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Modern Warfare 2 is a title which has turned the gaming world upside-down by defining just how popular our industry has become. Everyone knows about it, everyone's talking about it and everyone's playing it. But does it really live up to the hype?

Modern Warfare 2 follows on 5 years after its predecessor. Despite Zakhaev's death the Ultranationalists have managed to seize control of Russia and declare him as a hero. Yet Vladimir Makarov, one of Zakhaev's former lieutenants, has begun a campaign against the US & Europe by committing acts of terrorism. This is where you come in. Placed in the shoes of multiple different characters your aim is to take Makarov down, in any way possible.

The campaign in MW2 will take you to fight through a plethora of different environments from Afghanistan to Rio de Janeiro and even to the United States itself. By constantly changing the environment around you allows the game to introduce exciting new gameplay elements, and stay interesting throughout the entire 6-8 hour ride. The story is most certainly not going to win any awards, however it's the glue which holds the entire experience together, and is definitely a step up from Call of Duty 4. Infinity Ward have managed to craft a hard-hitting campaign experience which will keep you utterly pinned to your seat from start to finish. The game constantly throws huge and exciting set pieces at you such as driving down a snowy mountain side at 100mph, chasing a villain through the shacks of Rio de Janeiro, to fighting your way through the Whitehouse.

One of the biggest campaign elements of MW2 is that the war comes to America. Due to a series of gripping events, which I will not reveal, Russia begins to invade the United States. Fighting around the realistic suburbs of Virginia really make the battles hit home. Seeing a BTR-80 APC tear through houses is a subtle yet impactful scene. Infinity Ward have genuinely crafted each environment with the utmost care making the game extremely believable. This combined with some great characters makes Modern Warfare 2's singleplayer one of the most thrilling campaigns you'll experience this year.

However when you're finished with the Campaign you'll no doubt want to head straight onto the Multiplayer component of the game. There is no denying that this is where the meat of the experience lies. Infinity Ward have managed to outdo themselves once again by creating one of, if not the most extensive multiplayer experiences in any online shooter to date. Almost everything you saw 2 years ago in Call of Duty 4 has been expanded upon dramatically. No more are you tied down to selecting a pistol as your secondary weapon, now you can choose from Machine Pistols, Shotguns and Rocket Launchers to add to your arsenal, each of which comes with their own set of challenges to complete, and attachments to unlock. Perks can now be levelled up into a 'Pro' form, offering even more bonuses. Snipers and Shotguns can use silencers. Killstreaks can be selected and unlocked. UAV's can be shot down. And this is only touching upon the changes.

Infinity Ward have somehow managed to improve the Multiplayer, which many titles are still playing catch-up with, in such a way that it feels familiar yet refreshing at the same time. After devouring 35+ hours into the Multiplayer already I still only feel like I've just touched the surface of whats on offer. There is just simply so many things to unlock and achieve that you will never be without something to aim for. It's impossible to stress enough just how feature-packed, rewarding and polished of a Multiplayer experience this really is. There is no doubt that we will see other titles borrowing these unqiue ideas introduced by Infinity Ward for years to come. If you are looking for  the absolute pinnacle of online shooters then this is it... but it doesn't end there.

Modern Warfare 2 features an extremely refined Cooperative mode - Spec Ops. These are short 3-10 minute missions which can be played both locally via split-screen, and online with 2 players. Each mission has been tailored specifically for a cooperative experience, allowing players to take part in such set pieces as one player commanding the powerful guns of an AC130 Air Gunship to assist a lone man on the ground. Or holding up in Burger Town defending against an onslought of enemies. All of these missions allow for short bursts of exciting play which are addictive yet rewarding thanks to a 'stars' system - when you complete a mission, depending on the difficulty chosen, you will be rewarded with between 1 to 3 stars. When you reach a specific amount of stars you are awarded with another set of levels. Not only that but Infinity Ward encourage players to replay these missions on higher difficulties by actually changing how the mission plays out depending on the difficulty, such as adding enemy vehicles, increasing the enemy amount or changing what type of enemies come at you, as opposed to simply making bullets do more damage. All of this combines to make an extremely fantastic co-op experience which can be played in bite-sized chunks or for hours on end - a model which again no doubt we will see developers follow suite in the near future.

Modern Warfare 2 doesn't just play better than its predecessor but it also looks and sounds significantly better. Visually the game will impress thanks to a new texture streaming technology developed in-house by Infinity Ward, allowing for higher fidelity textures across the board, and much more expansive backdrops. Some of the set pieces are truly epic in scale and create some genuinely jaw-dropping scenes. The audio will also impress thanks to an absolutely brilliant score by Hans Zimmer, providing music which is leaps and bounds above that heard in CoD4, along with some wonderful voice acting creating a completely believable sound to the game.

Overall Modern Warfare 2 is quite simply one of the best games of the past few years. Once again Infinity Ward have managed to set the bar for what is expected from shooters. Offering a rollercoaster ride singleplayer experience, a fantastic co-op mode, and one of the greatest multiplayer shooter experiences in gaming history - this is certainly a title which every gamer owes it to themself to pick up.

Modern Warfare 2 gets an official Game-Pad 9.6/10

Average Press Score according to TestFreaks: 9.3/10