Review - Modern Warfare 2

Platform: Xbox 360
Spoiler Danger: Low

The Good
  + The last two hours of the campaign
  + Spec-Ops mode is my new crack
  + The final confrontation is epic

The Bad 
  - The campaign's story is mostly ridiculous
  - How many Shock and Awe moments can fit into one game?

I've been looking forward to Modern Warfare 2 for a very long time now. Since I beat the first one, actually. The first one was a sweeping epic that told a tight, finely woven story and had some of the most awe-inspiring moments in video game history. I won't lie to you; it's long been the bar by which I judge all other first person shooters. Between the honed game play, edge-of-your-seat story, and intense multiplayer, it's no wonder that hundreds of thousands of people were still playing it almost two years after its release.

Enter, then, the inevitable sequel.

My biggest questions regarding this game involved how Infinity Ward could top the first Modern Warfare game. Leave it to Infinity Ward, though, as they have managed to pull it off... mostly.

I'll start with multiplayer - there's very little that needs to be said. It is packaged bliss, and if you're not playing it yet, you must. Everything works in multiplayer: it is addicting, fun, deep, customizable, intense, and even more fun. I have nothing negative to say about Modern Warfare 2's online components, though sore losers make me want to rip my hair out. Every time you get angry because you lost a match, god kicks a puppy.

Spec Ops mode is a blast and is easily where I spend most of my time. There's something special about co-op game play, and this mode was designed for it from the ground up. It's the best way to kill many hours with a friend on the Xbox 360.

Single player, though, is my real bread and butter. All multiplayer and online components are secondary for me when purchasing a game. If the game fails at single player, I probably don't give a rip about the multiplayer. Modern Warfare 2 stacks up well in the single player department. Much like the first game, the game play is tight, and the story moves along at a nice pace. That being said, the story is way out there. MW1 had a plausible story that drove the game along. In MW2, the story is all over the place and hardly believable. This killed a lot of my fun. Not to mention that there were enough plot holes in the story for me and all of my friends to climb through. While it has some intense moments, the general un-believability of it really dampens the mood.

One of the best parts in the first MW was a level called "Shock and Awe." The video game world's collective jaw dropped at the end of that level as Infinity Ward gave us one of the most emotionally impacting scenes in the history of gaming. The impact of that level was huge, and it shows in the second iteration. There are several shock and awe moments in MW2, but none of them quite achieve the effect the original Shock and Awe did. Both succeed in spades when it comes to propelling the story, but neither gave me quite the feeling of jaw dropping horror that the original did.

One thing that the single player experience did wonderfully is the final couple of hours of game play. Once you've seen the big reveal, the game kicks the action up to 11, and does not let go until the credits roll. In particular, the final confrontation was epic in the way in pulls you along, clinging to the edge of your seat. In fact, I'd say that it was better than the final confrontation in the first MW game, and that is saying a bunch.

That's not to say the experience is bad, for it certainly is not. The action is intense and the game is difficult, particularly on the higher difficulties. The game's pacing is top notch. On top of that, the game makes great use of sound and my 5.1 system. Your team mates converse, letting you know where targets are, when the area is cleared, when reinforcements arrive, etc. Gunfire cuts violently through that chatter, explosions shake the floor... Add to this the intense score by Hans Zimmer and team, and you have a game that is as aurally pleasing as video games get.

On the whole, the single player story is lacking, but solid game play and some very intense action sequences more than make up for that. And if multiplayer is your cup of tea, this game can't be beat. Were it not for the general shoddiness of the story, this game would have easily scored a 10. That being said, it is a very entertaining ride, one that you should consider taking as soon as possible.

Score: 8.0/10.0