Activision "confirms" COD4 News

Activision has finally stamped official confirmation on the development of Call of Duty 4 for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.

Modern Warfare will be created by the developer of the first two Games, Infinity Ward, and takes place in current times. This new setting has given the team a fresh sense of freedom, shedding the restraints of archaic weaponry in favour of eye-popping technology and quickly organisable strikes from air and ground.

It's based around a fictional conflict in an unnamed Middle Eastern nation that's masterminded by Warlord Zakhaev to distract Western powers from his consolidation of power in Russia. You'll join elite units as one of the first to respond to the call for help, and embark on what Infinity Ward is promising to be one of the most engrossing stories to date.

You'll hop back and forwards in time throughout the campaign, as well as change locations. Between each mission you'll see a short loading screen that will zoom out to a global view of the world before zipping back in to your new destination. And apparently it's pieced together to offer a 24-like tension.

While the on-rails cinematic gameplay is a big focus for the developer, multiplayer will also make up a large part of the game. We're promised an experience based around Call of Duty 2, only bigger and better.

"Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is the most intense and visceral title we've ever created," said Jason West, co-studio head and project lead at Infinity Ward. "The single-player campaign is a well paced, non-stop action experience."

"As the story unfolds, the player is introduced to new gameplay at every turn. One moment you are fast-roping from your Black Hawk helicopter after storming into the war zone with an armada of choppers, the next you are a sniper under concealment in a Ghillie suit miles behind enemy lines. And soon after you are engaging hostiles from an AC-130 gunship thousands of feet above the battlefield."

It's all looking terribly pretty, too, as you might expect, and Infinity Ward is adamant that it wants the game to run at a solid 60 frames per second.

Unfortunately Activision was unavailable this morning to tell us when we could expect the game in Europe.

Still, it's all sounding very promising. But whether it'll mark itself out against strong competition from Battlefield and Tom Clancy games we'll have to wait and see.

Head over to Eurogamer TV to see the reveal trailer for Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.