Why Modern Warfare is a 175GB Behemoth
As an avid Call of Duty player since the early days who takes visuals and performance seriously, Modern Warfare‘s 2019 launch gave me pause when I saw the specs – a gargantuan 175GB footprint being suggested! Veteran fans have watched install sizes creep higher over time, but this epic scale prompted me to investigate. What explains MW‘s place in history as possibly the biggest console/PC title ever released?
Texture Detail Goes Next-Level
Modern Warfare rendere photorealistic, film-like environments by utilizing ultra-high resolution texture mapping across the board. Weapons, characters, buildings – pretty much every in-game object – sports incredibly detailed, lifelike textures. Specifically:
- Texture sizes in MW are estimated to be over 5 times higher resolution than previous COD titles.
- A single 4K texture can exceed 1GB in size given their unmatched detail.
- Higher resolution textures allow assets to reveal fine details under close inspection during intense firefights.
- At least 30GB of MW‘s footprint stems from these bleeding-edge texture maps alone!
Polygon Counts Go Ballistic
In tandem with its texture pop, MW also utilizes highly complex 3D models boasting up to double the polygon counts compared to older Call of Duty generations. This means all the characters, weapons, environments and objects are rendered in sharp detail right down to lifelike scratches and material changes.
For instance, weapon models now sport separately modeled movable parts, randomized dirt patterns and tiny decals that previous titles simplified. The jump in complexity pays off when admiring your arsenal up close mid-battle.
Given the scale, it‘s clear MW‘s superior modeling contributes significant bulk to the total.
Audio Engineering Goes Large
MW‘s audio design matches the same no-compromises approach as the visuals. Dynamic surround sound and echo effects situate combat audio realistically. Granular details like bullet ricochets or the metallic action of reloading echo differently indoors versus open deserts.
To achieve this immersion, Modern Warfare utilizes uncompressed, multi-layer lossless audio which balloons file sizes by 10 times or more compared to compressed formats.
The layered weapon sound effects alone help explain why audio accounts for over 20GB of space despite being less obvious than textures or geometry to the average player.
Optimizing the Beast
MW shares many assets with the free-to-play Warzone mode which contributes additional bulk. Frequent post-launch updates with new maps, modes and cosmetics also continuously inflate the footprint. Experts estimate up to 50GB comprises redundant or other technically "non-essential" files.
So while smarter compression and redundancy elimination could slim Modern Warfare substantially, overall the attention to bleeding-edge fidelity sets a new standard that ushers in the era of the 200GB AAA game. A milestone many gamers agree marks an acceptable cost for transcending expectations and eliciting hitherto impossible levels of immersion.
