Parents' Guide to

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

By Chad Sapieha, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 18+

Top-notch war sim, but T-rated series is now "M."

Game Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 , Windows 2007
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this game.

Community Reviews

See all
age 12+

Based on 78 parent reviews

Daniel J.
Daniel J. Adult
June 5, 2023
age 15+

Ultra good

Not a lot of blood, amazing tactical combat, bit of swearing mostly s###t and once f###ck But it is overall a good game

This title has:

Easy to play/use
1 person found this helpful.
codslayer
codslayer Adult
July 10, 2023
age 13+
I don't know much about this game. I do know about the remastered version however. In the remastered version you can turn off the blood although you can't turn off the language but the worst I've heard in the campaign that I'm aware of is the s word, no f bombs. And also it is well a shooter game so it's going to be a little bit violent but it's not super violent. By the way again I was talking about the remastered version of this game
See all 78 parent reviews

What’s It About?

The bulk of the action in CALL OF DUTY 4: MODERN WARFARE takes place in the Middle East. However, developer Infinity Ward has cleverly managed to avoid stirring the political pot by never naming the countries in which the action takes place and delivering a fictional and unquestionably evil enemy in the form of radical terrorists set on global nuclear holocaust. Players step into the combat boots of two soldiers, a British S.A.S. operative and an American Marine, as they battle the terrorists. You always work with a squad of at least a few other soldiers, who, unlike artificially intelligent companions in most games, are essential allies that can be counted on when things get rough, which is most of the time.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (78 ):
Kids say (242 ):

This highly polished and intelligently designed interactive entertainment is dramatic and thrilling stuff. The only downside is the campaign's brevity; at just seven hours on medium difficulty, you'll likely find yourself wanting more when the credits start to roll.

But that's why multiplayer exists. With hundreds of items, game types, ranks, and customization options slyly designed to unlock one by one the more you play, the online component has a decidedly addictive, just-need-a-few-more-points-to-level-up quality to it. Expect your sessions to be frequent and long.

Online interaction: Online play over a headset can yield very colorful conversations.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about war. What leads to war? Is war ever justified? Why or why not? How does the media typically portray war? How realistic is this game's presentation of war? Is the nuclear threat imagined by the game's designers something you think could happen in the real world?

Game Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate