3 years ago I reviewed Infinite Ward‘s reboot of the original Modern Warfare. I hailed it as my game of the year pick and I still stand by that choice to this day.
Never had I enjoyed a campaign as much as 2019s Modern Warfare. Yes, there are some contenders that follow closely behind like the original Modern Warfare 2, Black Ops and Infinite Warfare, yet none could compare to the brilliance that was Modern Warfare (2019).
The story was brilliant, the writing was sublime, and the characters, the graphics, the cutscenes and the multiplayer (with the introduction of Warzone). I was excited to see what was next.
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Treyarch’s entry with Black Ops: Cold War was certainly a nice follow-up. The story was like a spy thriller, the graphics were jaw-dropping and it also added a new element of choice to your missions which I really liked. The thing that was the Icing on the cake for me was multiplayer. It was so much fun. The map variety was superb, the gunsmith was top notch and the overall interface of the multiplayer and matchmaking was smooth and intuitive. It was hands down my favourite Call Of Duty for Multiplayer. And not just because I was also actually good at it too!
The next game that followed was Call Of Duty: Vanguard. I have to say that this was a bit of a step back for me. While again the game looked stunning in its graphics, the story really didn’t grip me like the ones that came before. There was only one real stand-out mission where you play as Laura Bailey’s Polina Petrova which felt like it was snatched right out of ‘Enemy at the Gates, yet that was it. The multiplayer felt too similar to Call Of Duty WWII and didn’t really add anything for me.
Whereas Infinite Ward and Treyarch have clear goals in the storylines and franchises of Modern Warfare and Black Ops, I find Sledgehammers’ run to be a bit inconsistent, like it’s still trying to find its footing. They had a good game with Advanced Warfare then ditched that time period to go back to WW2, whereas the other main-line games stay more in the modern era. We shall see where they will go next in 2024.
Which leads us to now. With the most recent instalment of the franchise and like I said in my 2019 review “The ball is back in the series creators’ court”, with Infinite Ward and Modern Warfare 2.
Now there are many great sequels out there, Mass Effect 2, Gears of War 2 and The Last of Us Pt II to name a few. But there is always that fear in the back of my mind ‘Can they do one better than what came before?’
So, let’s take a look!
Let’s start with the Campaign.
As Call Of Duty campaigns go, this is on the top tier in my books. The best is Modern Warfare 2019, closely followed by the original Modern Warfare 2. So how does the campaign match up to its predecessor and to its original incarnation?
To put it bluntly, very well!
It’s a great follow-up to the fantastic story of Modern Warfare (2019) however it just felt like it was lacking a real stand-out story moment that made the game memorable. What do you mean by this, I hear you asking? Modern Warfare (2019) had so many memorable moments in its story. From the classic and ultra-realistic ‘Clean House’ mission to the 13 Hours, Secret Soldier of Benghazi inspired ‘The Embassy’ mission. Each of those missions in its own right pushed the bar in what a COD game could do for its narrative. It was something we had never seen before in the franchise. In the case of Modern Warfare 2 however, there weren’t any missions that particularly stood out for me. There are a few exceptions, however, which were more gameplay elements than stand-out story moments. These are the missions ‘Recon By Fire’, ‘Dark Water’ and ‘Alone.
To start ‘Recon by Fire’ is a beefed-up version of the ‘Going Dark’ mission in Modern Warfare (2019). It is a large open map set on a small secluded island in Spain with Gaz and Price trying to find out what operation the game’s main villain ‘Hassan’ has going on there.
It is a sniping mission and is essentially a call back to the ‘All Ghillied Up’ mission from the original Modern Warfare. You play as Gaz and have to clear out enemies using stealth and a keen eye for marksmanship to get to your main objective at the lighthouse on the coast of the island. I would have to say that this is one of the lengthier missions depending on how you approach it. For me, I set myself the goal of using stealth and not breaking that element of surprise. I took my time and hid whilst enemies passed close by on foot and really put some thought into lining up my shots to (as Price puts it a lot in this mission) take two out with one shot. So in the end this mission can take up to an hour, but depending on how you approach it, it is entirely up to you.
The second stand-out mission gameplay-wise was ‘Dark Water’. Again I could see that this was a call back to the original Modern Warfare mission ‘Crew Expendable’ and the original Modern Warfare 2 mission ‘The only easy day…was yesterday’ which was also set on an oil rig and cargo ship. The key stand-out feature of this mission was the cargo ship itself. Navigating the main deck was absolute torture. Hats off to the developers for this mission as it both infuriated me and delighted me at the same time. You have to get from the bow of the ship to the bridge on the stern of the ship. But to do this you must cross the open deck littered with loose cargo containers and bad guys trying to kill you. What makes this mission so challenging is that nine times out of ten it won’t be an enemy killing you in your attempt to make it to the bridge, it will be a cargo container slamming into you and crushing you dead. They are everywhere, they are unforgiving and they are relentless. Couple that with the rain and waves crashing over the sides of the ship adds to the anxiety of how to best approach this literal minefield. You really need to take a step back and plan your way through this one, because if you don’t, you’ll be cursing loudly at that cargo container coming straight for you out of nowhere with the bridge just a footstep away.
Lastly is the mission ‘Alone’. I will go back on myself here and say that this is also a stand-out story set piece. Like in the original Modern Warfare 2 Task Force 141 is betrayed by General Sheppard. However this time it’s not Sheppard directly pulling the trigger, it’s his lap dog Commander Graves of his Shadow Company. You play as Soap here, and after Graves turns on you, Alejandro and Ghost, you manage to flee the area both badly wounded and ‘Alone’.
After the cutscene, you make radio contact with Ghost who is dug in at the local church. You have to make your way through the Mexican town of Las Almas which has been overrun by Shadow soldiers killing anything that moves which forces you to use stealth here. I tried going loud and it didn’t end well. This is another mission that can take anywhere up to an hour depending on how you play. The great dynamic here though is the ability to craft crude and rudimentary weapons out of supplies you find in the field as you work your way through the ruined streets of Las Almas. You don’t obtain any guns until the tail end of the mission and even then (unless it’s a silenced weapon) you should only use them as a last resort. You can craft an array of tools from a pry tool to open locked doors and draws, smoke bombs, a shiv, Molotov’s and trap bombs. It’s unique, and creative and really puts you in the sense of using the environment to your advantage.
So there is just a taster of this Call of Duty campaign. And I have to say it has been one of the most challenging Call Of Duty campaigns I’ve ever experienced, and that’s what makes it so fun. The story as well is a truly good one to experience. It’s not quite as good as its predecessor but it certainly trails behind it very closely. The main thing I love about this campaign is that it is a truly globetrotting story. You’ll be going from country to country, from Mexico and Spain to Amsterdam and Chicago. It’s World War Z (the film) in video game form, but with a terrorist plot to uncover instead of a global zombie apocalypse to survive.
Like the COD games before it, Modern Warfare 2 is packed with homages to popular action films and Television shows, but I found them to be more subtly used this time around. There were definite influences from the TV show Narco’s and the feature film Sicario, but the end mission felt mainly inspired by Die Hard. Take that as you will but that’s my two cents.
The one negative criticism I had about the campaign of Modern Warfare 2 was in its domestic villains of General Sheppard and Shadow Companies Commander Phillip Graves.
The betrayal towards Task Force 141 didn’t feel as backstabbing as it did in the original Modern Warfare 2. And for me that was down to this portrayal of General Sheppard commanding operations from behind a desk and not out in the field like in the original Sheppard. The backstabbing this time around came from his puppet Graves, and while the scene played out in a tense and uneasy manner (cleverly aided by the subtitles turning from friendly green to enemy red) it didn’t have the same impact as the original ‘Et Tu, Brute’ moment. The betrayal we gamers felt when Sheppard shot Ghost in cold blood and then left Roach for dead as they were both then set on fire sparked a red hot burning hatred for revenge. This meant that the payoff of Shepard’s death scene at the end of the game was worth it and satisfying. And what a scene that was, ouch! This time around you can’t quite pin on who is the bad guy here. Yes, it’s obvious that Graves is the one turning on you and then proceeding to hunt you down, but Sheppard doesn’t feel as strong a villain as he once was.
Overall though the campaign was a strong entry to the Call of Duty franchise and one that is defiantly worth multiple playthroughs.
For Multiplayer, the game excels in typical COD Fashion with highly addictive online gameplay. The gameplay really feels balanced with nice perks to unlock through your progression. I also really like the variety of maps here. However, there aren’t any that stand out to me quite like Black Ops: Cold War’s ‘Zoo’ map for example (I love that map!)
A gunsmith is back and is fully fleshed out and very expansive with a wide array of weapon attachments and cosmetics to mod your guns to your heart’s content. You’ll be creating your favourite loadouts for hours on end with plenty of Camo’s to unlock for your guns through challenges to complete.
The vault edition of the game includes a cross-gen bundle of the game for both PS4 and PS5. It also includes additional content for multiplayer including:
- A red team 141 operator pack which includes Ghost, Soap, Farah and Price.
- FJX Cinder – First ever weapon Vault
- Battle pass (1 season) + 55 Tier Skips.
Now having played a considerable amount of hours now on multiplayer I can safely say this is one of my favourites for online gameplay. My first was Black Op: Cold War as previously mentioned.
The multiplayer side is extremely fun. Countless hours have been spent on team deathmatch ranking myself up and all my favourite load-outs.
Operations also make a return here with three new missions to play out with a friend. Again many hours of fun were spent playing out the missions with a friend online as we found and planned multiple ways to tactically complete each mission as stealthily as we could.
But it’s not all sunshines and rainbows here in Modern Warfare 2.
Unfortunately, the PS4 version (and my playthrough in particular) was plagued with bugs that detracted from the overall experience.
In the campaign the audio would start to stutter during important story elements. Cutscene audio would too fall victim to this with me having to rely heavily on the subtitles.
I also experienced a weird lag with movement controls where (even in the campaign) my character would be delayed in movement and would refuse to go in the direction I wanted. At first, I thought this was a controller issue, so I switched to a different controller in the hope that would rectify the issue I was experiencing. At first, it did look like it was just down to my hardware, but then the movement lag came back. This was exceptionally annoying on multiplayer as sometimes when I was playing the movement would overcompensate and would go past the point I was trying to aim at.
Now the developers are aware of this and the most recent patch has done a pretty good job of rectifying the issue, but unfortunately, it is still there lurking in the background.
I think at the end of the day this is just down to the hardware of the PS4 not being able to cope with a beefy game designed for a next-gen console like the PS5. I’m not saying it’s in any way bad like on a Cyberpunk kind of level, but when you see textures struggling to pop in on time or the faces of characters not looking as crisp as they should be, you can’t help but think how much better it would look on a PS5.
Multiplayer as well suffers from bad load times and lag that would see me waiting to get into a game for up to 5 minutes, and sometimes even just freezing entirely, causing me to have to restart the game. But like I said, with the most recent software path the has been some improvement here. Let’s just hope they build upon this and make it a smooth and fluid experience for matchmaking.
Unfortunately, there are some elements missing from this latest entry multiplayer that were present in past releases. Game modes like Cyber Attack for example. Barracks and challenges are also missing which is a real shame if you are keen on tracking your progression and keeping up to speed with your kill-to-death ratios. On top of that, you can’t currently prestige either. This is down to Activision taking a different approach to the prestige system and introducing it when Season 1 starts (along with battle pass) on November 16th. The idea is that you work on your prestige throughout the season for it to then reset once the season ends. I can see the novelty of working on a prestige each season rather than putting a permanent marker on your overall rank. You can set yourself a goal for you to work towards in each new season to be rewarded with a satisfying payoff. However, to change something that so many players strive towards for it to then be only reset at the end of each season feels like a luck of the draw. People are either going to love it or hate it. Time will tell.
Finally the graphics, music and sound.
Graphics-wise, even though at times it struggles on PS4, this game is graphically amazing. There were times when I was watching a cutscene where I thought I was in fact watching a live-action scene. I love the way new COD games have been approaching graphics now, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for the future. Just look at some of the examples in this review and see for yourself. That’s enough to let you know how gorgeous this game is.
The soundtrack for this game is absolutely stellar and really helps to immerse you in the cinematic story. Sarah Schachner returns as a composer and again knocks it right out of the park. It’s dark, its gritty and at times it’s super tense. If all else listen to the soundtrack on Spotify and appreciate how good this score is. The theme tune has been playing in my head on repeat ever since I heard it.
Finally the acting. And wow, the acting in this COD game is brilliant. Barry Sloane reprises his role as Captain Price along with Elliot Knight as Gaz. New additions to this Call Of Duty include the beloved characters of Soap and Ghost, both excellently voiced by Neil Ellice and Samuel Roukin, Warren Kole (The Terminal List) absolutely kills it as Phillip Graves, and Glenn Morshower (24) does a truly standout performance as General Sheppard, although I do still prefer Lance Henriksens version of Sheppard who really nailed the backstabbing nature of his character in the original game. Motion capture wise everyone did a stellar job! But I do have to say the stand-out performance for me of the entire game (and in turn my favourite character) was Alain Mesa as Alejandro Vargas. Scenes with him in were some of the best to see played out.
Overall Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is a competent entry to the franchise and a brilliant follow-up to the 2019 Modern Warfare. With a globetrotting and immersive campaign and highly addictive multiplayer gameplay, this is a Call Of Duty that will be keeping you entertained for hours on end.
Developer: Infinity Ward
Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, macOS, Classic Mac OS
Reviewed on Xbox and Playstation
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