More and More of CoD MW2

I watched a couple movies of multiplayer gameplay and have seen some things I like. So I decided to take the time to highlight the changes. To start with when IW started developing MW2 they threw away everything from CoD4's multiplayer game and decided to start from scratch. Every single individual bonus or benefit was analysed, compared, debated over and carefully considered before making the roster. This is not CoD4's multiplayer plus a few extras. It's all been carefully planned, balanced and tweaked to perfection.


First off, the game's kill streak system has been revamped. Instead of the traditional 3/5/7 kill streak rewards of UAV, AirStrike and Attack Chopper, you're now able to personalise and choose your own kill streak. There's a much deeper enhanced list of rewards now available for you to choose from - with some still not yet revealed. But what has been confirmed so far is that you can choose only three rewards from the full list, and which rewards you choose will be determined by your own abilities and play styles. For instance, say you're not particularly brilliant at the game and struggle to get more than 5 kills very often - in that case you could choose rewards for 3, 4 and 5 kills. But then say you're actually quite proficient at the game and want to take a bit of a risk for a greater reward - well then you can choose rewards for 7,9 and 11 kill streaks.


And to elaborate even further upon that, the rewards we currently know of are as follows:

3 Kills - UAV – Same as CoD4.


4 Kills - Care Package - You can throw down a special smoke grenade that calls in an airdrop that can either contain an ammo refill or an instant advanced kill streak. Both you and the enemy can see these on the maps so they can be used to your advantage to set your opponents up for an ambush. A care package can also rather brilliantly kill an enemy if it lands directly on them.


5 Kills - Predator Missile - Using an in-game laptop you can call in and control a devastating Predator Missile. Doing so makes you vulnerable to attack though so you'll need to find a quiet corner of the map to hide in. You can also initiate a rocket boost to make your missile get to its target much quicker than it would ordinarily.


5 Kills - Sentry Gun - You can now call in an automated sentry gun that will take out the enemy all by itself. These are great for objective based matches when they can be used to defend a bomb or a flag - but they can of course, be destroyed by the enemy and won't last forever.


6 Kills - Precision Airstrike - Similar if not identical to CoD4.


7 Kills - Attack Helicopter - Again, similarly to the choppers from CoD4..


9 Kills - Pave Low - A more powerful and heavily armoured assault helicopter that dishes out even more pain but most importantly, can also take a lot more flak from the enemy.


11 Kills - AC130 Gunship - Possibly the ultimate kill streak reward, the AC130 gunship passes over head and allows you to take control of its infra-red heat-sensing cameras to unleash a whole world of pain on the enemy soldiers below you.


Death Streaks


In addition to kill streak rewards, IW has also tweaked the game to make it a more pleasant experience for beginners. Death streaks rewards are awarded to players who are unfortunate enough to be killed 3 or 4 times consecutively without managing a kill of their own.


The Copy Cat streak allows a player to steal the class (including all perks and attachments regardless of whether they've unlocked them) from the last player to kill them.


Meanwhile the Painkiller streak gives a player a massive time-limited health boost to help them get themselves into the game or retreat safely to a quiet corner of the map where they can lick their wounds before beginning their next failed assault.


There's a vast array of new weaponry too, the minutiae of which I'm not going to drill down into because without a lengthy hands-on it's difficult to ascertain the effectiveness of them all. But the most notable additions include suppressed sniper rifles and shotguns as well as reusable - if you go and pull them out of dead bodies - throwing knives. All of which opens up tons of game play potential. Snipers can now be truly hidden while close combat shotgun action doesn't have to be as noisy and attention grabbing as they typically are. And in addition to the usual red-dot sights and sniper scopes, you can now equip certain weapons with a heartbeat sensor that detects nearby enemies. This combined with the ability to use a perk that allows two attachments as well as the option to dual wield certain side arms using the 'Akimbo' perk means, there's even more versatility and choice than ever before which is staggering considering the possibilities the first game presented you with.


Insert your self


Another new addition is an equipment perk called Tactical Insertion which allows you to throw a signal flare which designates where you'll respawn from when you eventually next get killed. This has tons of tactical possibilities, particularly in the new capture the flag game mode, but can be countered by the enemy as it's possible to destroy the flares with grenades, or explosives - which can come in the form of C4 or the new Semtex 'sticky' grenade.


Perhaps taking some inspiration from Ubisoft's Rainbow 6 series, MW2 for the first time now features riot and blast shields which offer varying levels of protection against explosives damage. The riot shield can be used to soak up a limited amount of enemy fire with the obvious drawback being your inability to use it while simultaneously shooting. However, you can sneak up to an enemy and use the melee attack while hiding behind said shield.


The blast shield meanwhile, while not quite as robust or as cumbersome as the riot shield, still offers a good deal of resistance to explosives damage but without compromising on your speed of movement and agility.


The game's whole scoring mechanics have also been revamped. One of the first multiplayer trailers released for the game showed IW's Robert Bowling being killed by a Semtex grenade with his assailant earning a staggering 2300XP points. And while traditionally this would seem like a huge amount of XP to gain, MW2's whole scoring system has been re-written, all of which means you'll be rewarded for very often. Whereas traditionally a match-saving helicopter kill would get you nothing, in MW2 you will receive bonus XP points as well as official recognition by way of the game's new accolades system. There are many collectable and unlockable mini-achievements for you to obsess over. Examples include the "Sprayer" accolade which is awarded for getting the most hipfire kills, "Lockdown" which is awarded for spending the most time in one single place, while the "Pathfinder" accolade can be earned by utilising the most UAVs in a round.


There's also the addition of Call-Signs. You'll unlock hundreds of these graphical emblems as you progress through the game and they're all awarded depending on your own unique game play style. For instance you might unlock "The Suppressor" for obvious reasons. And these all allow you to show off your gaming prowess to others in a game while also adding further depth to already enhanced customisation options. You really can now make a name for yourself and really get sucked into grudge matches with opposing players.

Check out the movie for the multiplayer features demonstration.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArOnxjXgFxA&feature=player_embedded

Prestigious

Prestige is now set to level 70 instead of 55 and IW has promised that there's still a whole host of other stuff to unlock and earn even after having 'prestiged' up numerous times. And following on from the previous games, IW has again decided not to integrate multiplayer achievements into MW2.


IW has also openly admitted to having made a conscious effort to configure the game so that people with modified controllers will not have a competitive edge over others - so no more turbo firing single shot rifles.

In terms of maps, at present only 3 have been confirmed. Highrise, Favela and Afghan.

Highrise, mainly takes place on the roof of an unfinished skyscraper. It looks good for some Supressed Shotgun action as well as wide open spaces including a helipad and a well positioned sniping roost.


Highrise gameplay


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18sCdUnqRYM

Favela, is a literal translation of 'shanty town' which is a perfect description of the level. With high ground - perfect for snipers or marksmen - as well as plenty of low ground, full of alleyways and hidden corners, the options again are limitless and you can really play the game as tactically as you like.

Favela gameplay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_JnbOQOHfQ

Afghan meanwhile, is a barren desert map featuring a downed jumbo jet as its main focal point. With several high cliffs as well as numerous bunkers and caves.


Afghan gameplay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKjHDwuJJ1I