How to Play Realism Mode in "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" (and What That Even Means)

Alright maggots listen up.

The only thing more regular than a belly full of fiber is the Call of Duty video game series, which has just dropped its sixteenth annual instalment right on schedule. (Happy sweet sixteenth!)

This latest entry, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, is a reboot of the ground-breaking 2007 spin-off of the same name, which was the first in the series to be set in contemporary times. However, just because CoD is looking to its past doesn't mean it's going back to basics. No sir, not at all.

In fact, 2019’s Modern Warfare is the most ethically complex instalment to date, with a range of new enhancements to make the gameplay even more confronting. No doubt there’s a hope that this’ll cement CoD's status as the most accurate wartime simulator, seeing how many other first-person shooters have risen up in recent years to take its crown as the most preferred multiplayer game.

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Activision provided Student Edge with a complimentary copy of the game, and we saw first-hand how this new Modern Warfare puts players in brutally realistic battlezones, similar to those experienced by real 21st century soldiers. For instance, an early stage sees you chasing down terrorists in Piccadilly Circus as Londoners run for cover; later, you’ll walk around the streets of fictional Middle Eastern nation Urzikstan and pass innocent civilians as they’re tormented and tortured by captors. It's... rough stuff.

To make the experience even more distressing, the developers at Infinity Ward also let you play in 'Realism' mode, a new difficulty setting that further blurs the line between 'game' and 'reality'.

You ready for this?

How to Select 'Realism' Mode

Before you kick-off a campaign, or start playing in multiplayer mode, you’ll be asked to select a difficulty. There’s of course the easiest setting, 'Recruit' ("for players who are new to Call of Duty"), followed by 'Regular' ("your abilities in combat will be tested"), 'Hardened' ("your skills will be strained") and the not-at-all-encouraging 'Veteran' ("you will not survive").

Beneath those four, you’ll see the brand new 'Realism', which promises "veteran [difficulty] with limited HUD".

So, before we go any further, if you’re not capable of surviving for more than a few seconds in 'Veteran', you’re not gonna enjoy 'Realism'. Best you work up through the others first, son.

If, amazingly, you’re ready for a level even more difficult than 'Veteran', let’s proceed.

What 'Realism' Mode Looks Like

At first glance, 'Realism' mode doesn’t seem to offer anything particularly new. Compare the two shots of 'Recruit' and 'Realism' below.

After a few seconds, you probably realised that the HUD (heads-up display) has disappeared, so you can no longer see which weapon you currently have drawn.

That may not seem like much of a change to begin with, but once you’re thrown into the action, you’ll notice that your gun no longer has an on-screen target, nor can you see how much ammo is remaining. This’ll be an impediment when you’re aiming at enemies, and especially when you’re trying not to shoot friendlies (names will no longer appear for known friendly characters, as below).

Something as simple as this is gone in 'Realism' mode.

Another interesting change is that there’s no longer a HUD telling you when you’ve successfully killed an enemy combatant. You'll have to get a little closer to investigate whether or not that intended head shot actually connected, or if it just skimmed their ear. If so, lookout!

Unfortunately, your enemies won’t have the same issue. It’s much easier for them to kill you during a campaign, because 'Realism' means realism: if you get shot in the head in this mode, you’re going down. Case in point...

This may inspire you to play the game completely differently. After all, instead of running into battle guns blazing (as you can happily do on 'Recruit' mode), you may need to be more considered in your movements, and avoid enemy radars.

Thankfully, your eye will at least still be directed to items you may want to pick up or investigate; see the circle on the table in the picture below.

Good luck out there. (*Salutes*)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is now available on PS4, Xbox One and PC.

Header Image: Activision