As the Call of Duty series’ development cycle returns to Infinity Ward, there’s a renewed sense of excitement in the FPS franchise. Last year’s Call of Duty: Vanguard would go away forever as a misfire, but after the success of 2019’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Activision couldn’t have hoped for a better studio for its next turn. Alongside Warzone 2, the team pitches Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 as the next era in the franchise. First impressions suggest that it may be so.
The problem, however, is that we currently only have the first piece of the puzzle. The single-player campaign was made available a week early to anyone who pre-ordered the game. Once we’ve spent enough time with his Spec Ops in multiplayer and co-op modes after the official release on October 28, 2022, we’ll update this article with full thoughts and final scores.
Infinity Ward was often considered an afterthought, but at least it managed to draw some interest to its offline levels by making it the only one playable at the time of writing. The return of Task Force 141 is reason enough to play as fan favorites like Ghost, Captain Price and Thorpe face another terrorist threat to the United States. What follows is quite an “aura” in typical Call of Duty fashion, but Modern Warfare 2’s campaign is definitely up there for him as one of the more enjoyable campaigns.
It’s a very intense collection of levels and scenes that jump from one to another, making it hard to catch your breath. Some are full-blown engaging missions with twists and turns that escalate objectives and stakes. Others are smaller scenarios that are presented like vignettes, such as the viral His Amsterdam Level that ends in less than five minutes. The extreme variability in run times allowed Infinity Ward to create a campaign that wasn’t just about shooting guns all the time. In fact, sometimes there are no weapons at all.
The campaign is most interesting when it’s stripped of resources and support, and instead forced to juggle with the items it finds to form a simple crafting system. , and is a great example of how the developers are trying to break with tradition.
The standard run-and-gun missions have their own highlights, but these levels that twist the Call of Duty formula will always be the most memorable. There’s the AC-130 mission, and another sequence that doesn’t look out of place on Uncharted. Follow a convoy along the dusty roads of the fictional country of Urzikstan, jumping from one car roof to another, ejecting drivers and shooting enemies in front. It’s a little chaotic — instant death when you hit the runway is also a little frustrating — but it’s definitely fun now.
The only gimmick that’s considered a dud actually happens in the final minutes of the final mission, so you’ll have to choose your words carefully for fear of spoilers. It’s built so it’s a very strange way to end the story gameplay-wise.
Even though it’s the end of the game, it’s just one sequence in a six-hour narrative with far more highs than lows. Another highlight is the sniper mission Recon By Fire. It still can’t beat Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare’s All Ghillied Up — I doubt it’s going to change anything at this point — but Infinity Ward changes the pace and tone for the moment you’re hooked Another example of making a . Intensifying firefights.
The developer’s signature style of traversal and gun feel is back and everything feels really good. Combining outstanding visuals with best-in-class audio cues, Modern Warfare 2 looks, sounds and feels amazing. Aside from a few visual glitches that introduced minor texture pop-ins and flickering in the environment, the campaign runs flawlessly.
Conclusion
If you’re looking to get started with Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, the campaign is going well until Friday, when multiplayer and online co-op modes are unlocked. Don’t just shoot. From high-speed car chases and crafting systems to his AC-130 turrets, Modern Warfare 2 can be fully enjoyed offline.
