Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 followed up on the incredible success of its predecessor and pushed the series into an even more sprawling, more cinematic direction. In the campaign, the player switches between several characters and continents — from snowy mountains through Washington to Brazilian favelas — and the game went even further in its storytelling than Modern Warfare, including the controversial airport mission, which sparked widespread discussion about the limits of interactive violence in video games. The story continues with the popular characters Soap MacTavish and Captain Price and expands the conflict between Russia and the United States to even grander proportions, ending on an open note that left players waiting for the next installment. The pace is relentlessly fast, the firefights short and intense, with scripted sequences alternating with adrenaline-fueled action and no unnecessary downtime.

On the PS3, the game ran on a modified IW 4.0 engine and technically kept pace with the competing Xbox 360 version, though minor differences in performance, textures, and loading times were noticeable and became the subject of comparative tests between platforms at the time. The audio was among the game's strongest aspects — gunfire had weight, the voice acting was convincing, and the music gave the campaign an epic feel. The multiplayer brought an improved perk system, killstreaks such as an AC-130 gunship strike or a tactical nuke, and new game modes like Spec Ops, which allowed cooperative play for two players on split screen as well as online.

Reception at the time was enthusiastic, and the game became one of the best-selling titles of the generation, defining the shape of online war shooters for years to come. Today the campaign feels more like a fast, flashy ride than a deep war story, but its influence on the genre is undeniable — without Modern Warfare 2, today's arena and tactical shooters would look different. On the PS3 it remains playable even after all these years, though the multiplayer servers have long since lost their original form and many online features are now missing.

Why play it: Because of the fast, flashy campaign and the influence that permanently transformed the shape of online war shooters, Modern Warfare 2 is worth trying, even though the multiplayer no longer runs in its original form.