A large proportion of Destructoid readers and writers are predominantly console oriented. This isn't a problem, but it has caused some pretty harsh things to be said about the PC community's outrage regarding the dedicated server issue. I'm not trying to be condescending towards console gamers when I say that many of you may not understand what the benefits are of the dedicated server model. Many of these have been posted already in comments; I just want to consolidate some points here to make it clear to everyone.

Advantages to dedicated servers:

Community

While Activision is right in saying that we can still "party up" to play with clans or friends, this is not equivalent to a dedicated server model. With a dedicated server, friends can have a "hang-out" - an always-on gameplay destination where like-minded friends play together, no inviting required.

In a server where the people have gotten to know eachother, voice chat is used for team-building and co-operation.

Lag

This point is pretty obvious - lag is worse with peer-to-peer connections, and the host has a definitive advantage.

Matchmaking

One common thing with the "voting" matchmaking model is that certain maps and gameplay types take the foreground. This is, democratically speaking, a great model, but with servers admins can ensure that a proper rotation is in effect and, every once in a while, the lone person who's interested in ctf_2fort gets to play what he wants.

It's also much easier to find a server with the maps and gameplay types you want when you can scroll through a list.

Mods

Mods are a huge part of the PC gaming community. Mods create dozens of great game modes that otherwise would not have existed. Maps are also a big part of this - TF2 is a great example of a game where community made maps are not only available, but excellent, eventually being integrated into the "official" rotation.





Dedicated servers obviously have some disadvantages as well. They don't allow for "balance" matchmaking, admins have a lot of power, and sometimes its hard to know where to start. But for many PC gamers the advantages listed above are a huge part of why they choose the platform, and taking that away is a serious change that is not as trivial as a 10$ Activision tax or a yearly release schedule. Please keep in mind that the people who are up in arms over the MW2 debacle are not just crazed nerds, they have legitimate complaints.