Does 'Modern Warfare 2' Blow Away the Competition, or Just Blow?
It may be the hottest game of the holidays, but is it the best?
Nov. 30, 2009— -- Possibly the most sought after video game of the holiday season (or ever), "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" will knock your socks off, gently put them back on you and then blow them off again. No apologies offered.
The follow-up to Infinity Ward's 2007 mega hit "Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare" delivers more variety, multiplayer and co-op game play than you probably deserve, and builds on the already sturdy foundation set down by its predecessor.
The new Special Ops game mode, plus tons of additions to the franchise's already robust multiplayer offerings, deliver in spades what fans of the franchise have been waiting two years for.
Set five years after the first "Modern Warfare," and following the pattern set forth by previous games in the "Call of Duty" series, players control a variety of characters in sequences that all serve the main storyline.
Players will fight through missions around the world, traveling to exotic locations like Rio de Janeiro, Afghanistan, Siberia, and, er, Washington D.C., (OK, maybe not that exotic).
Although the game delivers the same intense chills, thrills and spills as "Modern Warfare," lovers of the franchise's immersive single-player campaigns may find that this sequel falls a little "short."
The game should only take about eight hours or so for players to get through, making "short" the operative word.
Let's get it out of the way. Yes, there is a sequence in the game in which players "participate" in a terror attack on an airport.
Though it may be disturbing for some, within the context of the game it makes sense and is not the "here's your chance to be a blood-thirsty enemy of freedom with no repercussions" kind of experience some have accused it of being.
However, the real question when playing the level is what it adds to the story and experience? One could argue that it drives the villain's story and gives players a hands-on idea of just how terrible a person he is. But are there other -- maybe more palatable -- ways this could have been achieved?
