Modern Warfare 2 Review

Before we get into our review for Modern Warfare 2, we have to admit that we were huge fans of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, even more so than the more recent Call of Duty 5: World at War.



With that preamble out of the way, let’s get into our review. We just recently completed the single-player campaign, and all we can say is “Wow!” If you liked the tension and drama from the original Modern Warfare, or World at War, Infinity Ward takes it up a notch. We don’t want to spoil it for anyone, but it’s safe to say that the war spills over onto American soil, and the game does an amazing job of putting you right into the action. The graphics and sound are amazing! Hunting through suburban neighborhoods and slugging it out from atop a local restaurant brings a whole new level of realism to the game.

Without giving too much away, the campaign is split between two different groups, those in the U.S. and those overseas trying to stop the terrorists. You’ll alternate back and forth between the two groups and see why specific events occur, etc. Annoying at times, because you don’t want to stop and jump to a different mission in another part of the world, it does help mix things up and change the pace.

From racing away on snowmobiles to chasing down a terrorist lead through downtown slums, the single-player campaign has something for everyone. It could be compared to not only enjoying your favorite action flick, but having the ability to participate in it as well. Everything is top-notch including the mission objectives, locations, and most importantly, the plot. There is an actual story here, and it has all the suspense and plot twists you would expect from a Tom Clancy or John Grisham novel.

One can’t bring up “Modern Warfare 2” without the media hype surrounding the infamous “Airport Terminal” level. Yes, there is an “Airport Terminal” level where civilians die, and yes, it can be rather disturbing, but there are a few things to keep in mind when discussing this level: 1) you are given SEVERAL options to skip the level, without affecting the game, your score, etc. 2) your character doesn’t have to actually shoot anyone in the level, the terrorists will do all of it with or without you. 3) NO the level could not be taken out of the game without destroying the game.

The “Airport Terminal” level is CRITICAL to the overall game story. The game couldn’t actually take place without the critical events that transpire during the level. Could they have done it differently, using some type of mission briefing, a cut-scene, etc? Most definitely, but it would lose the impact that playing through the level has.

The level takes a couple of minutes out of an 8+ hour game, but it sets the stage for EVERYTHING. If you’re at all hesitant, skip it. If you’ve started the level and it’s too much for you, pause the game and skip the level. You’ve been warned, so do as you see fit. We WOULDN’T recommend letting your kids play this level… Modern Warfare 2 is rated “M” for a reason and it’s definitely a game that’s meant for adults.

One reviewer said of Modern Warfare 2 “You come for the single-player, but the multiplayer is why you stay.” We would have to agree with that statement 100%. The campaign is great fun, but we absolutely LOVE the multiplayer. We have everything we would expect from Infinity Ward, including TONS of weapons, weapon attachments and kill streaks, but what they had with the original Modern Warfare has been re-tooled slightly, and we love the changes.

Among those changes include “Death Streaks” that can be used when you’ve died a specific number of times without dispatching any enemies. They include such things as stealing the weapons and perks used by the person that killed you, to a “Pain Pill” that increases your health for a brief period of time when spawning. There are even a few that were Perks in previous versions of the game, including the ever popular "Ha ha ha, I just killed you... CRAP you dropped grenades!" “Martyrdom” “Death Streak.”

The “Kill Streaks” have been revamped as well, allowing you to have three kill streak rewards active at any one time, and the ability to unlock more rewards as you level. We have the entire kill streaks listed here. Needless to say, if you’re good enough in multiplayer mode, you have the ability to launch a game-ending tactical nuke, assuming you can wrack up the 25 kills without dying, and you’ve unlocked that particular reward.

You’re also not relegated to using just a pistol as your secondary weapon and don’t have to waste a perk to get something that you can use effectively. In Modern Warfare 2 you can select between several different weapons, including machine pistols (fully automatic), shotguns and more. You even have the ability to unlock attachments for your secondary weapons.

Our two biggest complaints about the previous Call of Duty games were the size of the maps and the pain caused by the host ending the game prior to the time or score limit being reached.

The maps in Modern Warfare 2 are MUCH larger, especially when compared to the original Modern Warfare. The spawn and frag mentality that plagued Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is a thing of the past, for which we are VERY grateful. There is also much more variety in the location of the maps, as well as the overall number of maps.

Infinity Ward also added a “Host Migration” feature, which prevents the game from ending because the host ended the game. We have a video of it here, so that you can see it in action. Needless to say, we’ve seen it several times already, and it’s worked like a charm every time, allowing us to continue our fragfest regardless of what the host does.

We were a little spoiled with Call of Duty: World at War, and expected some of the same things that we saw there, but so far, they aren’t to be with Modern Warfare 2. Our two biggest complaints about the game would be the lack of a co-op mode for the campaign, and the inability to drive any of the vehicles in the multiplayer modes… The new “Spec Ops” mode is cool, and we've had a ton of fun running through it with our friends, but it doesn't compare to sharing the complete campaign experience with a buddy.

Our absolute biggest complaint about the game is the fact that there aren’t more hours in the day, and that the human body actually requires sleep to maintain itself. Modern Warfare 2 may just be our overall game of the year, and is definitely our shooter of the year. If you love the Call of Duty franchise or shooters in general, you can’t go wrong with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. We give it a 10 out of 10.

Modern Warfare 2 is available for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. It is rated Mature by the ESRB.

Buy Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2