Modern Warfare 2

The latest installment to my favourite FPS (first person shooter) franchise, Call of Duty, had arrived and I bought it right on its night of release, and played it the day after, and oh my, was it totally worth its S$74 (though seemingly overpriced) price of admission. Out of the box, you'll get 3 game components, the usual singleplayer campaign, multiplayer, as well as a co-op mode called "Spec Ops". Not too bad considering how much time you'll actually be hooked on playing multiplayer online with others trying to rise through the ranks and unlock new weapons and peripherals to gain an edge over your human competitors online.

Its singleplayer campaign, which the COD franchise is most well-known for its Hollywood blockbusters-inspired level designs and gameplay, has again resurfaced to reinvigorate the immersive yet cinematic-storytelling gameplay that FPS shooters like the old "Medal of Honor" series had created. From the underwater Navy SEALs infiltration of a hostage-bound oilrig/storming of an island prison facility which recalls scenes from the movie "The Rock", to riding and gunning down snowmobiles (think Die Hard 2) and riding miniguns on Humvees down narrow alleyways/getting outgunned after your chopper's being shot down (reminiscence of Black Hawk Down), the singleplayer campaign is jaw-droppingly good, and just about as fun (though shorter) than its predecessor's. I finished it on regular mode in about 5 hours.

Developed by Infinity Ward & published by videogame mogul Activision, this game has sold (according to statistics from the company) 4.7million units and grossed more than 310 million dollars in US & UK alone on its first day, making it the biggest videogame launch in history.

And what's intriguing about this is its target audience. No doubt the game is being rated by the ESRB in America as M17, and MA15+ in Australia for its (the first few COD titles were only rated 'T' for Teens in the US, which means you'll only have to be about 13 years old and above to play), underage players will surely try to get their hands on this popular title, or unaware parents might purchase the game for their children amidst the holiday season. Not that there's any problem with young players under the age limit playing video games that involves shooting other people (kids as young as 10 even plays counter-strike), BUT there is something morally-questionable, and seemingly morally-deprived in Modern Warfare 2. When I speak of parents who are "unawared", I'm referring to them being uninformed about this "particular" mission in the singleplayer in which you're placed in the shoes of a terrorist. The controversy surrounding this particular scenario even made its way to today's newspaper.

Citing the recent Mumbai terrorist attack as a real-world example, the article noted that in the game, as a player, your objective's to kill civilians in an airport, which seems to echo exactly what happened in Mumbai - terrorists gunning down civilians. I have played through this mission, even though I was prompted to choose whether or not I wanted to skip the "disturbing content" (just so I can experience the game fully as it was meant to be by the developers and get my money's worth), which was unbeknownst to me at time of playing (I thought it would be a torture scene or something like in COD5: World at War where your character's being interrogated by the Japanese).

It was more horrific than that. Shocked at what I was (in some ways) witnessing and participating in, I cringed, muttering "What the f..." throughout the gameplay. Sure this is just a game, but it caught me by surprise with its sheer, unflinchingly brutal violence and depiction of an atrocity that you are made "complicit" of as a player. Despite the fact that Modern Warfare 2's still a piece of entertainment at its core, its storytelling mechanic in this instance somewhat serves as a tacit, chilling reminder of the realities of today's world: the horrors of terrorism and unconventional warfare. Headlines and news reports of such events often get relegated to the back of our minds; now you're able to see one, albeit fictional, unfold through the eyes of a murderer, and it will strike a chord through your senses. In an uncomfortable way.

That aside, the game's excellent, especially its multiplayer component, which got me hooked on for hours. I'd recommend this game to anyone who don't mind lots of gun-totting violence along with a heavy-handed singleplayer campaign, provided they're (at least) over 18 years old.