Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Critic Reviews

Modern Warfare 2 crosses into the must-have category of video games effortlessly. It offers an unmatched shooter experience, a compelling story mode, a slick package of mini missions and a multiplayer which is pretty much unparalleled in depth.

Modern Warfare 2 offers epic gameplay, a stunning Spec-Ops mode and a huge amount of adrenaline.

Anyone who already has issues with the single-player ‘style’ of IW’s games will still find fault with the scripted, linear experience, but in terms of sheer drama and show-stopping set-pieces accompanied by laser sharp FPS controls, Modern Warfare 2 is your daddy. And that’s without Spec Ops and Multiplayer.

You're always unlocking something and messing around with your created classes to find just the right balance of tactics and murderousness. That balance is the true core of Modern Warfare 2's online play. It's an exhilarating mix that forces tension by rewarding you for taking it slowly.

As much as I liked the single-player, even I have to admit that the multiplayer is where the real action is, and its new additions should (hopefully) help counterbalance some (but probably not all) of the dissension that will arise from the n00b friendly changes I noted.

Mixing real-world locations with bombastic set-pieces MW2 continues the guided, thrill-ride experiences of its predecessor, and adds even more depth to its multiplayer offerings. It might not have fixed all the problems from the first game, but there's just so much quality content packed into this game that it will almost certainly be one of the most-played games in your library for a long time to come.

This is a textbook example to other developers of the love, care, attention, polish and guile needed when crafting a sequel. An essential purchase for all FPS fans.

The fact that I didn't even get into the stunning visuals and amazing sound design speaks volumes about the sheer amount of content in the game, and I could probably write another 800 words simply about the ridiculous attention to detail on display in each level.

The singleplayer knows no competition and the multiplayer and brilliant Special Ops-mode make Modern Warfare 2 a phenomenal package. There are truly some scenes in the game that can affect the way you think and feel. After five games, the series seems to have found its high mark. One of the best shooters ever.

Buy it, play it and enjoy it. Few games offer this much: a great (albeit short) campaign, incredible multiplayer modes and the Special Ops mode, which could be sold as a standalone game.

It's hard to see the majority of people wanting to play any other multiplayer shooter until the next CoD is released, such is the quality of what's on offer here...Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 takes everything that was great about CoD4 and ramps it up to the next level. With the best multiplayer shooting that money can buy, an incredibly action-packed campaign and plenty of superb two-player co-op levels, this is without a doubt a real contender for game of the year.

Modern Warfare 2 has stepped up its game and it has been well worth the wait.

What impresses me so much about this game is not only that it has a tremendous amount of hype surrounding it which it does, but that it delivers even through all of that.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is the defining first person shooter of the current generation and it’s hard to imagine that anyone will better it anytime soon.

Infinity Ward delivers the "greatest hits" of action movies with references to Cliffhanger, Red Dawn, The Rock, and even Spies Like Us. You’re fighting in the arctic one minute and crossing the desert the next, or you might be performing a rescue operation on a terrorist-controlled offshore oil platform or infiltrating a Russian submarine base.

With a great six to eight hour single-player campaign, the fun Special Ops mode meant to be enjoyed with a friend, and its endlessly replayable multiplayer experience, MW2 has a ton of content and reasons to keep coming back to it.

Modern Warfare 2 is a masterpiece of careful iteration, with an unmatched presentation and a well of content that will take months to run dry.

Graphically Modern Warfare 2 sets a bar so high that the game that our industry will look to it as a blueprint of what can be done on next-gen systems. The developers found a perfect balance between realistic and entertainment (just wait until you play-through the airport level) that there were points during our review period that we actually forgot we weren’t watching a HD movie.

I was impressed by its presentation, visuals and the wealth of gameplay it offers. I even enjoyed its story—though it’s admittedly fluffy, convoluted and campy in spots, it’s like a interactive war movie on TV that takes liberties with realism for the sake of being entertaining to watch (such as having an amazingly large number of helicopters crash to the ground over the course of the game).

It was expected to be one of this year greatest gamers, and yes, it is.