Modern Warfare 2 Review

(Xbox 360, PS3; $59.99-$119.99; Rated M for Blood/Drug Reference/Intense Violence/Language; www.modernwarfare2.com)

(five stars)

Despite my feelings on a poorly-designed, controversy-laden level of the new "Modern Warfare 2" where players control an undercover CIA agent in bed with a Russian terrorist group as they commit a massacre at an airport, and the need for more responsible decisions from game developers releasing a title guaranteed to be played by impressionable teens, it's undeniable that the latest from the "Call of Duty" franchise, now spun-off under the "Modern Warfare" moniker, is an epic experience from a stellar developer at the top of their game.  The bad taste that the infamous "No Russian" level left in my mouth was not enough to sour me on an, otherwise, exhilarating experience.

Developer, Infinity Ward, took a page out of the Jerry Bruckheimer/Michael Bay playbook of sequels- make everything bigger, louder, and more chaotic than before.  Arguably in fact, some of the levels played out in "Modern Warfare 2" are directly lifted from Bruck-Bay films which clearly influenced the look and feel of the game.  Like a Bruck-Bay sequel, familiar faces return, some never seem to stay dead, and flashy effects sequences distract from convoluted plot lines.  In the end though, the "Modern Warfare 2" experience is rewarding and the chaos is well-used to envelop the player in the multiple roles of Army Rangers and Operatives in the super-secret, multi-national Taskforce 141.

And unlike most Bruckheimer/Bay extravaganzas, you won't feel you've wasted your money with "Modern Warfare 2."

In fact the infinite replayability of "MW2" is what makes it one of the most solid purchases a hardcore gamer could make this year.  The relatively short, but solid single-player campaign makes room for the long legs of the phenomenal multiplayer mode that kept the original "Modern Warfare" at the top of the online charts for years after its initial release.  Incredibly designed maps, improved perk/reward systems that allow players to outfit their soldiers to best suit their playstyle, and the continual desire to level-up your character to gain more experience and better rewards has all of the trappings to make "Modern Warfare 2" as big of a time-suck as any "World of Warcraft" out there.  Despite the number of great games out on the market right now, once you are hooked into "Modern Warfare 2's" multiplayer, you will have to, and should, will yourself away in order to experience other games.

And I haven't even mentioned the 2-player, cooperative "Special Ops" missions that allow you to have the single-player experience with a friend either locally or online.

Likely your loved one already has a copy, since everyone and their mother is going to buy this game, but if it's on a wish list this year (and they are over 17 years old) be sure to pick it up for them- they'll be playing it until next December at the earliest.