Written by: Ian

 

 

 

CoD is of course, after the last two instalments, one of the most recognisable and popular franchises in gaming history. However, to me- the series has been going downhill since CoD2- so will this 6th game in the series, "Modern Warfare 2" win me over?

 

After 6 months with it, WaW was clearly the low point in the series- with terrible checkpointing and ridiculous grenade spamming that means it is, to date, the only game in the series I am yet to complete on Veteran... and whilst this was a 'Treyarch' game, my love for the series as a whole was definitely on the wane.

 

 

MW2 picks right up from where the first game left off, and the opening cut-scene helps you to re-familiarise yourself with the key events from the first title.

 

However, the story itself, whilst still short (a playthrough on normal will probably clock in at a mere 4-6 hours), Infinity Ward have concentrated on making it a much more cinematic experience. You will probably remember the nuclear blast that kills one of your protagonists if you played the first MW- and Infinity Ward tries to up the ante even further.

 

There are at least 4-5 big ‘wow’ moments like that throughout the game, that keep you hooked to the game, trying to work out what crazy shit IW will throw at you next. My only slight gripe was that to me, the ‘cliffhanger’ level was the most ‘wow’ level, and that comes pretty early in the game, which meant that some of the later levels, whilst great, were disappointing in the context of just how good ‘cliffhanger’ is.

 

 

The area I am most impressed with in MW2 is actually the gameplay. To me, completing the games on Veteran was becoming ridiculous, especially with WaW. Grenade spam and respawning enemies gave you no choice but to relentlessly pressing on, whilst the same problems led to hundreds of untimely deaths and a huge amount of frustration. IW has fixed these issues with a single stroke. Enemies no longer respawn, and I never found grenade spam to be a problem.

 

 

Don’t get me wrong- the game is still tough, and will ruthlessly punish any mistakes- but that is all it will punish anymore. No longer will you be doing awesome, ready to pop out and run, only to be blown up, ruining 10 minutes work. Checkpointing is tough, but fair, and will reward players who systematically clear out small areas or pockets of resistance.

 

You also get slightly more health than in previous games, although at the expense of being able to see less well, and a slightly longer period before your screen clears of blood. These seemingly simple changes have revolutionised the game on the hardest two difficulties. The game was still tough, and I died a fair few times, but I was pretty much never frustrated, and realised that most deaths were down to my own tactics or skill. It’s far more rewarding than before, and made me want to continue along. The actual action in the single player is also fantastic, and the addition of the snowmobile and boat levels are also fantastic, adrenaline filled levels that I absolutely loved.

 

Once you’ve played through the main game, you then also get to play the whole new mode that is available- spec ops. These are a collection of smallish, single levels that challenge you in different ways to earn stars. Some are gained just by completing the level on veteran (harder than it seems- there’s no checkpoints here!), whereas others require you to get point totals or finish in a certain time.

 

 

You can also play all the levels in split-screen or online with a friend too, which is awesome, and helps to make it a bit easier. However, getting all 69 stars is a huge challenge for any player, and adds a huge amount of value to the game. It’s a great new mode, and hopefully we’ll see more levels in the future through some of the promised DLC packs.