Skip to main content
Join The Community
- Join our community
11
Premium Benefits
24/7
Access Available
21K+
Active Members
Commenting
Join the discussion
Exclusive Articles Coming Soon
Member-only articles
Weekly Newsletters
Weekly gaming & entertainment news
Member Badges
Earn badges as you go
Exclusive Competitions
Members-only prize draws
Curated Deals Coming Soon
Tech and gaming deals worth grabbing
GET COMMUNITY ACCESS QUICK
For the quickest way to join, simply enter your email below and get access. We will send a confirmation and sign you up to our newsletter to keep you updated on all your gaming news.
By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
FIND OUT ABOUT OUR MAGAZINE
Want to subscribe to the magazine? Click the button below to find out more information.
Find out more
GET Community ACCESS QUICK

Join the GamesRadar community for quick access. Enter your email below and we'll send confirmation, and sign you up to our newsletter.

By submitting your information, you confirm you are aged 16 or over, have read our Privacy Policy and agree to the Terms & Conditions. Geographical rules apply.

Background
Welcome to GamesRADAR+ Community !
Hi ,

Your membership journey starts here.

Keep exploring and earning more as a member.

MY ACCOUNT

Badge picture
Earn your first badge
Read 1 article to unlock your first badge.
Keep earning badges
Explore ways to get more involved as a member.
Latest Games News

Latest Games News

Breaking gaming news and updates

Read Now
Latest Games Reviews

Latest Games Reviews

Expert verdicts on the newest releases

Read Now

See what you’ve unlocked.

Explore your membership benefits.

Explore
Member Exclusives

Stay Ahead with GamesRadar+

Get the biggest gaming news, reviews, and releases straight to your inbox.

Explore

Sign Out
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • Big Preview
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Buying Guides
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Video
    • Video
    • GR+ Replay - Submit Your Clips
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
  • Home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • Big Preview
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Buying Guides
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Video
    • View Video
    • Video
    • GR+ Replay - Submit Your Clips
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
Trending
  • GTA 6 cover art revealed
  • Summer Preview
  • Prime Day deals
  • Best gaming tech
  • New Games 2026
  • Submit your clips. Win prizes
Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Want to add more newsletters?

GamesRadar+

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

GTA 6 O'clock

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Knowledge

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

The Setup

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Switch 2 Spotlight

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

The Watchlist

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

SFX

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!


Join the club

Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
  1. Games
  2. FPS Games

Modern Warfare 3 goes back to Verdansk to debut campaign, teases open-ended missions

News
By Iain Harris published 22 August 2023

Operation 627 is go

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Modern Warfare 3
(Image credit: Activision)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Subscribe to our newsletter

Activision has appeared at Opening Night Live to debut Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3's campaign, but not before teasing the open-ended nature of select missions that accompany the story mode.

The rainy Operation 627 starts with a strike team delicately gliding through the ocean to what appears to be an abandoned castle. Once our team infiltrates the stronghold, they sneak through empty corridors while using night vision until they stumble upon the enemy. 

Even when the guns start firing, things remain cinematic as we go underground. It's at this point the lights go out, with only the flash of gunfire to illuminate the interior momentarily. Things don't stay that way for too long, though, as we go back to night vision. 

Latest Videos From
Watch full video here:

After more gunfire, we eventually make our way to a door with the intention of breaking through, though that's where the gameplay tease leaves us.   

YouTube YouTube
Watch On

Still, there's plenty of nostalgia to enjoy in the gameplay sequence above. The infiltrated structure we see is the same Gulag plenty have visited again and again in the original Warzone map, Verdansk. Speaking of Gulag, that's the name of a mission from the original Modern Warfare 2 that features the rescue of prisoner 627, who turns out to be Captain Price. We don't see Price in the trailer above, but given it's called Operation 627, we might just see him yet.

You may like
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 screenshot Modern Warfare 4 goes head-to-head with Arc Raiders and Marathon as Call of Duty's extraction shooter mode DMZ returns
  • Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer screenshot showing two soliders peeking around a corner Modern Warfare 4 hands-on: Call of Duty is back to its best
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 trailer screen grab showing John Price Modern Warfare 4: Everything we know about the new Call of Duty game

As for the Open Combat Missions, we only saw a tease of a few, but developer Sledgehammer describes them as side content "positioned seamlessly alongside" the main campaign. Expect to tackle tasks in open areas with various loadouts, vehicles, and killstreaks. 

"You can go in quiet, equip suppressed weapons, and complete all the objectives without the enemy ever knowing you're there," creative director David Swenson says. "If you want to go in loud, you can strap on armour plates, hit the enemy head-on, and Open Combat Missions will support it."

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Check out our Gamescom Opening Night Live 2023 live coverage at the link.

PRODUCTS
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Gamescom 2023
Iain Harris
Iain Harris
Social Links Navigation
News Editor, Games

I joined GamesRadar+ in May 2022 following stints at PCGamesN and PocketGamer.Biz, with some freelance for Kotaku UK, RockPaperShotgun, and VG24/7 thrown in for good measure. When I'm not running the news team on the games side, you'll find me putting News Editor duties to one side to play the hottest JRPG of 20 years ago or pillaging the depths of Final Fantasy 14 for a swanky new cloak – the more colourful, the better.

Read more
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 screenshot
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 goes head-to-head with Arc Raiders and Marathon as Call of Duty's extraction shooter mode DMZ returns
 
 
Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer screenshot showing two soliders peeking around a corner
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 hands-on: Call of Duty is back to its best
 
 
A screenshot of a Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 soldier holding a rifle in a ghillie suit.
Call of Duty Call of Duty DMZ devs have been "paying attention" to other extraction shooters like Arc Raiders
 
 
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 trailer screen grab showing John Price
FPS Games Modern Warfare 4: Everything we know about the new Call of Duty game
 
 
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 screenshot
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 confirmed, and it's launching on PC, PS5, Switch 2, and Xbox Series X this October
 
 
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3
Call of Duty Rumored Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 reveal seems imminent as stream teases leaked Korean setting
 
 
Latest in FPS Games
Destiny 2 villain The Witness
Destiny Former Destiny 2 devs say working at Bungie was a "toxic, dysfunctional experience"
 
 
Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer screenshot showing two soliders peeking around a corner
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 hands-on: Call of Duty is back to its best
 
 
Destiny 2 screenshot showing a futuristic warrior charging forwards with a battle-axe
Destiny Destiny 2 players are dealing "near infinite damage" to bosses thanks to new bug, but Bungie is letting it slide for now
 
 
Call of Duty Black Ops 1 soldier holding a gun and wearing sunglasses
Call of Duty Treyarch confirms Call of Duty: Black Ops 1 and 2 are "being ported to PlayStation"
 
 
Luna Abyss protagonist Fawkes glows pink and stares menacingly
FPS Games Dev releases one of the year's best shooters, entire team is laid off less than a month later
 
 
Destiny 2 NPC watches the sky mouth agape
Destiny Destiny 2 players end the game exactly as they started it: driving Bungie mad with boss cheese
 
 
Latest in News
PS5 Pro
PlayStation Sony considering pushing PS6 to 2028 or 2029, "some analysts" think, according to Embracer Group
 
 
A hat-wearing, bike-riding tanuki delivers mail in Tanuki: Pon's Summer
Platforming Games My favorite Steam Next Fest demo is Tony Hawk's Pro Skater but make it a tanuki courier sim
 
 
Elden Ring
Action RPGs What it's like beating Elden Ring twice a week for 4 years: "The greatest game that's been made"
 
 
Nathan Drake in Uncharted 4.
Games PlayStation CEO seemingly confirms big single-player games will be PS5 exclusives forever
 
 
Persona 6 title art white text
Persona Persona 6 appears on Steam, Atlus and Sega accidentally say something interesting for once
 
 
Slay the Spire 2
Roguelike Games Slay the Spire 2 lies about its RNG, rabid fan declares in 6,600-word essay
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Elden Ring
    1
    What it's like beating Elden Ring twice a week for 4 years: "The greatest game that's been made"
  2. 2
    PlayStation CEO seemingly confirms big single-player games will be PS5 exclusives forever
  3. 3
    Persona 6 appears on Steam, Atlus and Sega accidentally say something interesting for once
  4. 4
    Does Toy Story 5 have a post-credits scene?
  5. 5
    The 6 best new shows and movies streaming this week on Netflix, HBO Max, Disney Plus, and more (June 19-21)

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...