Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, An Activision Game

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
An Activision Game

As one of the most anticipated games of 2009, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has a lot to do if it is to meet with expectation. I must admit I have held the Infinity Ward titles from the series up as shining lights of how a game should be but will they continue to impress with their 4 addition to the series.

When you load up the game you a greeted with the 3 game options available for you to play and enjoy. These are the single player story mode, co-op Special Ops mode and the much loved multiplayer mode.

Single Player:

The single player story picks up 5 years after the events of Modern Warfare. Gameplay here is familiar to anyone that has played the first. You begin with the usual training area which gives you a layout of the control scheme and gives you the opportunity to take an obstacle course to determine what difficulty setting you should use. You can happily ignore the recommendation though and go straight in a veteran if you really want although to follow the story fully on your first play though I’d recommend going through on a lower difficulty first. This is due to parts of the dialogue and story being presented while you are facing a huge number of enemies and the higher difficulties will not give you time to follow anything.

After this training area you are immediately called to arms. From this point on there is no turning back and no shortage of gun fire. The first true mission throws you into the action immediately and tells you to get on with it. If you are new to the series expect to die, a lot. You are quickly introduced to some frantic close quarters combat and immediately the scale of the battle you are getting into, rears its ugly head.

As you progress through the game you will be playing as both US and SAS forces as part of the elite Task Force 141. Now to avoid spoilers I am not going to go into many details about the story and the missions but I must say, for me this story line is excellent and provide several twists and turns that aren’t expected. You could be forgiving for thinking this story is the love child of Tom Clancy and Ian Fleming.

I can assure you, the usual MW blend of stealth and all out gun fighting is present. There are also some user controlled vehicle parts although these are little more than advanced “on rail” sections. They do add to the fast paced and explosive nature of the story and provide for some impressive end level sections that James Bond would be proud of.

A few new items are also included in your arsenal of weapons. This includes the awesome Predator remote controlled missile which can devastate large groups of enemies, and the ability to dual wield some weapons. Why they’ve included dual wielding is beyond me. I always enjoy the slightly higher level of realism presented by weaponry in the series although let’s face it. The moment you play a bullet sponge that heals by hiding, realism loses all meaning.

Overall the single player campaign provides a solid and enjoyable experience. With 18 mission there is quite a bit of variety and the order in which they come is like a good bands set list. The same way they’ll mix the high energy tunes with calmer more serene songs, COD MW2 does with the paces of the missions. Although if you take out the time you spend retrying certain areas the campaign is rather short. It is enjoyable though and a few playthroughs are necessary to get the full gamer score from the campaign. There is no multiplayer like that present in World at War. I get the feeling this is because the story doesn’t lend itself to a multiplayer experience. Fortunately Infinity Ward didn’t forget those that want co-op multiplayer and here is where the special-ops mode comes into play.

Special Ops:

This mode is really a series of challenges that you can attempt on your own or bring a friend in to cover your back. These are generally short and sweet with a variety of flavours. There are stealth, assault and wave survival missions. Spread across 23 missions with varying difficulties these are great fun and teaming up with a friend is a must for all, (and actually a requirement for some). The limit of only 2 players is disappointing. 4 player co-op is fast becoming the in thing with games like Left 4 Dead and Borderlands showing how it can be done in an effective way and with the popularity of World at Wars’ zombie mode, it is a surprise Infinity Ward didn’t take a leaf from Treyarchs book (words that some might not think they’d ever hear). This mode is great fun though and provides some substantial extension to gameplay for those that don’t like to venture to far into the competitive modes.

Multiplayer:

The heart and soul of Call of Duty lies within competitive multiplayer. Infinity Ward had a few areas that needed improvement from the previous game. The biggest of these had to be the perks. These allowed players to select enhancements, to their class which allowed them to have certain advantages. One of the most controversial of these was the juggernaut perk.

This allowed player equipped with this to take additional damage and it was highly frustrating when a carefully aimed head shot at distance failed to kill. Instead you where greeted with a little medic symbol informing you they had this dam thing equipped. This led to an imbalance in game play and could result in you emptying a magazine into someone with little apparent effect. Although alternative perks could be used to counter, it always felt like the balance tipped in the wrong direction and lead to little use of other unless you ventured into the realms of hardcore matches. Thankfully it is no more.

A cool new addition of death streaks, will allow player to equip a range of perks to help them avoid complete humiliation. One of these is the pain pill which is a time limited version of juggernaut that only triggers after you die 3 times in a row without making a kill. Kill streaks are also back but this time it’s much more tactical. There is a long list available with the more devastating requiring you to get more kills without dying yourself. You can choose 3 from the list and as you rank up you unlock more options. If you are a lower level player then you can stick with rewards in the lower end of the spectrum and use them to your advantage. The options of helicopter gunner and AC-130 gunner are bound to be tempting although they do require a higher kill streak of 11.

Luckily there are care packages included after 4 kills. This drops a random item which can include some of the higher level rewards and will give the lower level player a chance to sample the delights without needing the skill to earn them in the normal fashion. Good news for me! Be careful though. The enemy can also steal them if you or your team don’t pick them up on time so think before you request that package.

Rewards also “stack” now which is a very welcome addition. This means it is no longer necessary to use them immediately due to the risk of losing them by making more kills. You can hold on to that airstrike or UAV until the time is just right to use it. Another good thing is the inclusion of rocket launchers that can lock on to a vehicle such as a helicopter. This means that there is no longer the need to run and hide in a building until danger passes or make do with trying to fluke a shot with an RPG. This opens up the online multiplayer a lot more. Experiment with them to find what is best suited to you.

With a long list of options all the favourite game types are still there. From death match to search and destroy in both hardcore and softcore options. Some game modes have disabled party chat to force players to communicate as a full team. This is annoying if you have to listen to the 12 year old that just shot you in the head to win the match afterwards but there is always the mute option. Some game modes do allow party chat but these are not the main multiplayer modes you are likely to be sticking with. A 3rd person viewpoint game type is also included but this isn’t very popular and feels wrong in the world of COD. There is something for everyone and multiplayer will add days (in the literal time played sense) to gameplay.

16 maps are included with more planned as DLC. As usual from Infinity Ward these are well designed and thought out. There seem to be few glitches although a few maps do have "hidden" areas which at first may seem impossible to get to but when you actually see how to get to them you soon realise they are actually designed into the game and not exploits.

Despite all the improvements a major flaw remains. Matchmaking is often a painful and drawn out process. If you are in a party bigger than 2 you can expect to lose a team member on more than one occasion. If they do stay then being connected to a good host is something you will pray for. This is another thing that I thought had been fixed in World at War but again Infinity Ward didn’t have time to read the Treyarch book for pages worth taking. This small but important page was regional match searching. Match making in MW2 is apparently based on finding the best ping for your connection. In theory this should connect you to player near your location resulting in lag free games with minimal host advantage. Unfortunately this is not always the case and you will often get matched to an American host which can lead to highly frustrating moments of “how did my bullets miss him at point blank range” rage. There was something reassuring about being able to tell World at War where in the world you wanted to be playing. With MW2 you simply have to hope that the gods of the intertubes will be kind enough to give you a European host.



Graphics: 9G
Quite simply: beautiful. An amazing amount of detail and the multiplayer maps are the most intricate yet. If you thought previous titles were good then prepare to be stunned. If haven’t noticed any frame rate issues either despite the amount of action going on. Always a good sign.

Sound: 9G
With excellent voice acting and sound effects you can’t really fault what is on offer here. Teamed up with 5.1 surround you’ll be able to here the enemy as they try to creep up behind you only to find themselves faced with the barrel of you gun. Happy days!

Gameplay: 8.5G
The same solid gameplay we’ve come to expect from Infinity Ward. Let down by a short campaign mode and the limit of 2 player co-op. Multiplayer has improved drastically from previous titles but flawed matchmaking is a real hindrance when you want to avoid US hosts and can leave you angry and frustrated especially when you are trying to play with a large team.

Overall: 8.5G (Not an average)
COD: MW2 is a solid step forward for the franchise and certainly the best yet in the series. Graphics that will blow you away like a noobtube to your feet teamed with a rewarding gameplay experience is always a good mix. If you didn’t enjoy previous titles then you probably won’t enjoy this although if your major frustration had been multiplayer and the use of controversial perks then you’ll may find it is time to stick your head out of the trenches and give it one more try.

They have missed a trick with a few lessons from World at War regarding the multiplayer experience. For anyone that follows the Infinity Ward/ Treyarch debate you’ll realise just how significant saying that is but unfortunately it is true! Is an 8.5 harsh? Probably, but is it really wrong of me to want the option of limiting to only European hosts to reduce the risk of lag or have 4 player co-op? If I could do that then this would be easily a 9.

Once more into the breach dear friends!

A good honest GSA review mate.

We pride ourselves here on telling it how it is.

Pictures to be added but just don't have enough time at the mo. I'll get them up ASAP.

palindromic BOB wrote:Pictures to be added but just don't have enough time at the mo. I'll get them up ASAP.

thats because you never actually stop playing CODMW2!!!

Kent Hammer wrote:

palindromic BOB wrote:Pictures to be added but just don't have enough time at the mo. I'll get them up ASAP.

thats because you never actually stop playing CODMW2!!!

so so true

great rewiev bob but i wanted to ask you.. wth is noodtube? it has something to do with noodles? and where you at? we miss you in cod nights

Angel wrote:great rewiev bob but i wanted to ask you.. wth is noodtube? it has something to do with noodles? and where you at? we miss you in cod nights

Two choices here

1. hmmm It blows the clothes of whatever it is fired at!

2. err that was a test to see who was reading the whole review . Congratulations, you pass .

As for where I've been I had been without my laptop for a while and hadn't been able to look up events and stuff. Got it back now though.

Great review Bob.

Good to see someone else you hasn't been completely sucked in by the hype surrounding this solid , if short, FPS

niteowl1980 wrote:Great review Bob.

Good to see someone else you hasn't been completely sucked in by the hype surrounding this solid , if short, FPS

Thanks. I've been very careful to try and avoid getting sucked in by hype since Halo 2. It is a very very solid game though and mutliplayer (despite the flaws) is the best I've ever played in the COD series.

im prety sure that every normal man will choose number 1...

Angel wrote:im prety sure that every normal man will choose number 1...

Imagine the possibilities if it existed!

Great review mate.