Saturday, November 14, 2009

Veni, Vidi, Vici...

So, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has come and...well, will it EVER be gone? Based on what I've seen (haven't played it yet, though I look to eliminate that anomaly this evening at a gaming party), the multiplayer features of this game should keep trigger-finger gamers entertained for at least as long as the first Modern Warfare game did - which is to say that it's gonna be around for a long time. Its record-shattering sales would also seem to suggest that, as a franchise, Activision, the game's publisher, has something of a sales juggernaut on its hands.

IMO, the last time the gaming world had so hotly anticipated a gaming title was when Halo 2 was released. Ironically enough, I'd say the positive reception of Halo 2 from both critics and gamers mirrors the reception of MW2 thus far, as well. The criticism of MW2's single-player campaign seem vaguely reminiscient of the complaints regarding Halo 2 when it was first released, and, let's face it, the praise of the multiplayer features of both of these games needs no citation.

But is it REALLY as good as everyone claims it is? I'll be sure to proffer my own assessment after tonight, but what's everyone else feeling about this game?

5 comments:

dmar198 said...

Andy, this story ties right into a Catholic moral teaching about war, which affords us a pretty rare opportunity to directly tie together both parts of your blog title: "Catholic" (as in, What does Catholic teaching say about...) and "Video Gamers" (as in, ..."Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" players).

Catholic teaching says that it is evil to kill non-combatants in a time of war. Do you do this in the game? Many games reduce your points if you kill civilians; how does Call of Duty [Modern Warfare 2] handle this? Are you supposed to use weapons of mass destruction at any point? (That'd be a big no-no.) Is the titular war justifiable in Catholic teaching?

These are all very Catholic questions, perhaps you should try to ask and answer some of them in your next posts. :)

God bless, and I hope you enjoy your game!
-Dan Marcum

Kieran Driver said...

I used to play Battlefield 2142, among other war games, and i stopped because my concscience spoke against it. I felt it wrong to seek enjoyment through a virtual re-enactment of war; Something that is very real today in certain parts of the world. This was mainly due to watching a film called 'Battle for Haditha' - a disturbing presentation of the horrors of the modern war in the middle east.
None the less, i want to buy (and play) Dragon age origins on my p.c. I am excited by such fantasy games, as it greatly mirrors the works of Tolkien and his, quite frankly, Catholic Books. Do you, as a catholic, see any problem with playing games renacting warfare?

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Michael Weiss said...

Hey Andy, first time comment for me here so to answer the question regarding MW2. The story is excellent. It is high action, with intensity, sadness, anger, revenge, etc. Everything you could want in a story.

To quote Dan Marcum for a second: "Catholic teaching says that it is evil to kill non-combatants in a time of war. Do you do this in the game? Many games reduce your points if you kill civilians; how does Call of Duty [Modern Warfare 2] handle this? Are you supposed to use weapons of mass destruction at any point? (That'd be a big no-no.) Is the titular war justifiable in Catholic teaching?"

If you talk of the airport level you are supposed to kill the innocents but you can always not do that and shoot later in the level. (Although it's MUCH more fun when angry to tear the innocents apart like that. /cynacism) [spoiler] AT no point do you yourself use a WMD but it does happen in the game.[/spoiler]

The infamous airport level is NOTHING compared to what happens in the game. Let me just say this game was made and intended for Adults. I'm nearly 18 and some of it really scarred me since if you think about it; it could and very much is a reality/possibility. IT is fast action and highly realistic that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

The MP is very much fun and on the ps3 it is free (I own this game on ps3) the people are annoying but a quick mute can fix that. The MP is also fun and fast paced that is more suitable for the 'younger' crowd that shouldn't really be playing this game. The addons and perks are amazing and take this game to a whole new level.

Mike

Andy Kirchoff said...

Hey everyone,

Sorry for the "blog-vanishing" since this last post; now that I'm officially on Christmas vacation, I'll be more active in the discussions here, both as a moderator and a participator - in other words, I'll actually have the time to keep up with this blog for a change!

Since the discussion both in this post and posts in the recent past (well, as much as September's posts can count as "recent," anyway) have dealt with violence in games, I'll be writing a post on that subject, God willing, TODAY. I'm look forward to an intellectually enlightening and spiritually edifying discussion!