MIGRAIN & SHEP Analysis

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

M

• Entire game is shown through Point-of-view shots
• Music is a mixture of rock and grand classical scores
• While lighting is dynamic and can therefore vary, most of the lighting in the game is low key and is used to sillouette characters and enemies
• Colours tend to desaturate during dramtic scenes, often involving death or defeat
• In terms of 'editing,' the level structure switches between different parties and certain sequences are broken up (such as a death scene that we go back to after a brief intermission)

I

• Published by Activison (formally know as Activision-Blizzard) who own not only the Call Of Duty series but also other franchises such as the Guitar Hero series.
• Produced by Infinity Ward
• Is the 4th game in a series which had previously focused on fictional conflicts during World War 2

G

• Genre in terms of media is action, military, drama and suspense
• Genre in terms of games is a first-person military shooter

R

• The four main groups being represented are the SAS, the US Military Corps, the Taliban (indirectly) and the Russian Military
• Although the Taliban are typically 'evil,' the SAS and USMC are represented in a grey-manner; the SAS are shown to be disloyal, dishonest and bloodthirsty whilst the USMC are shown to be hot-headed, proud and occasionally foolish

A

• Target audience is males aged 16-25, typically middle-class
• Text provided gratification through escapism, and outlet of anger via ingame violence

I

• Ideologies present include the neccessity of war, but also the horrors and loss that occure due to it
• Also highlights the naivety of patrioism
• The moral grey soldiers find themselves in during conflict
• The text also includes a strong anti-nuke bias, almost to the point of outright suggesting that all countries should disarm themselves of nuclear weapons.

N

• Multi-stranded narritive
• Follows two characters until 3/4 of the way into the game, at which point the American soldier that we play as dies in a nuclear blast.
• Switches back and forth constantly and follow a chronological narrative except for one level, at which point we play as a Captain 15 years prior in order to learn of his history in the SAS.

S

• Some argue that it has made teenage boys 'shut-ins' and more antisocial as they stay insides and game rather than go out.
• Others would argue that it has made the current male teenage generation more prone to violent outburts and causes them to be more willing to partake in violence.
• However, others would counter that in that the game allows teenage males to have a healthy outlet for their anger and therefore makes them calmer and less aggressive out of game.

H

• The game touches on certain historical events (such as the Cherynobl nuclear reactor explosion) and politcal tension (such as Russia vs the US)

E

• The game was a huge hit and was the highest grossing military shooter ever made (and best-selling game of that year), making IW and Activision millions of dollers.

P