Review by: Jeff McAllister

The wait is over and the most hyped game of 2009 is finally here. Modern Warfare 2 is wildly over the top, at times confusing, not as long as it should be for solo gamers, potentially offensive, and yeah…a hell of a lot of fun.

The game uses the same basic gameplay formula as the original in that it puts you in the role of several characters throughout various parts of the story. One of which is Soap….or rather Captain MacTavish as he is now known, which veterans of the series will recognize immediately. A lot has happened in the years that have passed and although not much of it is explained - or rather none of it is - Soap takes on a more serious and commanding role and has a squad of his own with a cast of characters as memorable as the first time around.

The single player campaign, even though it spans 17 missions, is not a long one. On regular difficulty you are looking at five, maybe six hours of gameplay, and that’s being generous. While the story starts off strong, it does tend to get a little confusing about half way through. You may scratch your head wondering what is going on – just shoot the bad guys and don’t try deciphering the details.

The visuals are as gorgeous as ever and with the wide variety of missions you undertake, they are all fresh and appealing. Whether you’re fighting it out on an oilrig or through a cave in Afghanistan, the graphics are remarkable with absolutely no slow down to be found anywhere. Instead of the screen dimming to a reddish hue when you are hurt, droplets of blood appear on the screen and make visibility almost impossible, ramping up the tension of trying to stay on your feet. The voice acting is top-notch with characters portraying their roles to a tee. Many of the problems that plagued the first title such as the insane grenade spamming and the non-stop flood of enemies that would appear, wave after wave, until you passed a certain point has thankfully been fixed.