This being a rough time for the economy and the game being the most anticipated game this year, the developers could have easily given us more of the same without taking risks. Fortunately this is not the case and Infinity Wards along with Activision must be specially commended as they have made numerous and significant additions that take the series to whole new level.

The Campaign:

The campaign can easily be finished in less than six hours. Although that may seem short, every moment of it is high quality action packed gameplay. The amount of adrenaline rush this campaign provides will be more than many of the best titles with longer single player modes.  In addition players will be taking part in a large variety of scenarios that include fighting through the towns of Brazil, defending American land in its suburbs, the infamous snow mobile rides and even dodging falling helicopters. It is an astonishing feat on how much variety they have been able to fit in a single campaign.

As with the previous instalment, players will take the role of several characters. There are also some familiar faces from the last game that play a major role. This is why it would be best to do a quick read up on the story of MW1 if you haven’t played it or forgotten it. The game has improved its character development and helped me feel more attached to them.

However due to the game’s fast pace and constant character hopping, it can be easy to get lost and therefore it was important that the game have a better story telling ability. Unfortunately this is an area that is still lacking. There are big world changing decisions made in the game, however without a thorough narration or explanation they feel unrealistic. At times it also felt as if enough information was not given prior a mission for the player to realize its significance. This sometimes made the game feel slightly emotionless despite having great action sequences.

Don’t get me wrong though, the campaign is still one of a kind and a heck of an experience.

Special Ops:

Out of the three different modes (campaign, special ops, multiplayer), spec ops is my favourite. The campaign is a linear scenario based experience that would have been hampered with the addition of co-op play. To cater our hunger for experiencing this outstanding game with a buddy, the game gives the option of two player Spec Ops play.

Special Ops features an impressive 25 missions. Some of the missions are from the campaigns of this game and Modern Warfare 1. In addition there are several other missions specially made to be tackled with a partner.

The variety in the types of missions is again impressive. These include sniping, stealth, straight out fighting and even a few that include one person providing support via aerial firepower for their partner below. On the lower difficulty setting, the missions are an entertaining casual experience. But they really shine in the harder difficulty settings as that requires a high level of co-ordination and placing trust on your partner that results in a great sense of satisfaction.

Multiplayer:

Call of Duty 4 revolutionized the multiplayer aspect for the FPS genre. Modern Warfare 2 expands on that significantly and takes it to the next level.

As is to be expected Modern Warfare 2 has an exceptional number and variety of weapons. To add to that, each weapon has around 5 to 10 attachments. Some attachments are specific and limited to types of weapons. These are unlocked by accomplishing challenges with the particular weapon.

In addition, Modern Warfare 2 has ten different kill streak rewards. Only three can be chosen at a time. The new kill streak rewards includes predator strikes, sentry guns and even a nuke. Fortunately the stronger kill streaks require a lot more kills to be activated. For example, a game ending nuke requires a kill streak of 25.

One of the things that really stands out for me are the well designed maps. Each map has multiple positions that offer a strategic advantage. However these positions tend to come at a price as they will either provide weak cover or have multiple access points. This levels the playing field and makes for a much more intense experience. However this also means it can an unforgiving for novices. Speaking of which, there are a lot of players that dedicate a lot of time to this game so it can be quite difficult if not frustrating for the casual players. My minor issue with the maps is that the Karachi map features Arabic instead of Urdu.

Fortunately Modern Warfare 2 does offer some form of assistance to those of us that get our butts kicked online. There are death streaks that activate after a few deaths and give benefits such as extra health or the ability to use your killer’s weapons and perks. In addition one of the kill streak rewards is a care package, which only requires 4 kills in a row, and can contain any of the kill streak rewards.

Online games now also have server migration. This means that the game continues if the host decides to quit pre-maturely. To add to that, I was able to play from Saudi Arabia, on my DSL, without feeling a disadvantage due to lag. Furthermore the game now also allows local profiles for those us of that like to play 4 player splitscreen locally.

Final Word:

Modern Warfare 2 is a game that deserves a special accolade. For it not only provides a variety of game modes that can last for many hours, but it does so by ensuring that each part of the game is of top quality. Its campaign provides an exhilarating action packed experience, special ops provides for an intense co-op action, and its multiplayer through its awesome levelling system offers a high level of addiction that had previously only been experienced in the best of RPGs. 

Genre: First Person Shooter

Platforms: PC, PS3, Xbox 360 (Reviewed on Xbox 360)

Developed by: Infinity Wards

Published by: Acitivision