Ok, this one had caught my interest a while back ago, since Infinity Ward was known for their ground breaking Call of Duty series being set in WWII. The main point of the series was that 'No man fights alone.'; which is to say you weren't some run and gun super soldier who would single-handedly defeat the entire enemy Army. Rather you were a soldier who was part of a intelligent and competent team of professionals. This meant that team mates were now assets, not some half blind, half stupid meat shields that you had to hold their hands through the whole war with. Allies became expendable to enemy fire, however they were also reliable to lay down covering fire, drawing fire, and actually winning the war. Part of this design came from the founders of Infinity Ward being dissatisfied with the Medal of Honor Series that they had worked on previously. With this incarnation the battles have moved from WWII (a well beaten dead horse), to the modern era, with all the neat bells and whistles to go with it, which is a wonderful change from the dying genre of WWII shooters.
THE GOOD
Like almost everything for the next-gen systems, the graphics are gorgeous, particularly in details like smoke and particle rendering, and even with details such as the IR sights on some weapons (visible only with Night vision goggles). Speaking of which, one of the new and well deserved additions is the night vision goggles, allowing for not only low light visibility, but also the before mentioned IR sights. This lets you see where allies are shooting, letting you know where enemies are. Also improved upon is the aiming system with the sights. By popping out of the sights and back into it your weapon will draw a bead on a near-by target, meaning you don't need to be a perfect shot, just close. This, along with the 20+ choices of weapons (yes, 20 real world weapons from pistols to Stinger Missiles are rendered) help define the game from previous titles in the series. Even more so, allies are capable of picking up player slack so it really feels like they are covering your back and aren't throwing you to the wolves.
Gameplay transition has also greatly improved with the all out removal of the "Wait X:XX amount of time until reinforcements arrive". That alone caused a great deal of frustration from this player, as well as many others. The mission objective system has also been upgraded; being based on situational information. For example, your first mission is SAS (Special Air Services) raid on a cargo ship and as new information becomes known objectives will change to reflect said data, or even adding new objectives accordingly. This, along with the open nature of the environments helps keep the game from feeling scripted, but rather give it a more cinematic feel. Adding to this is the ability in certain sections to call for helo gunships, or F/A-18 airstrikes to lay down cover, or for you to plant claymore mines and C4 charges to protect your flank.
A whole new section added is when you play as an SAS sniper in full guille suit and sneak through the zone of Alienation 30 Km outside Chernobyl. Here you and your team leader must use stealth and caution to sneak to your target without being spotted, occasionally testing the patience and nerves of the player. A particularly nice touch is the level of detail on the guille suits and how when laying still in the low grass the enemy literally needs to step on you to spot you.
Like with previous titles there are 'on rail' shooter parts, in this case one is you are the gunner of an AC-130 Gunship manning the 25mm gattling gun, the 40mm cannon, and the whopping 105mm howitzer as the aircraft orbits a combat area. Frankly, that part felt like those videos that show up on youtube , right down to the black and white thermal imaging. There is also a section that you play as the door gunner on a Sea King helicopter, and lastly a part where you are riding along in a truck (that seems to be their favorite to make). While not a new thing, they have found ways to improve upon a rather bland concept and make it fun.
There is also a subtle humor to the game, such as on the first mission one of your squadies pulling out a shotgun and saying "I keep this for close encounters." (Aliens), or one chapter called "Charlie doesn't surf" (Apocalypse Now). In a strangely funny fashion, Captain Price, assuming it's the same 'person', hasn't aged since 1943, and still has his uniquely British mustache. You can also 'return' enemy grenades, but frankly there is no way that I would pick up a live grenade, even to throw it back.
In the Multiplayer part of the game once you get 3 kills without dying you can call in a UAV to spot the enemy, 5 kills allows you to call in a carpet bombing, and 7 allow you to call in a helicopter gunship to attack the enemies. However, if the enemy has an RPG they can actually shoot down the helo, so it can only help so much. You can also create customized class sets to play with; from weapons, attachments, side arm, special grenade, and perks. Each has a strength and a weakness and requires full experimentation to fully understand how each works.
THE BAD
Tough call actually. As pretty as it is there is still something about it that is just a bit off. Dying is also semi-common on the harder difficulty levels, however most of that can be caused by bad decisions by the player. The exception is on the AC-130 mission it is VERY difficult to spot the strobes on the friendlies, so you may accident strafe allies. While they did get rid of the wait X:XX minutes for support, they changed it to "You have X:XX to evac/rescue" While I can see the reason for this, I hate deadlines.
Since I just started playing the multiplayer part I'll add this in. Starting off a newbie you are limited to a sparse selection of weapons that you can spawn with. The only way to earn newer ones, as well as attachments for them you must earn experience and 'promote' by playing. Probably the oddest addition is when you reach the rank of Colonel you unlock the StG. 44 Sturmgewehr, a German Assault rifle from WWII. Yeah, why is this here if this is supposed to be modern Warfare?
There is also no Russian missions as seen in previous Call of Duty titles. I would have loved to play through as a member of Spetznaz and use nothing but uniquely Russian equipment. But sadly it was not meant to be and only SAS ("Who dares wins") and US Marine Force Recon ("Semper Fidelis").
THE UGLY
Well, since this is a multiplayer game there is the normal stuff, so I'll not bother to list them. However, gameplay itself is rather intense, particularly a point in the beginning you 'play' as a character who is being driven through a war torn city in the Middle East somewhere. Things witnessed include prisoners being lined up and shot, as well as this character's own death from his own eyes. Later on you also 'hear' the interrogation of a terrorist leader prisoner, then witness your CO execute him after getting the intel he wanted. In one of the most interesting missions as an SAS sniper you take a shot at an individual and it severs his arm (scripted plot point). Probably the most disturbing part is a brief section after a nuclear weapon is detonated (no spoilers, you can get that alone from the commercials) and your Sea King crashes. You have a few moments of control as your Marine stumbles out of the wreckage into the nuclear holocaust outside, before he succumbs to injuries or radiation poisoning. Thankfully blood and gore is kept to a minimum, however many of these scenes are still rather intense and are not recommended for younger players.
In all, a good game with good fun, but like others in the series a little on the short side.
