Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 PC Multiplayer Mini-Review

Steam users have now had the chance to try out the multiplayer gameplay of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (MW2) on two different occasions. An attempt no doubt to boost slacking sales to try and compete with the much more popular and better Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (BC2). So I decided to share my opinions on Modern Warfare 2 with the rest of the world for anyone who is truly bored at 3AM and feels like reading it.

I make no secret of the fact I am not a fan of Modern Warfare 2. Though MW2 just feels like a horrible squeal. I am one of those gamers who hates "me too" or "clone" games. Now by that I do not mean different developers putting out similar FPS, I mean the same darn game being re-skinned, repackaged, and sold as something new.

That's where I stand on MW2. I think the last good game in the Call of Duty series was COD4, at this point, Infinity Ward and Activision are just milking a dead cow. What makes it even more sad is the fact its working. MW2 on the consoles is a very popular title, then again, it's a game well suited for consoles. However this is not about the console version, this is about the PC version.

For a PC game, this game really does suck, are far more levels than I care to talk about. I will just cover the big ones in my book. Before I get into it though, I really did try and like this game, I played it for several hours, tried out all the modes, talked with a lot of people in-game, got accused of hacking on multiple occasions. No matter how hard I tired to like it, I am afraid, it was just not meant to be. Even the fact I had no problems slicing my way though this game with ease and a 3.0+ KD average not using ANY grenade launchers, harriers, cobra's, predators, or nukes. I still just could not stand this game.

• Highly limited and repetitive gameplay. It gets old very fast.
  

Limited player numbers. Laggy hosts. No dedicated servers. You can't tell me they forgot how to write good network code. What limitations prevent the game from having more than 12 players in a game at once? I mean come on. A good PC capable of playing this game at respectable settings has far more power to handle larger game rooms than any console. As far as the lack of dedicated servers goes that's one of the largest downfalls of this game. I mean, this is a PC, not a console. I think MW2 would have benefited a lot from dedicated servers, too bad IW did not think so. I guess they failed to notice the fact the dedicated servers is the standard for just about every good retail FPS game. Then again, this is not a good game, at least, not in its PC multiplayer aspect.

You can tell this game was not coded for the PC at all. It's network code is a joke compared to other games. I can understand coding for multiple platforms, but it sure does not look like they did that here, they just coded a console game and did a crappy job "porting" it over to the PC.

Just like CoD4:MW, MW2 has air strikes, nukes, predator missiles, and they are even more spammed and powerful than the first, what kind of crack were they smoking? You can use these puppies pretty much anywhere. In an FPS game for freaking sake, not Battlefield. It's like they tried, and failed horribly, to add Battlefield aspects to the game. The maps are far too small for such items and my god can you score easy kills over and over if you know what your doing with these things. So in this respect, it's the same as the original MW, at least in MW you can modify the server to limit or remove them. In MW2 you have no choice but to play with all the under-skilled spammers.

On the flip side, some maps are actually too big for the limited number of players you can have, yet still far too small for the aforementioned overkill strikes. On some maps you find yourself spending more time running around looking for a kill than actually getting any kills. That can get rather boring.

• Probably the most unrealistic game I have ever played.

Now the game does not claim to be realistic, so that's not really a negative point in that respect. What makes it bad is the lack of realism in a game is often made up for with game balance. Not in the case of MW2. This is something I can not really describe, you pretty much have to see it first hand to know what I am talking about. This game is far from balanced and even further from realistic.

The environments are also very static. They don't really react to the gameplay at all. This is a far cry from the Bad Company 2 engine where just about everything is reactive. MW2 being a modern top-of-the-line retail game, I honestly expected much more in this respect.

• Rated M for Mature?

This is a joke right? This game feels like it was designed by kids for kids. I mean, most of the people I actually talked to in this game were very far from "mature". Sure your going to run into that in many games, but in the short time I actually played the game, I actually felt my own IQ drop.

Other than the fact its a war based FPS, there is no reason the game should have an M rating, though I know it's for the violence aspect of the game. Either way, its very easy to see that the vast majority of the player base is far from rated "M".

This game really should have been rated "S" for sucks.

• Insanely easy compared to most other "top rated" retail FPS games.

If your a regular or experienced competitive FPS player, your going to find this game so insanely easy it's not even funny. There is no real challenge anywhere. The games very repetitive nature, map design, and over gameplay, make it very easy to master in a very short time. Hence why I get bored with it so fast I guess.

There are a ton of "unlockables" in the game, that's a plus, but it does not go far enough to keep in fun for a gamer looking for a challenge such as myself.

I mean, I topped over a 3.0 KDR in almost every single match I played and I made level 23 in just over 4 hours easy. Playing Team Deathmatch Express for the most part.

The funny part is, I was not even trying, and I was not familiar with any of the maps. I still was able to slice through this game like a hot knife through butter. So it's not like you can come back and say "You did not like it because you sucked at it!". I think an 8 year old could master this game.

Sure, I am an "experienced" FPS player, and I have a lot of years under my belt, but come on. It should not have been that easy. Facing players level 70 (with Prestige) that should have been far better and more experienced at this games mechanics and maps than me and yet I was able to top the roster in most matches I played.

• Lack of originality.

Why should I pick Modern Warfare 2 over a different game such as Bad Company 2? The simple answer, I wont. This game offers up nothing original, its a MW clone, if you have played one you have played both. Sure it has evolved and progressed since its predecessor, but not by much. The game feels stale to me. All I could think of the entire time I was playing was, "average". There is nothing spectacular about the game in the least. its just, there, and that's about it.

• On the plus side of the coin.

The games graphics on the PC are actually pretty nice if you crank it all the way up. It can be somewhat fun in short bursts or if you feel like noob farming.

Its very easy. This may be a con for me, but not for everyone. This game is well suited for "younger" players or those who are somewhat new to modern FPS games. Its also well suited for players with a nice short attention span. The reason I say that, is this game requires less "thought" than any FPS game I have ever played. I can guarantee that most of the people that play this game religiously, based on the ones I have played with, think they are a lot better than they are. If they were to step out of MW2 and enter a different game, chances are, they would get their backsides handed to them. So the games mindless easiness is a dual edged blade.

The game really does not require that much power to run. It barely used 2 threads of my CPU and never once did it even peg either near 100%. My FPS averaged in the 190 range no matter the map or situation with it all maxed out at 1600x900. The lowest I seen was 138FPS and the max was about 280.

Closing:

If you in the market for a good retail FPS, then I would stay away from Modern Warfare 2 and go spend your money on Bad Company 2. BC2 has come a long way since I did my "First Impression" review. Sure the game still has its share of issues, but when you stand it up next to MW2, it blows it out of the water without even trying.

Heck, you could even check out one of the free to play MMOFPS out there before wasting money on this junk pile.

There is no way I would ever pay $50+ for this game. Even free I really can't stand having it infect my PC with its presence. Bad Company 2 is a much better choice if your looking for a good retail FPS. MW2 should be left to console players because its the poster child of fail on the PC in my opinion.

To me, MW2 left a gaping festering hole in the COD legacy for me. MW2 seems like such a cheap clone of the original that they tried to make better and failed. They either need to let the series die or completely start over and make a new game. One that actually brings some originality to the battlefield. Something that will make it stand out. Bad Company 2 has killer maps, better environments, War Tapes, and they are coming a long way on the items I complained about in my original review. Even though BC2 has fewer game modes and unlockables than MW2, they are still a lot better then MW2.

Now with Medal of Honor coming out this fall, I really think this series is going to go out with a dud, when it should have been a bang. Lets just hope I am wrong.

I really did do my best to give this game a chance to change my mind. I played and played hoping to find some saving grace. The entire time all I really did was make notes about how it fell short when I compared it to other games I have played or do play. Upon the end of Steam's free weekend deal, I instantly removed it from my system, for good.

Now I can see how some people may really like it, especially younger players or those far more used to console games. However, when you put this game in the hands of a hardcore old school gamer who has played just about every FPS released since 1993, and is looking for a game that will actually challenge him and make him want more, it does not impress at all and falls very short of the mark.

I did rate it a 4 out of 10, and not a flat zero, for 2 main reasons. The Spec Ops with Coop is actually a lot more fun than the multiplayer in my opinion. To stand Spec Ops alone, I would rate it about a 7 out of 10, if it was not for the fact the rest of game falling so short for me. The other reason is even though I really did not like this game, there were a very few times I actually had some fun while playing. The problem was these times were short lived and very limited. It simply could not keep me from getting bored out of my mind.

Rated: 4/10

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Medal of Honor 2010 Beta Multiplayer First Impression Mini-Review

I came home to find an e-mail saying that I was accepted into the Beta of Medal of Honor. I must say, it was a pleasant surprise. So after many many hours of non-stop playing, I have come to a few conclusions, so I decided a mini "First Impression" review was in order.

Medal of Honor 2010 is made by the same people who make the incredible Battlefield Bad Company 2, DICE. So I must admit I had high expectations for this game. I am pleased to say, it really did not disappoint.

MoH is not Bad Company 2, it was not intended to be, and I am glad they did not try and make it like BC2. MoH is a lot more like Modern Warfare 2, only 100X better, especially since MW2 sucks so bad. In a nut shell, everything Modern Warfare got wrong, Medal of Honor got right. This game blows Mw2 out of the water in just about every respect.

Medal of Honor is a pretty fast paced game on maps that are the perfect size and it easily fulfills the needs of any hardcore FPS gamer. The gameplay feels very smooth and the game has a low learning curve if your already an FPS player.

How does it run?

On my system, this game runs like a dream, averaging 100+ FPS stable at all times, easy. On all high/max settings, 1600x900. 100% frame lag free from what I could tell.

Hit registration seems OK, for a beta. There are times when you get killed "around a corner", but that's a pretty common problem in many FPS games, even BC2. So I really can't hold that against it. You also have to take into account other players latency issues and such. I have dumped multiple rounds into someones face, blood flying, only to have them make it through unharmed and knife me.

The Toys!

The weapons are quite powerful and accurate once you get them mastered. You can unlock different weapons, sights, barrels, and ammunition types for your 3 classes. Assault, Spec Ops, and Sniper. In the beta you seem to be very limited on how much you can unlock.

You get kill streak bonus's you can call upon such as a Mortar Strike, UAV, or Air Strike. Similar to MW2 in availability only, they are not even close to MW2 in how they work, you can't spam the map with them and they do not wipe everyone out. It's 100X more balanced than MW2 could ever dream. Like I said, it's like they learned a lot from MW2's failures.

The one thing I have noticed in the beta is explosive weapons seem to be pretty weak. Had Grenades, the noob tube, RPG's, Rockets, all of them. I am not sure if this is how they are supposed to be or its a bug, to me, it feels like a bug. In order to score a kill with these weapons, you pretty much have to either hit your enemy directly, right at their feet, or hope they have low HP.

The Sniper Rifles in the beta are beastly. You can pretty much run and gun like as assault class as they are configured at the moment. Very easy to use for any nub with any sort of FPS experience. They feel very overpowered, but they are still quite fun, I am sure they will change by the time the game goes retail.

On the flip side of the coin, your assault rifles can easily be used to snipe as well, it almost feels like there is no bullet drop or randomization at all. Then again, most of the battles are in semi-close quarters. It makes the battle feel quite, even, no matter what weapons you use.

The shotguns are a blast as well. Devastating up close and still pretty mean at moderate range. I am able to clear out an entire building of 3 or 4 enemies with relative ease in most cases if I rush in with a shotty and they don't all see me at once. haha

How does it look?

From a graphic standpoint, the game looks great, again it's better than MW2. The environments are not as reactive like in Bad Company 2, but they are more reactive than in MW2. It's easy to see what can and cant be destroyed.

The Vehicles and mounted weapons!

There are gun emplacements in some locations as well as small Bradly style vehicles on some maps, though not many. Such as objective based maps, where you have to capture a set of bases and push the enemy team back. There are no vehicles on the team deathmatch maps.

The Maps and Modes






In the beta, there seem to be 2 maps, each with a different mode, available to play. Both seem very well designed and are quite fun. 24 players per server.

The first map is Helmand Valley and the game mode is "Combat Mission". The idea here is to either take a set of objectives or defend them, depending on what side your on. If your the attackers, you have to try and push the enemy back at take each objective, until you have driven them back to the final one and taken it. If your a defender, it's pretty simple, stop them and tick away the attackers lives to win.

The second, and my favorite so far, is Kabul City Ruins and the mode is Team Assault (aka Team Deathmatch). Pretty much the same as any other Team Deathmatch, kill more of them, score more points than they do, and win. I like the spawn setup in this mode, its not set so one team can just camp one side of the map, your spawn location changes depending on what section of the map your team is in control of at that moment in time. It does well in keeping the action flowing.

The Negative. =(

Hacks already!?!? My god these sad loosers sure don't waste any time. Sadly I ran into a two already. One player by the name of "phooka" was blatantly using a "wall hack" (sometimes known as "chams") to see where everyone was and a wonderful little no-spread hack as well. I had to go look it up to make sure these hacks even existed when I seen them the first time. You can imagine my dismay when I found a few sites looking for people to test their hacks in beta. Makes you want to smack the crap out of them idiots does it not? Oh well, haha.

You really cant hold this against the game, its only in beta, and hacks are a fact of online life. Not to mention, I have only see 2 people outright using hacks in the 15+ hours I played so far. That's not bad at all.

Player lag or server? That is the question the preoccupies my mind. Normally, I would place the blame on kids and people who play a game thinking they have a good enough internet connection or PC to play it, even though they don't. In this case, I am not so sure, it is a beta after all. It could just be that. Though expect people to tank entire clips and to drop dead out of the blue every so often. Nothing new to online FPS. Not to mention I have ran across "SA" players in the beta, playing on the North American servers. That's never a good sign and even worse for "lag". heh

Before you happen to guess what kinda of connection I am on, its 30Mbps down and 15Mbps up, with an average latency from 40-60 from New York, to Dallas, to Los Angeles. 30's to Chicago and St.Louis. So yeah, its not me. lol

Conclusions.

What I like about the game is the fact it fills a niche that MW2 was not able to do. I love my Bad Company 2 and I still prefer that style of game over that of Medal of Honor, but I have to say, MoH easily fulfills my fast paced, non-battlefield style, gaming desires I get from time to time. Enough so that I will be picking this game up that's for sure.

The beta is wonderful, and I am having a lot of fun in it. One major plus, in-game chat is disabled in beta! If only it could stay disabled. lol

Anyway, I easily rate this game a 8 out of 10. The only reason it don't get a higher score is the fact it is still in it's beta stage at the moment. A lot can change from now until the game goes retail. Also, I still like Battlefield style games better.

On a side note, I am going to brag a little. Now, I am pretty damn good at just about any FPS I play, enough to hold my own against anyone and finish on top in many cases. I have discovered my main reason for playing MoH Beta at the moment. I will drop anyone, anywhere, anytime, with the shotguns. >:)

They are all I have been using for the past 3 days, in a nut shell, I dominate. I even dominate others using the shotguns. So if you happen across my path, watch out, no matter how good you think you are...chances are...I will still dominate you. haha

OK, done bragging and having fun now. To some video! :P

Here is a small video of me running around a team deathmatch map, exploring. This was the first time I played on this map and mode. What is now my favorite. It will give you an idea of what the gameplay is like. There is nothing special about the video, its not edited in any way, just raw footage. Rendered in 720P.

This video is the same map, different class and weapons. Having fun with those shotguns. Still raw gameplay but I cut out all the running around and focused on the action more. Still all filmed in one single match. I also rendered it in 1080P this time around.

Both videos recorded with Fraps. Half Size. At 60FPS.

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