4 Months Later: Modern Warfare 2

Let's get this out of the way early: Modern Warfare 2 had a lack luster campaign. It had its moments, but through and through it was forgettable and did little to put it over your average FPS. What made Modern Warfare 2 one of the most anticipated games of all-time was the online multiplayer that millions of people were waiting to takeover their lives. The latest Call of Duty installment received raving reviews praising the intense and rewarding multiplayer components. So what's the problem? A game that focuses almost entirely around multiplayer is hard to judge on release day. Now four months later, we're taking a look at some of the flaws hampering what some think is the greatest online shooter ever.

First and foremost, the community isn't the best we've seen. Now this is entirely subjective to our own experiences, but for me personally it hasn't been so great. Having a game so popular seems great because matches will be easy to find, and plenty of your friends should have a copy. But when everyone has the game, you'll be running into a lot of noobs online. Not only is it annoying to have selfish players running around ruining your team's chances, but even having careless players on the opposing team makes play less satisfying. Not to mention how annoying it can be hearing their prepubescent voices scream in anger over the mic. It's hardly something Infinity Ward could have prevented (other than by maybe improving the point system) but it's a valid complaint.

For a game so popular, you would have thought there could have been top notch servers. But for some reason, Modern Warfare 2 has had the most technical difficulties of any online game I've tried to play this generation. Every five matches or so, the screen gets all twitchy and I end up having to wait between 30 seconds and 1 minute to get things situated again, or sometimes the match just ends. Even when I don't experience these moments, things aren't flawless. Most matches have lag at least here or there, which is disappointing considering games with ten times as many players have been able to run steadily.

Adding to these issues is the numerous glitches that have been discovered. Gamers have figured out how to do many game breaking glitches including things like care package drops, unlimited ammo, automatic AC 130s, and countless others. Infinity Ward has released patches to try and fix a few of these, but another glitch pops up right after one has been fixed. Making a perfect game with no bugs whatsoever is definitely not an easy task, but when you're backing up a reputation as big as the Call of Duty series, I would have thought they could have provided a cleaner experience.

Now for a problem that has been riding Modern Warfare 2 since release for me, and that's the maps. For a game that copy and pastes so much from its predecessor, it's too bad some of the inspiration of the old Call of Duty 4 maps didn't rub off on the new game. Not only I, but many other gamers dread going to a good portion of the maps included on the disc. Some are too camp friendly, others too small, some too unbalanced, and many just boring to look at. It's unfortunate because the single player campaign actually had some great set pieces, and an online map set in Washington D.C. could've been a lot of fun.

For another look at the online play of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, we've got Jayson Harris of “Teh Reviwer” joining Noobfeed for the discussion.

Jayson: Having dedicated so much of my time to this game (over 5 days total playtime) it's easy for me to go on about the great times I have had. But it hasn't all been glamorous for me. A good deal of complaints have kept MW2 from being among the best FPS games I have ever played.

Many of the points you mentioned have hindered the game for me but even more has kept it back a little for me. Many things actually are not recently diminished courtesy of the community, but gameplay issues that came with it from the start. The arcadey feel of Modern Warfare is great for quick and senseless fun but there's no truly deep experience. Lately I have been playing more and more Battlefield for my shooting crave. Teamwork and unity make it more fun than running around just trying to get my XP up. Slower paced tactical games are more my style.

Even when it comes to run-and-gun, Call of Duty isn't at the top of my list. That nod would probably go to Resistance, both 1 and 2. No doubt has Modern Warfare 2 supplied me with some good moments and I don't regret my 100 plus hours, but it's becoming very overrated in the mainstream eyes. I wish those guys could see past the big title of CoD to experience shooters with more depth and less bugs. It's a solid game but could use much improvement in my opinion.

Glad to throw my two cents in your article, Logan.

They aforementioned gameplay mechanic complaints that some players have add to the growing list of mechanical bugs, glitches, and community struggles. As Jayson stated, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is not a bad game by any means. The point of this article isn't to belittle Call of Duty and its avid players, but rather to point out how many glaring problems the so called “ultimate First-Person Shooter” has. Maybe it's a controversial view, taking shots at a game held in such a high perspective, but I feel I'm speaking for the gamers who are over the Call of Duty craze and are frustrated with these nuisances.

Even if it's not the God of all shooters, Modern Warfare 2 does have a lot of great ideas. In fact, two of my favorite aspects seem to be taken for granted. For one, this has been the easiest game to play with friends, not only because of the accessibility, but also how you go about entering games in the menu. I can just go over to my friends username when I see him playing and click to join his match. Simple as that. No fumbling through menus, just a few button presses and you're there (so long as there's room available).

The other great feature many seem to overlook is the kill streaks. When you get into the game, it's easy to start taking these for granted, but when when I popped in another shooter a small part of me was missing kill streaks. Sure they might make the game a little unbalanced at times, (and it sucks spawning only to be gunned down by a harrier within two seconds) but it gives staying alive a true reward and also adds variety to the gameplay since you're able to take a break from ordinary shooting. Kill streaks alone make it worth going back to Modern Warfare 2 even if it means being engulfed in those other annoyances.

Don't let me convince you that you shouldn't play Modern Warfare 2 (if you're a part of the handful of gamers who has somehow avoided the game through these four months). Just let it be a message to remember that there are other games out there.

Logan Smithson, Noobfeed