This is it. This is the game we have all been waiting for. Months of hype, days of early releases, all for the sequel to the best-selling first-person shooter of all time. Is the hype all justified in Infinity Ward's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2?

Yes it is. Oh boy is it. Through three modes of play: single-player, online multiplayer, and co-operative, the men at Infinity Ward have proven once again that they are the kings of the Call of Duty series.



Many people will play Modern Warfare 2 for its online multiplayer, but what about jaded friendless misanthropes who can't afford or don't want to go online? The single-player is a great story, guaranteed to shock and offend, full of twists and turns. So why do I get this feeling of emptiness as I play it? The campaign is fun in short bursts, but if you're looking for a coherent story, this is not the place for it. The potential was there for a story that mixed elements of almost any Tom Clancy novel and an entire season of 24. The characters are not well-developed, the motives are unclear, all this story really has going for it is shock value. That's not to say the story is bad, it's just underdeveloped, a casualty of Infinity Ward's stubborn refusal to extend the criminally short-campaign in the first Modern Warfare.

But who plays Call of Duty for the story? The modes people will care about are going to be the online multiplayer and the Special Ops co-operative mode. I'm pleased to say that the two are very much enjoyable. Special Ops ties into the main story somewhat, while the online has been nicely re-balanced in ways other than just adding new weapons, perks, and also changing a couple gameplay elements. The biggest additions are to the lauded perks system. Instead of just having static perks that you earn through play, your perks can actually evolve into a “Pro” version of it by using them in matches and also completing set challenges. Some perks require going into Prestige Mode to get the Pro Perk, which adds incentive to activating Prestige Mode, making Prestige more like a New Game Plus in some of your favorite Square RPGs as opposed to just going into Prestige Mode to show how much of a hardcore Modern Warfare player you are.

Another major addition to the multiplayer is customizable kill streaks and all-new death streaks. Now, the playing field has been leveled for new players, or those who just don't have the time to do marathon sessions of multiplayer. Kill streaks can start at 3 like normal, with the same rewards for kill streaks like in Modern Warfare (UAV, air strike, helicopter), but you can add more stuff like UAV jamming, EMP strikes, and even nuking an entire level clean of people. As you might expect, death streaks are just the opposite, giving you extra health, allowing you to steal your killer's perks, and many others I don't want to spoil.



Also, host migration has made it into the game, which makes it great for people who hated getting kicked back to the lobby because the host lagged out or just left (possibly due to nerd rage).

On the other hand, Special Ops is up to four people, and the scenarios are very similar to the Nazi Zombies mode. Except here, the mode is much better-executed. You are placed into scenarios where you have to hold down certain positions in the campaign, although you are free to move all around the map. The goal is to earn stars, and you can earn them by completing set numbers of waves at different difficulty levels (from Recruit to Veteran).

Sounds like a perfect game right? Well, there are some problems with Modern Warfare 2, and most of them are related to the story. One thing that PC gamers have gone nuts over is the elimination of dedicated servers, which will not hurt console gamers much, if at all. I didn't even know what was a dedicated server and what wasn't in the original.

Technologically, it's all there for Modern Warfare 2. The locales look brilliant, the enemy AI is wicked on the higher difficulties (but it still can be just as cheap as past Call of Duty games), and best of all, there are no more infinitely spawning enemy points! Those were the most annoying part of any Call of Duty game, and their elimination has been long overdue. Hans Zimmer of Batman Begins fame has composed a soundtrack that, like other games in the series, is sparse, but is a perfect mood-setter for when it is playing.

So is it Game of the Year? Many people have prematurely given the award to Modern Warfare 2, and while there are still a few big-name games to go this year, this one is definitely the front-runner. From a single-player standpoint, the campaign's story needed more substance for it to be truly great, but the online multiplayer will distract you from the campaign's lack of substance.

Modern Warfare 2 gets a 5 out of 5.