Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

[Remy]

They're either incredibly brave or complete idiots (probably a mix of both) to go as far as they have here, and it's obviously going to stir up a whole mess of controversy among those tabloids and opportunistic politicians and other media crusaders looking to pick a fight with another violent videogame.

Germany and Australia, I wouldn't get your hopes up over playing it legally unless youre versions see that stage cut out. =( Despite all that though, it looks really.fucking.fun to play. Picking off wounded survivors as you go is a great touch.

It's already been classified here, so we're good, I think.

[Patticus]

Somebody uploaded the airport video to GameTrailers:

http://www.gametrailers.com/user-movie/airport-scene-leaked-mw2/333341?playlist=featured

Have a look now if you haven't already!

[Badnik Mechanic]

Well I watched it... it was certainly an experience.

I think that one of the reasons that it's going to cause a lot of problems on release is that there was so much influence taken from the terrorist attacks in Mumbai last year. I know it was a different setting, but there was a lot of stuff that I'd seen in those news reports and the CCTV images.

[Patticus]

Here we go... Something a little less controversial.

That looks absolutely amazing!

Edit: Infinity Ward has spoken out about the Airport scene, saying that it's essentially skippable via a checkpoint system (presumable at the start you'll have the option to play it or leap into the first good guy mission), and is preceded by warnings of disturbing content some may find distressing.

Activision has just confirmed to VG247 that a leaked Modern Warfare 2 video of civilians being gunned down in an airport is of real, skippable content from the shooter.

We’ve just been given the following statement in response to a question as to whether or not the scene is from the game. Here’s the full thing:

“Yes it is. The scene establishes the depth of evil and the cold bloodedness of a rogue Russian villain and his unit. By establishing that evil, it adds to the urgency of the player’s mission to stop them.

“Players have the option of skipping over the scene. At the beginning of the game, there are two ‘checkpoints’ where the player is advised that some people may find an upcoming segment disturbing. These checkpoints can’t be disabled.

“Modern Warfare 2 is a fantasy action game designed for intense, realistic game play that mirrors real life conflicts, much like epic, action movies. It is appropriately rated 18 for violent scenes, which means it is intended for those who are 18 and older.”

So there you have it. Go nuts.

I doubt that that'll silence the cries of the tabloid press for it to be banned, the media is really quite awful when it comes to understanding games.

[Tornado]

Australia is all like "No dedicated servers? Fuck that noise."

The realistic graphics show a first-person view of terrorists shooting unarmed civilian characters that leave trails and pools of blood or lie crippled on the ground.

Jane Roberts, president of the Australian Council on Children and the Media, has called for the Classifications Board to reconsider its rating for the game.

Linky.

To be fair, the (admittedly context-free) video in question makes it looks an awful lot like Activision was pushing for controversy for the sake of controversy rather than for any creative freedom it allows; and the more I think about it the more I think that this seems like an intentional leak purely to ruffle feathers.

[Remy]

God I hate our media.

We need to hustle up on an r18 rating for games quick like.

[Patticus]

Remz, save your ire for the British media. Namely, the Daily Mail...

Terrorism Game Outrage

This Christmas' top selling computer game could be one in which players kill hundreds of civillians in an airport. The sick game, (Bias) called Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, features a level in which players score points by shooting unarmed passengers (Uninformed, Archaic view of Videogames) at an airport terminal, according to a trailer released on the internet. (Uninformed, it wasn't an official trailer, nor was it 'released'.)

The footage shows the player entering airport security with a machine gun in hand, before killing every innocent bystander in sight, often while they are crawling away injured or screaming for help. Eventually, the player must shoot the police that come to the public's aid to progress.

Gamer Alan Burke, 14, said "The game looks like a lot of fun. All my friends at school are getting it for Christmas". But mum Cathy was outraged; "I can't believe they thought this was suitable material for such impressionable minds (The game is rated 18, which at no point it says in this article. Bias.)" she told us, "it's absolutely sickening". (You shouldn't be buying it for your underage son anyway, Burke.)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare sold over 7 million copies, and this new version is predicted to break that record. Market research shows that most of the players are aged between 12 and 18. (They shouldn't be, its rated 18, which it never says in this article.)

PM Gordon Brown condemned the game in a conference call this evening, saying "It's atrocious that the entertainment industry feels the need to make light of such a serious and grave issue", and Conservative MP Justin Davis called for the game to be banned from sale. Activation (Uninformed, frankly hilariously bad reporting), the company who make the dispicable title, refused to comment.

One of the most un-informed, shit-stirring, appallingly researched, bias, shock value pieces of reporting I've ever seen in my life, no surprise it comes from the Daily Mail. They should be utterly ashamed.

[Badnik Mechanic]

The guardian also has a story on this... yet it's probably one of the more intelligent, if not through provoking ones out there.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/oct/29/games-gameculture

[Remy]

One of the most un-informed, shit-stirring, appallingly researched, bias, shock value pieces of reporting I've ever seen in my life, no surprise it comes from the Daily Mail. They should be utterly ashamed.

Point taken, the Daily Mail are on a whole new level. :0 It's amazing a paper like that makes it to print.

[Dr. Good Girl]

Coming from one of the very few girls in the world who loves the Call of Duty series, I like a little controversy with my food.

We can blow up and shoot as many innocent civilians in GTA, Saints Row, etc. for all the pointless reasons ever. Especially inside the Airports too. A majority of Xbox users are used to that sort of violence. I imagine everyone who's done that will have the urge to play this scene. It doesn't provoke terrorism or anything of the sort because that's the opposite of what Call of Duty games in general are getting across. If anything Call of Duty shows people, is how we don't want to to fight in actual wars. “In war, there are no unwounded soldiers.” - Jose Narosky

Besides the story looks good, and an in depth story is what also makes a good game. I'm sure this scene will play and interesting and huge relevance towards the plot.

[pooshoes]

Rock Paper Shotgun gives more bad news, with info on 18 Player limits for multiplayer.

What have PC gamers done to warrant IW providing such shite?

Edited November 6, 2009 by Pooshoes?

[Tiller]

Rock Paper Shotgun gives more bad news, with info on 18 Player limits for multiplayer.

What have PC gamers done to warrant IW providing such shite?

Pirate. Unfortunately stuff like this is going to start happening as the PC platform makes less cash. The catch is that moves like these irritate honest buyers and my even drive more into piracy out of sheer spite. While I don't think an 18 player cap is bad at all, since the maps were balanced around that and the game is P2P, it still irks me that the modding community won't be able to play massive 32 player games on their own custom maps.

Also, Carmack just came out and said that Rage may not have Dedicated servers. The house id Software, a founding father of online computer multiplayer gaming, dropping dedicated servers. Expect a trend and fear the worst. D:

Edited November 6, 2009 by The Engineer

[BlueFox]

I hate Pirates.

I'm starting to see the PC version actually becoming the console version. This doesn't matter to me (As I will be geting the 360 version anyway) but as with the PC community I'm sure they'll find away around this and the Dedicated servers. i'm sure it's just a matter of time.

9 vs. 9 is a nice size though, provided the maps aren't huge.

[CtW]

Since when has there been reason to believe piracy is to blame? Developers make greedy moves to screw people over and when it hurts the sales they blame piracy so they can be even more extortionate next time. Or you have cases where developers have unreasonable sales expectations and blame piracy when it fails. Never has their been any compelling evidence to support the claims, leaving no other conclusion that it merely being a way to cover their own screw ups without having to admit to doing anything stupid.

[Remy]

The reason for dropping dedicated is not so much piracy as it is "we want to sell you paid DLC"

[Cake]

Welp, through the power of broken street dates, I just beat the Single Player Campaign of Modern Warfare 2, and I can only say... wow. Infinity Ward should be making movies, not games. The sheer level of intense storytelling delivered in this chapter of the Modern Warfare series was unreal; it simply blew me away. While playing, there were several instances where I literally had to stop, pause the game and ask myself "did that really just happen?" My only qualm was I was done with it in roughly 5 and a half hours, a little shorter than I'd have liked.

Warning: this game may contain up to 85% more epic than the previous Modern Warfare. Meanwhile, Special Ops is tough as FOCK on Veteran, and as of yet, I've not touched the multiplayer. We shall see in the future, I need sleep~

[pooshoes]

Since when has there been reason to believe piracy is to blame? Developers make greedy moves to screw people over and when it hurts the sales they blame piracy so they can be even more extortionate next time. Or you have cases where developers have unreasonable sales expectations and blame piracy when it fails. Never has their been any compelling evidence to support the claims, leaving no other conclusion that it merely being a way to cover their own screw ups without having to admit to doing anything stupid.

Doom 3

[Patticus]

In the run-up to this game, I'm presently enduring CoD4s 'No Fighting In The War Room' mission on Veteran, and have noticed the issue where checkpoints are... eratic in their appearances. I'm closing in on the control room now though; up to the bit with the long corridor blocked by crates that forces you into side tunnels with round metal rooms. It's a bitch on Normal so let's see how we do on Vet.

Hope I finish it in time for MW2 Veteran.

Edit: Made my way to the bridge shootout and checkpointed my arse (that chase sequence was hard), shut it off and went downstairs... only to find MW2 waiting for me. CoolShop.co.uk FTMFW etc

[Remy]

Edit: Made my way to the bridge shootout and checkpointed my arse (that chase sequence was hard), shut it off and went downstairs... only to find MW2 waiting for me. CoolShop.co.uk FTMFW etc

MY BODY IT IS FILLED WITH ENVY

[Detective Shadzter]

Someone over at the official Xbox forums has posted this -

http://forums.xbox.com/22/29747377/ShowPost.aspx#29747377

If I wasn't fussed about the hardened edition I have on pre-order for Xbox 360 at HMV I'd get it from Sainsburys as that's an awesome bargain and staff have discount temporarily increased from 10% to 15% at the moment. I guess I could get the PS3 version from there if I fancy it

EDIT: Woah, I thought the pic would shrink on here

[Conando]

Supermarkets sell video games in England? What? Or are Supermarkets something different there?

[Detective Shadzter]

Supermarkets sell video games in England? What? Or are Supermarkets something different there?

All the big name supermarkets sell video games over here, aswell as CD's, DVD's and Blu-Rays.

Sainsburys

Tesco

ASDA

Morrisons

They all sell games and most of the time their much cheaper than in the specialist stores. All 4 of those main ones always have price wars over the major releases and don't mind selling those games at a loss for a short time because they hope you will buy some groceries while your there

[Carbo]

How long's the campaign? I heard people on /v/ blazed through it faster than the Halo: ODST campaign.

[Badnik Mechanic]

Someone over at the official Xbox forums has posted this -

Well... my... God....

£2.18 for a packet of Monster Munch! What kind of supermarket is this!

Edited November 8, 2009 by Casanova

[Cake]

How long's the campaign? I heard people on /v/ blazed through it faster than the Halo: ODST campaign.

Burned through it on Normal in about 5 hours, 30 minutes. Give or take 15 minutes.