Out of chaos we see the tenants of order rise, the world always needs a savior(s) to restore the sanctity of laws which are broken by devious masterminds. Modern Warfare 2 begins with a similar premise. Five years down the line mankind still lusts for blood of its won kind, all schemes of nefarious ultranationalist activities are now controlled by yet another Russian terrorist called “Makarov” who strings together a series of events that rejuvenate the once dead cold war between Russia and the United States into a full fledged war that involves all forms of modern warfare excluding nukes this time around.
Though the nuclear fallout that occurred in the previous war is slyly mentioned and forms the basis for the ultimate plot twist. Infinity Ward has jotted down the sequence of events in such a manner that it leaves enough banter to fill in for the inevitable sequel.
Modern Warfare starts off with a slightly less provoking bang than its predecessor, but makes sure it follows up in its moments of excitement or what the media terms as “acts of incessant violence” in the form of “No Russian” or the destruction of the White House that is supposed to represent seats of penultimate global power. Though these missions are reflective of Infinity Ward’s creative house, they also reflect a vision that is stark and extremely more grotesque than any other conspiracy theory vision since the artists have crafted out an impressionable tasks in immersing the player in the environments.
The concept of patriotism that is showcased in the twist of the game should not come off as a surprise to Metal Gear veterans since it’s almost expected by the time the player is well into the game’s narrative. The original game brought forward a level of immersion that had not quite been seen in video games so far. These included immersing the player in a situation rather than making him witness a pointless cutscene. Though these elements are carried forward in the sequel in a much more dynamic manner and fulfills the basic objective of keeping an immersive experience through the course of the game, however they are extremely short in duration and disappear as soon they begin and immerse the player.
The core mechanics of the game remain unchanged, the objective is to shoot everything in sight and blowing up stuff as and when required. The chaotic structure of the game has been widely appreciated in the series and Modern Warfare 2 leaves no stone upturned in dropping players into situations where utterance of the concept of stealth minimal at best.Authentic weaponry is another field where Modern Warfare 2 excels, stacks of weapons are strewn all across the map, with the sole objective of decapitating the oncoming target. In addition to this, Infinity Ward decided to add snippets of vehicular combat in the game. Since each of the games sequence mirrors a Hollywood movie in some eerie fashion, there is a need to incorporate stylized and furious vehicular sequences that are as short as dynamic action sequences aforementioned.
Visual appraisal seems to be pouring in from all quarters in the game, it is true the game runs at a solid 60 fps in most situations and has amazing textures, particle and lighting effects, but there is a major downside which has been absent from almost every alternative review, the play area of the game has not increased. So after a point in time players are left circling the same area over and over again which looks a tad bit shoddy. The texture work on most objects is bland and washed out, it’s the particle effects and artwork that compensate for creating the illusion of great looking atmosphere. The artwork beings to take a downfall once the player enters within the confines of a house, where the empty walls and ill drawn up paintings, remove the brilliant imagery that is otherwise seen on the horizon of the game during combat.
Enemy soldiers still fall stiff as cardboards with minimal amount of physics incorporated into the bodies, numbers still do the job as a compensation for weak artificial intelligence. The developers have also found an alternative to draw the player into a much more dynamic form of combat, this we can term as “alternative” placing. Since the areas are wider in the game, once the player dies during combat, he will not experience the enemies at the same location, but this is a repetitive process, once the player figures out the placing of the enemies in the environment, he can easily take charge of the area in a matter of minutes.
Hans Zimmer’s construction of pensive background score is worthy of an applause since it brings the concept of sweaty hands and extreme palpitation that are a direct result of the tension onscreen. Spec-ops has also been included as a stand alone single player/two player mode where players complete objectives, receive medals and unlock bonus missions that places them in the areas of the game but with a differing bunch of objectives.
Multiplayer the star of the 13 million+ seller game returns and so do the options to engage in mortal combat, Capture The Flag, Demolition, Domination, Team deathmatch, Search & Destroy and Free-For-All are all present in an upgraded format. Players can now customize their killing streaks, the system of rewards are now included in offline multiplayer play as well, ensuring that players spend hours endlessly traversing through one map and the next in the quest to become the world’s greatest virtual “patriot”
The Final Word: Modern Warfare 2 improves in great lengths over its predecessor, but it feels as if the developers only intended to give players a sample of their main course, not the whole thing at one go. The single player campaign feels extremely short and is over before you know it, but the additional modes rev the game up a few notches even though they are mere refinements over its predecessor. The game has all the production values of a blockbuster but the nuclear explosion from the first game is still etched in our minds than what has been otherwise termed as “No Russian.”
Graphics: 8/10.
Gameplay: 8/10.
Sound: 9.5 /10.
Budget Pocket: 9/10.
Overall (not on an average): 8.5 /10.