gundam franchise, the Fallout franchise, and the film Smile 2 (2024).
Reception
Before the release of Modern Warfare III, reviews of its campaign were mostly negative. Critics said the campaign felt not deep, too short, and not well done. IGN gave the campaign a score of 4 out of 10, calling it "strangely mixing parts of the Warzone mode into poorly made missions."
After the game officially released, critics gave it "mixed or average reviews," according to Metacritic. Only 13% of critics recommended the game on OpenCritic. This makes Modern Warfare III the lowest-rated main Call of Duty game on Metacritic.
Bleacher Report said the campaign was disappointing but noted the game's technical quality was very high. The Guardian and Windows Central both gave the game a 4 out of 5 star rating, praising its multiplayer mode. Windows Central said the multiplayer "combined older maps with modern gameplay very well."
In the United Kingdom and the United States, Modern Warfare III was the top-selling game in November 2023. However, sales were about 38% lower than Modern Warfare II's sales during the first three weeks of its release. In the United States, Modern Warfare III was the second best-selling game of 2023, behind Hogwarts Legacy. In Japan, the PlayStation 5 version of Modern Warfare III was the fourth best-selling store game in its first week, with 22,132 physical copies sold.