Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Review from Cav - Wednesday, 09 December 2009 @ 11:56am

So we are a little behind all the other sites. Not that it is anything new for Australian Gamer, but I actually wanted to take in this years most anticipated game and not punch out some quick spiel about the game ‘just to have the review up first’…..and I am glad I did.

If you didn’t play Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, well firstly you missed out on one hell of a game, in both the single and multiplayer aspects. Secondly you will probably be a bit lost when reading this review as I will be making most of my comparisons to COD4 and not COD World at War (or COD5 as the world calls it) as they are set in two different eras and made by two different companies. I played the living crap out of COD4, up until the point where friends in different time zones and I were playing multiplayer and one by one they dropped out of the game, off to attend midnight launches. So Modern Warfare 2 had one mutha of a reputation to live up to.

Heartbeat Sensors? Where are we? LV421?

The Campaign Mode is pretty full-on, placing you in the role of characters both new and from COD4. Once you get past the initial training ground session, which decides what difficulty level you should play the game at, it’s pretty intense from there on in, which is welcomed by seasoned FPS players. I was stoked to have an achievement appear within the first couple of minutes of the game, when a GLA round (Noob Toob for the uneducated) scored a multiple kill. It’s stuff like that that gives you half a boner and leaves you begging for more. As the campaign wore on and the storyline unfolded the action became really intense and I actually often found myself lost. The CO was screaming orders at me and even with the HUD map in the corner, I found I couldn't find exactly where he was ordering me to go. When I was actually focused and able to play the game freely without getting my arse lost, what I saw were some epic scenes. Snow mobiles, suburban streets, tightly packed residential areas, woodland retreats. The variety in the landscapes gave a different edge to each mission. When thrown in the deep end, the action was always intense. When working from afar, I felt like I had to make every hit count, so as not to blow our position. Certainly edge of your seat stuff.

So what is there to say about ‘that’ mission in the single player campaign that hasn’t been plastered across the internet, newspaper and other media fronts already? Not much. I don’t know if I felt funny playing through that level because of all the hype and media attention surrounding the elimination of innocent civilians in the airport. I actually only did mercy kills and shot up the luggage, watching clothes fly all over the place…until the riot cops came along, then it was a fight for survival. Could IW have taken a different approach to that mission? Yes. A cinematic short would have gotten the story across. All in all, I suppose it achieved what it was meant to: it got everyone’s attention. Did it increase sales? Probably not. This bad boy was going to ride on the success of its predecessor and sell from there anyway.

Overall I found the campaign to be a little short, and slightly scattered in the way of its story – cutting back and forth – I found that I followed COD4 a little more easily. So I am going to have to rate MW2’s Campaign mode behind COD4, although it is prettier and the action gradually become more intense. That’s a big call and I am ready to face a barrage of questions on why, although I have given my reasons. Don’t like it? Bring it. I am happy to answer anything.

Multiplayer: Wow – this is good… as long as you can find a decent connection (although, sometimes it works in your favour) and a group of players who don’t ‘camp’. Camping is insanely rampant in this game and makes for a disappointing day out.. There seems to be a greater hate in COD:MW2 for campers than ‘Noob Toobers’. I for one have always said the ‘Toobing’ actually takes a bit of skill, especially if attacking over a great distance. The more I play multiplayer, the more I find the odd annoying element. Shotguns seem to have an amazing range, whereas I struggle to contact my target with a P90 at the same distance. I just don't get it. There is an insane range of weapons to choose from. Not only has that, but the vast amount range of weapon modifications available allows players plenty of variety, with regards to finding the best combinations for selected scenarios and maps. Perfectionists out there will lose tonnes of sleep just trying to unlock everything. I have got my level up to 30 and not completed all the challenges for a single weapon yet... although that could once again prove the fact that I am not that good at games. To assist me in my shiteness, we now have ‘Deathstreak’ perks, were you are awarded bonuses to help the likes of me to be ‘unshit’...if that is even a word. It took me quite a few multiplayer gamer to work out how to call in my Care Packages (Killstreak rewards). Once I saw a grenade in my hand I hit the grenade button - why wouldn't you? This lead to me abruptly ending my killstreak. Looking like a total noob, I called out across the headset for assistance. Friends were more than happy to tell me to pull the trigger instead of hitting the button.... young kids (who by the sound of them weren't old enough to be playing this game ...surprise, surprise) were even quicker with their response in calling me names. Nothing a 'your mama' joke didn't fix.

IW has also poured it on thick with the broad range of Game Play options: Free For All, Headquarters, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag…the list goes on with my favourite option being Mosh Pit… not for the fact that in the early 90s I had hair longer than 95% of the females who currently frequent the AG Forums and a sickly looking wardrobe of black jeans, black t-shirts, flannelette shirts and hi-top sneakers… but because it swaps between game types. This saves jumping in and out, trying to swap games and running the risk of obtaining a bad connection. I also love the fact that if your game host drops out, you can continue that same game after the system chooses another host. This saves a lot of heartache that was suffered in COD4 when kicking arse and taking names only to be told ‘Host Ended Game’.

Close quarters action normally calls for a Shotgun, RPDs don't hold up well.

The maps are once again are taken from scenes in the campaign element of COD:MW2 although I find some of them to be ridiculously large for a multiplayer game. You can quite often be awarded the ‘Longest Life’ accolade by accident, because you spent a majority of your time traversing from your spawn point. On that note there are some elements of the multiplayer game in COD:MW2 that I don’t like. There are now Titles and Emblems that are added to your gamertag for that little bit of personalisation.... cosmetic crap in my opinion. Once again another example of time and resources wasted on things that could have been spent improving and lengthening the Campaign mode.

One other thing I continually question is whether or not COD:MW2 really needed Spec Ops, or was it just another excuse to put players together online? Everyone loves the challenge of a ‘Beat the Clock’ scenario. This is really for the perfectionists. Nothing more. I have played it a few times, both online and off and don't really feel like I want to play it again, even though I haven't completed it all to a three star level.

Pros

Multiplayer: this game wouldn't sell without it. Some great new weapons, perks and killstreak rewards - Great sound when played thru your home theatre. A few storyline surprises for those who played COD4

Cons

Painfully short Campaign Mode - Not sure if Spec Ops was really required - Multiplayer connection problems - A few glitches in Multiplayer... can be expected though as no MP demo was released...that'll learn ya IW!