The Best First-Person Shooter, EVER!

Author's Rating:

Pros: Multiplayer, Graphics, Speed, Reuse Value, Customization Options, Voice Chat Available

Cons: Boosters (cheaters), Unable to select maps in multiplayer

The Bottom Line: 
I would recommend this game to any first-person shooter fans or those who like gaming in general.  Not for those who have families.

Author's Review
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (MW2) has revolutionized gaming. Period. I have never been a huge fan of first-person shooting games; I haven’t played a console game for as much time since the days of Final Fantasy XII for regular Playstation. That is how good this game is. 

Game Play: 9/10 The game play in MW2 is fast-paced, varied and challenging. There are three primary game modes for MW2: Special Ops, Single Player and Multiplayer.


Single-Player 8/10
Single-player mode is very fun until you discover multiplayer. The player follows multiple characters as a worldwide storyline unfolds much like the late GoldenEye007. The storyline itself is very encapsulating and leaves the player on the edge of his/her seat until the final moments. I won’t spoil it here.

MW2 is different than other first person shooters because instead of it being one man against the whole world, it is literally a war zone. You are generally grouped with 5-10 teammates and must survive waves and waves of enemy troops that bombard you with grenades, flash bangs, air attacks, tanks and numerous other methods of destruction.
Single-Player mode is very challenging and players will often die multiple times before completing a level. Luckily there is a checkpoint system, which allows the player to resume a level from certain points once they reach them.
  
NOTE: Remember to save your game when quitting even if you’ve reached checkpoints. If you don’t you will have to start from the beginning of the level again. This mode is fun for a while and is definitely worth it for those that don’t have an Internet connection. For those that do, however, single-player mode is quite simply a warm-up and tutorial for the real game: Online Multiplayer. 

Multiplayer 10/10
COD: MW 2 comes with a slew of multiplayer options that allow the user to remain blissfully addicted to the game for months. It comes with the classic mode: split screen along with its online multiplayer mode and a Local Area Network (LAN) mode. 

The LAN mode is for users in the same house or location on different system that want to play. I haven’t messed around much with this mode because, quite honestly, there is no need to mess around with it.  

The online multiplayer mode in COD: MW2 is unrivaled. It is fast, action packed, diverse (in regards to game types) and enthralling. The player can choose from over ten games modes; I will describe my favorites. 


Free-for-All
 Oh hell yeah! There is nothing better than running around in an abandoned airport with the legal, moral and virtually physical ability to shoot anything that moves! This is my favorite game mode because it tests the true strength and courage of one man and one man only. This is the classic game mode that goes by the mantra, “Kill or Be Killed.”
 
There is one minor drawback to this game mode: boosters. Boosters are players that purposely meet up in Free-for-All (FFA) level and kill each other continuously so they can level up faster and use more effective killstreaks (will be touched upon later). This really skews the way the game goes and I will generally leave a game if obvious boosters are on the map with me. The other way to deal with them is to learn the hiding spots that they go to and throw a grenade in there (try it, its fun). Despite the existence of boosters, this is the most fun game mode in my opinion. 

Team Deathmatch
 This game mode is pretty self-explanatory. You are teamed up (randomly) with 4-6 other players and the team with most kills wins. I generally play this game mode when I’m trying to level up weapons that aren’t effective in FFAmode. This mode is also good for beginner users because they are placed with some teammates for added protection and point opportunities.
 
The other game modes are variations on TeamDeathmatch. Sabotage, for example, is a game mode in which the players are split into two teams, each with their own base. There is also a bomb placed in the middle of the map and the goal of the game is for one team to carry the bomb to the other teams base and blow it up. For a full description on game modes you can visit:http://www.modernwarfare247.com/multiplayer/game-modes 

Special-Ops
 The third type of game mode that is rather unique to Call of Duty is the Special Ops game mode. This mode is a split screen mode where two people play as partners on the same team. I have gone through most of the levels in this game mode and it is rather fun, however it is much more fun to join up with your friends online and team up againstreal people. 

Leveling Up
 The feature that makes COD: MW2 so addictive is the weapon and user leveling system. Although leveling in split-screen mode and online multiplayer mode are down under two different user profiles, the process remains the same. The player starts off (in either mode) at level 1 and must get kills, gun upgrades and complete challenges to level their profile up. As a user levels up, more weapons and weapons attachments are unlocked. For each weapon there are a numerous amount of attachments that can be unlocked. Some of my favorites include: the holographic scope, the grenade launcher, the silencer, bullet penetration ammo, akimbo (duel weapon wield) and the tactical knife. 
The actual player can gain levels up to level 70, the maximum level. 

Once at level 70 the user has the option of continuing to play, complete challenges and level up weapons. The user will not, however, gain any profile experience as they are already at the maximum. The other option that the player has is to “prestige”. Prestiging is a something that must be thought through before doing. The player goes back to level 1, loses all their weapon unlocks and all their perk unlocks (will be touched upon later) unlocks. The only advantage of prestiging is gaining an emblem (bragging rights) and the ability to create one more custom class (6 instead of 5). For advanced players this extra custom class is a big deal because it allows you to be more diverse in your weapon setups. Other than that prestiging does not give players an advantage during gameplay. 

Graphics 9/10
 Not much needs to be said about the graphics other than the fact that they’re great. I am an IT administrator and have been able to see the evolution of technology throughout the past 15 years. It is unbelievable to me how great the graphics render for a game that is played online with other people, whether connected wirelessly or wired. There are a few minor glitches as can be expected, mainly when you try to stab someone and they try to stab you at the same time. Other than that the graphics are amazing. 

Sound 9/10
 The sound in the game is great if played on a surround sound system. In fact, those using surround sound actually have an advantage over those who do not because it is easier to tell which direction explosions, gunshots and footsteps come from. 

Learning Curve 7/10
 As with any application or game, the speed at which a user becomes comfortable all depends on the user’s abilities. As a whole, however, COD MW2 is relatively complicated to learn right off the bat. My advice would be to get through most of the single-player levels before moving to multiplayer. Also, before trying to throw flash grenades and throwing knifes it is important to become comfortable with the basics (shooting, aiming, running, crouching, etc.). After some time playing the game the controls will start to come automatically; do not fret if you don’t get it in the first day. 

The Only REAL Problem
 The only real problem with COD MW 2 is when joining multiplayer games you can choose your game mode but there is no way to choose the map. A random map is selected and players have the option to "vote to skip" on one of the maps before the game begins. If a majority vote is reached, a new random map appears. There are some maps that I love, however, and they are never chosen (Rust for example). This feature NEEDS to be changed in future editions because it is very annoying. 

Overall
 Overall, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 2 is the best first-person shooter game ever made, so far (Black Ops is out soon!). The game play is almost endless because of multiplayer mode and the graphics and customizable objects are right up to par as well. If you enjoy first-person shooters you will absolutely love this game. Even if you don’t particularly like first-person shooters it is worth renting and trying out because, as I said, before this game I was not a huge fan of the genre; now I can’t put it down. The only people I would not recommend this game for are those who have families because this game will surely limit your time with what really matters. 
Enjoy!