Modern Combat (franchise)

  

Modern Combat
Genres	First-person shooter
Developer(s)	Lunar Eagle Studios (2004–) Playground Studios (2008, 2010–2013, 2016) New Age Games (2017–2022)
Publisher(s)	Republic Games
Creator(s)	Maddox Kelly
Platforms	Direct Edge Direct Edge X TRU OS VERS VERS PowerPlay VERS 360 VERS 720 VERS Olympus InfiniTech InfiniTech 2 InfiniTech 3 InfiniTech 4 Direct Edge Mobile A-Res Nintendo Gamecube Nintendo Revolution Nintendo SX/NX
First release	Modern Combat: Special Ops 19 March 2004
Latest release	Modern Combat: Special Ops 4 5 November 2021

Modern Combat is a series of first-person shooter video games developed by Sierran company Lunar Eagle Studios and is published by Sierran company Republic Games. It started out on Comware's Direct Edge and Portal's VERS with Modern Combat: Special Ops, which was released in 2004. The series features a particular focus on large maps, teamwork and vehicle warfare, with all games in the series being primarily focused on online multiplayer. The Modern Combat series has been played by more than 100 million players worldwide as of 2015, across 10 games and 12 expansion packs released since its inception.

The series originally focused on a modern war setting, which at the time had rarely been explored in the first-person shooters, with Lunar Eagle developing the first (2004) and second (2006) titles in the series. The third title, Modern Combat: Great War (2008), was co-developed by Playground Studios and was the series' first entry in a non-fictional setting, being based off of various accounts by veterans of various nationality whom served in the Great War. The fourth entry, Modern Combat: Special Ops 3 (2009), would become the series' best-selling game with more than 30 million units shipped worldwide, with the game receiving universal praise for its gameplay, plot, and multiplayer. A direct sequel to Great War would be released in 2010 to further industry-wide acclaim. A spinoff to the Great War-sub series would be released as Modern Combat: Cold War in 2013, being the last game co-developed by Playground. Cold War would be released as a launch game for the VERS 720 and would be the final installment released for the A.Res and the Direct Edge platform. A sequel would be released in 2015. Transitioning into new settings with the aid of New Age Games, the series would introduce futuristic warfare with Infinite (2017) and Warzone (2019). The latest entry, Special Ops 4, was released in 2021 and serves as a "return to basics" for the series and part one of a planned sequel trilogy to the original trilogy of the Special Ops-series.

The Modern Combat series games usually focus on large, online multiplayer battles. Playing in squads has become a major element of games in the series. Apart from soldiers, also tanks, airplanes, and other vehicles may participate in these battles. Since the third entry in the series, Modern Combat: Great War, online stats are centrally recorded for each player, allowing users to receive rank promotions and weapon unlocks based on their performance as well as awards such as medals, weapon attachments and skins, and ribbons. A class system is present within all the Modern Combat games. Each class features a different type of primary weapon along with different equipment, differentiating roles during gameplay.

As of August 2020, the series has sold over 275 million copies. Meanwhile, the games in the series have mostly been released semi-annually to blockbuster-level sales. It is one of the most successful video game franchise created in the Kingdom of Sierra and the seventh best-selling video game franchise of all time. Other products in the franchise include a line of action figures designed by Prometheus Toys and a comic book miniseries published by Excelsior Comics.

Games

Titles in the Modern Combat series

Year	Engine	Title	Platform(s)
			DE	VERS	VSP2	INT	NGC	V360	DEX	NR	INT2	TOS	V720	INT3	NSX/NX	VO	INT4	DEM	ARES
2004	MD 1.0	Modern Combat: Special Ops	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No
2006		Modern Combat: Special Ops 2	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
		■ Modern Combat: Special Ops 2 – Insurgency	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
		■ Modern Combat: Special Ops 2 – Retaliation	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
2008	Spectre Engine (modified)	Modern Combat: Great War	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
		■ Modern Combat: The Great War – Great Arab Revolt	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
2009	MD 3.0	Modern Combat: Special Ops 3	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
2010		Modern Combat: Great War 2	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
2011		■ Modern Combat: The Great War 2 – Indochina War	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
		■ Modern Combat: The Great War 2 – Korean War	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	No	No	No
2013	MD 3.4	Modern Combat: Cold War	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
2014		■ Modern Combat: Cold War – La Granadera	Yes	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
2015	MD 4.0	Modern Combat: Cold War 2	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
2016		■ Modern Combat: Cold War 2 – Operation: Soaring Eagle	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
		■ Modern Combat: Cold War 2 – Operation: Desert Hawk	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
2017	Undead Module 5 (modified)	Modern Combat: Infinite	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	No
2019		Modern Combat: Warzone	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No	No
2020		■ Modern Combat: Warzone – Decimation	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	No
		■ Modern Combat: Warzone – Vengeance	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	Yes	No	No
2021	MD 5.0	Modern Combat: Special Ops 4	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
2022		■ Modern Combat: Special Ops 4 – StrikeForce	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No
		■ Modern Combat: Special Ops 4 – CrossFire	No	No	No	No	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	No
2023	TBA	Modern Combat: Special Ops 5	To be released
2025	TBA	Modern Combat: Special Ops 6	To be released