Multiplayer Analysis: Modern Warfare 3 Dome

Modern Warfare 3 (MW3 for the rest of this post) is Activision 2011 installment installment of the massively popular Call of Duty franchise.  Just like previous games, it focuses on interesting locations where players can duke it out either with friends or by themselves. The level that I will be focusing on is the Dome. The Dome is a Cold War-era bunker in the desert, with a giant dome (get the name) as its center piece.

Its set in modern day, so the bunker is run down. The game is during the daytime, which makes the level very bright. For most of the level, it feels very open. Its set in the desert, so there are wide areas around it that makes it feel open. Also, the way that they keep you from leaving the area are metal fences, which allows you to see out into the "vast" expanse of the desert. There are three major areas to the map: the dome, outside, the office, and the bunker. The dome is the giant radio that is seen on the load screen. It has a cat walk on top and an inside underneath. Seeing as its the center piece, a lot of action goes on around here. In the outside area, there are a lot of barriers and cars to hide behind, but overall there is a lot more space. This is also where enemy and friendly strikes can be called in for the most impact.

The bunker and office area of the map is where a lot of close quarter combat happens. The office is above ground, but the dark walls and narrow hallways make it feel tight and cramped. The bunker underground, which gives it a claustrophobic dark vibe.

The level has a lot of twists and turns with a couple areas funneling action through them. While playing, I realized that a lot of players like to try and set up some sort of traps, be it strikes or just patrolling them. The basic mechanics in this level are shooting, running, throwing grenades, and stabbing. After getting enough points from killing, the player has the ability to set strike packages down. These could be anything from turrets that last a short time to manning a osprey to kill your enemies. Here's a video of game play: MW3 video

Here is my level layout for level: MW3 Dome Level Analysis