With the reboot trilogy of the Modern Warfare series, there have been lots of changes to the established characters we know and love, and even several new characters added into the mix. So, who are the new Modern Warfare 3 characters? Which characters could return? Well, we’ve got all the information you need right now on the MW3 (2023) characters so you know all the major players in the campaign.
Although Activision is yet to reveal the Call of Duty MW3 characters fully, we know it is continuing the narrative of the previous two entries and bringing Makarov center-stage. As such, there will undoubtedly be several returning characters alongside new ones once the MW3 release date arrives. If MW2 (2022) is anything to go by, many of these characters will also feature as Operators in MW3 multiplayer, so they are worth knowing.
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 characters
We expect the Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 characters to be:
- Captain John Price
- Sergeant John ‘Soap’ MacTavish
- Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley
- General Shepherd – expected to return
- Kyle ‘Gaz’ Garrick
- Station Chief Kate Laswell – expected to return
- Colonel Alejandro Vargas – expected to return
- Commander Farah Karim
- Vladimir Makarov
These were the main, surviving characters of MW2 (2022), and are set to return as we continue the narrative set up throughout the first two games. Task Force 141, the special ops unit headed by the one and only Captain Price, will be tracking down Vladimir Makarov, the iconic antagonist of the original trilogy. At the end of MW2, we see Laswell and Price discussing the threat Makarov and the Ultranationalists pose, having now hijacked a Russian plane.
With the premiere of the dedicated MW3 Makarov trailer, we know he’s set to be the main antagonist. Though we don’t have the full picture, the trailer reveals that Makarov is behind numerous major attacks in MW3, such as explosions at a soccer stadium, which happens to be Verdansk’s stadium, and the aforementioned hijacked plane, several of which we see have crashed and are now swarming with soldiers.
It’s also possible that we’ll see some of the original MW3 characters make a return, such as Sandman, Frost, Grinch, and Yuri. While these are yet to feature in the reboot trilogy, MW3 is the perfect time to bring these fan-favorite characters back into the fold.
With the impressive facial capture in use and the great voice actors, it’s natural to wonder who the MW3 cast members and voice actors are. Luckily, we’ve got you covered with a guide on that topic as well.
Captain Price
Captain John Price, everyone’s favorite mustachioed man, is likely to take center stage once again. As the main character of both Modern Warfare (2019) and Modern Warfare 2 (2022), Price should be back in action, ready to take the fight to Makarov before it’s too late. Despite having many brushes with death, Price is still going strong, though perhaps MW3 will be his final outing?
Sergeant John ‘Soap’ MacTavish
Sergeant John MacTavish, better known as Soap,will return as one of the main MW3 characters. Working alongside Captain Price, Soap will also be gearing up to deal with the looming threat of Makarov.
Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley
Simon Riley, much better known by his ominous alias ‘Ghost’, is another of the series’ main protagonists. Donning a skeleton mask, Ghost is a deadly and mysterious operative who always sees the mission through. Though he died in the original MW2, Ghost is still alive in the reboot trilogy. Given his previous fate, it’s possible that Ghost’s time could be up in Modern Warfare 3.
General Shepherd
General Shepherd of the US Army turned out to be a secondary antagonist in the previous game, similar to his role in the original game. While he hasn’t killed Ghost and Roach in the reboot trilogy, the latter of which hasn’t featured so far, he’s no doubt going to be back and causing more chaos. In the last game, he conspired with Shadow Company in off-record smuggling operations in the Middle East and attempted to cover his tracks, hunting down Task Force 141 and Los Vaqueros in the process.
Kyle ‘Gaz’ Garrick
Kyle ‘Gaz’ Garrick is another playable protagonist of the previous games, loosely based on the Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare character of the same name. As a member of Task Force 141, he’ll join the rest of the team to take down Makarov.
Station Chief Kate Laswell
CIA Station Chief Kate Laswell was a major player in the campaigns of the first two reboot games, having overseen key operations to stop Al-Qatala and other threats. Laswell ultimately aided Task Force 141 in shutting down the chaos caused by General Shepherd, and she will more than likely return to help us once again.
Colonel Alejandro Vargas
Colonel Alejandro Vargas is the leader of the Los Vaqueros who helped Task Force 141 in MW2. While it’s certainly possible that this character won’t return, they were a great character and could once again provide backup for our protagonists.
Commander Farah Karim
Commander Farah Karim only had a supporting role in MW2 but, given her role as the playable protagonist in the Atomgrad raid missions, she is back. She’s also a close friend of Captain Price and Gaz, so she will be aiding Task Force 141 yet again.
Vladimir Makarov
Vladimir Makarov has been the antagonist behind many of the incidents over the past two games, taking a similar role to his original counterpart. As the leader of the Ultranationalists after Victor Zakhaev’s death, Makarov is a big threat. At the end of MW2 (2022), we learn that Makarov’s soldiers have hijacked a Russian airliner, showing us the text “No Russian”. This is a call-back to the controversial mission of the same name in the original MW2 game, so it’s possible that a similarly brutal and tragic event is going to occur at the start of the MW3 campaign missions. Nevertheless, Task Force 141 will be seeking to put a stop to Makarov.
We get a glimpse of what could be a new take on the MW3 No Russian mission during the dedicated Makarov trailer, in which we see civilians running from a large explosion in a soccer stadium. However, we also see several crashed planes later on, providing another link to the airport setting of the controversial mission.
That covers all the Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 characters we expect to see in the campaign which, if the story pays off the great build up in the past two games, could be one of the best FPS games. Meanwhile, the multiplayer mode is in the running for the best competitive FPS games, where many of these characters could even be playable Operators.