Before yesterday, I honestly couldn’t recall the last time I sat down and played a game from start to finish, without taking a single break.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has been billed as the most anticipated game of 2009, and for good reason. The original was a smash success, much to the surprise of everyone, including its own publisher. Smooth-as-silk gunplay, addictive multiplayer, and a stunning campaign mode were enough to push 14 million copies – so, it’s understandable that the hype train for the inevitable follow-up has been all but insane.

So, does Modern Warfare 2 live up to all of this self-made hype? The answer is a resounding yes. Modern Warfare 2 is a game that everyone should play; even those with aversions to the FPS genre. Few other titles manage to rival the sheer intensity of the game’s tightly-woven action sequences, and there’s not a single other shooter on the market that’s so easy to pick up and play, yet features such amazing depth.

First and foremost there is the game’s campaign mode. To be sure, the original Modern Warfare is a hell of an act to follow – but believe it or not, Infinity Ward managed to push the envelope a bit further. Sure, it’s still fairly short, but it’s relentlessly intense, blindingly fast-paced, and features mind-blowing action setpieces that rival – or perhaps even surpass – the recently-released Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.  You don’t have to be an FPS junkie to enjoy the story here. It’s a thrillride from start to finish, featuring more twists, chills, and “oh shit,” moments than you can shake a stick at.

What really sets it apart, however, is how realistic everything feels. Being Modern Warfare, it’s entirely fictionalized – and yet, every tragic event that takes place feels like it’s just a minor extrapolation of reality. The infamous airport “terrorist” scene is, indeed, a part of the game – and yes, it’s one of the single most disturbing gameplay segments ever created. Yet at the same time, it’s one of the most emotionally evocative sequences I’ve ever experienced. Modern Warfare 2 clearly sets out to evoke the horrors of war and terrorism, and it accomplishes this goal to a chilling effect. As much as I’d love to reference specific events, it would be a great injustice to any potential players. Bottom line: this is one ride you don’t want to sit out.

It’s unfortunate, then, that a story this good is conveyed rather… incoherently, at times. Like the original Modern Warfare and World at War before it, Modern Warfare 2 doesn’t pause long for the sake of plot development. Intelligence screens in between levels supply fairly bare-bones information accompanied by voiceovers. All in all, it feels like much of the plot is conveyed by angry orders barked from up top. On one hand, this makes the game feel like a more authentic war experience. On the other hand, trying to listen to an extremely plot-relevant conversation taking place in the midst of a large-scale gunfight is, to say the least, a little frustrating. However, this isn’t to say that the game is entirely incomprehensible as a result. This balls-to-the-walls method of plot development has always been a weak point of the Call of Duty franchise. If anything, Modern Warfare 2 does a better job of keeping things straight than previous entries have.

Modern Warfare 2 looks absolutely fantastic. You’ll constantly be amazed at how much is taking place on-screen at one time, and how good it manages to look throughout. Character models are detailed and expressive, textures have received a step up from the previous game, and the framerate never dips to noticeable levels. Some of the game’s levels display remarkable artistic direction as well, from the colorful locales of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to the war-torn streets of the United States. Sound design is worth mentioning as well; the chaotic noises of battle constantly crowd the air in Modern Warfare 2, and they’re a vital part of the game’s oppressive atmosphere. Voice acting is solid across the board, and veterans of the original Modern Warfare will be glad to hear (and see) some key returning characters.

New to Modern Warfare 2 is the Spec Ops mode, which was essentially designed to provide a co-op experience where the single-player campaign could not. (Although many of the missions can be played single-player as well.) At the time of this writing, I haven’t spent much time at all with Special Ops, but the gist of it is fairly simple. If you have a friend and a second controller, it can be a lot of fun, but don’t expect any additional story content. The missions are essentially challenge rooms, in which you complete certain objectives in order to earn stars.

And of course, no review would be complete without mention of Call of Duty’s infamous multiplayer modes. And there are a lot of them, for both online and offline multiplayer. There is still the ability to play offline split-screen with friends on your couch, which is still a lot of fun – though with only four players max, it can be difficult to find eachother on the game’s gigantic maps. Online is where the main course is with multiplayer, and it’s a ton of fun. It becomes an addiction in and of itself, not just because of how much fun it is, but because of all the little incentives that Infinity Ward included – simply put, the more you play, the more you unlock. Weapons, classes, titles, emblems, game modes, and more. I’ve currently acquired a mere 7% of the available goodies, and I’m thirsty for me. Also, maybe I shouldn’t be surprised, but it works fantastically on PSN. I’ve never had to wait more than a minute to join a game, and I’ve never experienced any noticeable lag. Just be careful, because the online arena is no place for a noob. You will be torn apart, and quickly; and people will jeer at you while they do it.

As the world expected, Modern Warfare 2 is one of 2009’s best games. I doubt that it will win quite as many Game of the Year recognitions as the original did, but the only reason for that is… well… amazing as it may be, we have seen most of this before. To be sure though, Modern Warfare 2 is a better overall package than the original Modern Warfare, and it beats the hell out of World at War. Unless first-person shooters give you migraines, you have absolutely no excuse not to pick this one up. You won’t have a better time with a shooter this year.

Tags: Modern Warfare 2, Reviews

This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 11th, 2009 at 2:55 pm and is filed under Modern Warfare 2 Week. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.