Even more Modern Warfare 2 updates

Holy crap! What an exciting evening this has been so far, trying to catch up with all the MW2 news from the Los Angeles MW2 event yesterday that has been spreading across Twitter all day!

Let’s start with the videos;

Call of Duty : Modern Warfare 2 Limited Edition Xbox 360 announce with Major nelson:

For those of you not bothered to view the video: Microsoft has announced the release of a special Modern Warfare 2 branded Xbox 360. It comes with a 250GB harddrive, two wireless controllers and a copy of Modern Warfare 2.

The package is currently only available for pre-order in the US, but the rest of us that lives in the part of the world that Microsoft forgot about will likely be able to place orders by end of this week.

The 250GB HDD is not going to be sold seperately for quite some time.

During the very same event, a screen shot of the Multiplayer Beta used at the event revealed that it had been possibly rated by the ESRB.

The Beta screen states the “Game Experience May Change during Online play”, this is a requirement by the ESRB for items of public play and would not be needed in the private closed Beta (the current known state) – so with this notice inclusion comes again the possibility of a public Beta, but since Microsoft would not want the release of Halo3 ODST within the next few days spoilt we could have an announcement shortly afterwards. Although, please do not forget that fourzerotwo already has stated no need for a public beta unless they have issues they can’t pinpoint any other way.

Random screenhots;

Also, I stumbled across a video showing a full game of MW2 domination (thanks duejegern!) – seems awesome, even though I’m more intrested in Search & Destroy, a game mode I really hope they have not changed too much!

For a more detailed review of the game, please check out the article at GamesRadar US, written by Tyler Wilde.

Modern Warfare 2 is the shit, to put it briefly. Yes, I know, I only played a beta version for a few hours, and this is just a preview. And sure, I was probably influenced by the massive theater screen, surround sound, and free Mountain Dew (don’t worry, I’m not reviewing it), but even so, I’m confident in saying that Modern Warfare 2 is the absolute fu**ing shit.

Infinity Ward could have hitched a ride on the success of Call of Duty 4 and released a moderately updated game with new maps and some new weapons, but they didn’t – they updated everything without losing any of the violent charm of the original.

Everything is more intense. The sounds of ricochets and bullets zipping by your face, the bloody deaths, the room-shaking explosions, the ringing in your ears – all of it feels twice as powerful. Visually, the game is very similar to CoD4, but the textures are crisper and effects like the bloody drips over your vision look more amazinger.

And yes, I’m very much excited about this release, although not to happy not having recieved a confirmation yet from Webhallen about my preorder of the Prestige Edition.

See you online, don’t be a stranger.

Mad Catz to make MW2 controller

In a Twitter post last month, Robert ‘fourzerotwo’ Bowling asked whether concave or convex analog stick grips were preferred by the fans. Later we learned that the controller was being developed by a third-party manufacturer and not by Activision and yesterday it has emerged that Mad Catz has been awarded the license for a line of Modern Warfare 2 accessories, including a specialized controller.

Mad Catz announced that they have partnered with Activision and Infinity Ward to develop a range of controllers and accessories. The release also says that the company will develop accessories for all platforms currently announced for the title, which include Xbox 360, PC, and PS3 systems.

Darren Richardson (Mad Catz CEO) – “We are excited to partner with Activision and Infinity Ward to create branded controllers and accessories based on what is one of the videogame industry’s prominent franchises. We look forward to offering unique and exciting accessories to fans of the newest release in the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare series, as we continue to grow and diversify what we believe to be the industry’s leading portfolio of branded videogame accessories.”

Vince Zampella (CEO of Infinity Ward) – “Mad Catz’s innovation and fresh approach from Day 1 has been great, Their team has really poured their hearts into the new line of accessories for Modern Warfare 2 and we can’t wait for our fans to have a chance to play for themselves this November.”

The controller is rumoured to be available by the time of the game release in november, but pricing and screenshots are yet to be seen.

Call of Duty – World At War update coming early

Josh Olin has revealed the intentions to release an earlier than planned update to Call of Duty: World at War because of cheaters ruining the online experience for many players – you don’t really expect see a soldier jump 60ft in a WWII game with unlimited ammo!

Quote from Call of Duty Intel Announcements:

Over the last week, we’ve received a number of reports from the community regarding issues that range from matchmaking difficulties to strange Nazi Zombie co-op behavior. These incidents have been caused by some users who are hacking their consoles and ultimately damaging the online experience of their fellow gamers. This is not isolated to Call of Duty – incidents of similar hacks have been reported across several titles.

We and our 1st party partners have been working diligently on countermeasures to these security breaches, and these will be going live in a Title Update early next week.

Important note: As a result of accelerating the release of this Title Update, users will see menu changes that were not intended to go live until the release of Map Pack 3. In short, you will see the Map Pack 3 levels in Private Match, Split Screen, & System Link. When you select these maps, you will be brought to the Marketplace blade to download them; however, they will not be available until they are released in August. This is only temporary, and you will be able to download the maps as soon as they are released.

Thank you all for your understanding and continued support, and we look forward to seeing you on the new maps next month.

No release date for Map pack 3 yet, price is expected to land at 800 MSP, just as the other map pack DLCs.

Call of Duty – World at War – Map Pack 3

Treyarch have just announced that Map Pack 3 for Call of Duty: World at War will be available sometime in August, featuring four brand new maps consisting of three for main multiplayer action and 1 new Zombie Map survival creation.

Fight for ocean territory in “Battery,” an armored island surrounded by anti-ship mines and shore to ship cannons. Watch out for sniper fire as you defend Russia’s most coveted resource in “Revolution,” and keep a sharp eye out through the dense, overcast city streets in “Breach,” set at Berlin’s historic Brandenburg Gate. Zombies do return in all their undead glory with “Der Riese” (Zombie Factory), a Nazi research facility featuring the weapon upgrading Pack-A-Punch Machine. Use the teleporters to escape in an instant and fight to the death in pursuit of the map’s 10 new Achievements/Trophies!

Battery Map:

An armored island surrounded by anti-ship mines and shore to ship cannons, “Battery” places soldiers on a mid-sized map based on Fort Drum (El Fraile Island) in the Philippines. Expect plenty of areas to hide and heavy close quarters combat!

BREACH MAP:

Overwhelm the enemy in “Breach,” set in Berlin’s overcast and crowded city streets surrounding the historic Brandenburg Gate. Only the fittest will survive in this fast-paced, dense battlefield!

REVOLUTION MAP:

“Revolution” pits soldiers against each other in Russia’s cold city streets and large factory environment. Keep your fingers warm, your gun loaded, and your head low through this sniper-friendly territory!

DER REISE (Zombie Factory)

Map picture? Well, it’s secret so far!

The undead horde approaches! Fight for your life in “Der Riese” (Zombie Factory), an all-new Zombie map set in a secret Nazi research facility featuring the Pack A Punch Machine, a device capable of upgrading weapons at the touch of a button. Use the teleporters to escape the vicious Hell Hounds and pray that the Wunderwaffe will appear before it’s too late.
This map includes 10 new Achievements!

No exact date and pricing have been revealed, but it would be safe to assume this at 800 MS Points considering other map packs and DLC content priced the same.

Source: callofduty.com

Modern Warfare 2 packaging revealed! (updated)

The collectors edition of Modern Warfare 2 has been revealed as ‘Prestige Edition’ in the video below, the whole kit is unboxed!

There will be three editions being released: Standard, Hardened and Prestige as shown in the youtube clip below;

The packaging will be as follows:

Standard Edition:
Just the game

Hardened edition:
The game, metal casing, art book, original call of duty 1 for XLA.

Prestige edition:
All in hardened, fully functional night vision goggles, Soap McTavish head for displaying the goggles.

No details has been revealed in regards to prices (and I don’t even see these on the swedish online stores where one could preorder the game months ago just yet, so the prestige edition might just be for the US market…), but I will keep you posted as soon as I hear anything about this!

Update 18:30:

From @fourzerotwo :

The token to download the original Call of Duty on XBLA or PSN will be in the Hardened & Prestige Editions. Hardened is $80

fourzerotwo has revealed the MW2 boxes!

On July 9th, Robert ‘fourzerotwo’ revealed the first MW2 boxes by tweeting:

“ Just recieved the first Modern Warfare 2 boxes straight off the press. Shit just got real.”

After seeing all the discussions about the “Call of Duty” brand being dropped from the title, it’s a bit of a surprise to see that the title of the game on the box reads “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2”.

Infinity Ward have been quoted saying that they left the Call of Duty out of the title because they wanted to ensure people knew it was a direct sequel to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and is not CoD 6.

“Infinity Ward’s Modern Warfare 2 is the direct sequel to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. We have focused our attention on Modern Warfare in order to most effectively communicate the fact that this is the first true sequel in the Call of Duty series. Infinty Ward, the original creators of the Call of Duty franchise, has said from the beginning Modern Warfare 2 resides in the Call of Duty universe. This is reflected in the title’s package.”

Modern Warfare 2 SpecOps Mode 2 Player Only

No campaign Co-op. No 4 player survival mode. Really ?

After the success of Call of Duty: World at War’s zombie mode and 4 player campaign co-op, it comes as a real surprise to learn that Infinity Ward’s greatly anticipated game, Modern Warfare 2, will include no co-op campaign and no 4 player survival type side game.

It seems Infinity Ward have taken their own path with the SpecOps mode that they have included in the game – only supporting 2 players!

IW didn’t want to “ruin the story by cramming co-op into it”

“We don’t do co-op in our story because we’re crafting a very specific experience and we don’t want to ruin that by cramming co-op into it. We take the moments that work really well with co-op, we bring them out and we put them in Special Ops.”

“Story’s all about pacing,” he added. “Sometimes moments get toned down because they don’t fit with the pacing of the experience you’re trying to deliver. There (in Special Ops) it’s all about fun. It’s about playing over and over again, getting a better time – you’ll have a time at the end of it – it’s about challenging a friend going in on co-op and trying to beat it on veteran.”

When asked why Special Ops was limited to two players, not four, Bowling replied:

“Two player seemed to be the magic number for co-op. That’s when it stayed really fun and intense without becoming a clusterf**k of things. We just found that two-players was the most fun.”

I know alot of people has been hoping for something simular to the WaW zombie mode in MW2, and since that was the only gametype I enjoyed on WaW – it would have been an intresting way to combine an awesome game with an awesome game mode. IMHO; WaW is a sucky game, with one excellent game mode – but then again, the Horde thing is Treyarch’s thing.

Nostalgia – Call of Duty 4 HD trailer

I can’t believe it’s 1,5 years ago since Call of Duty 4 has been released. This game was brilliant when it came out, so different from any other game I had played on the Xbox.

The really weird thing is that the game is still awesome, and provides a different challenge every time I decide to go play.

The only thing that bugs me big time about this game online is the inability to pick a decent host. 10 europeans and two american players, and it could pick an AMERICAN host for the game – or the other way around. Sometimes, it even picks me as the host, which is a really really bad idea considering my ADSL connection.

I’m hoping that Infinity Ward fixes this by providing dedicated servers for the gameplay, or atleast optimizing the ability to find the best host for the game – making it possible to, for example, vote for a host change if the host would be laggy for a majority of the players.

Modern Warfare 2 trailer released!

Finally! The full MW2 trailer has been released!

Unfortunally, for Infinity Ward, TNT cut the trailer 30 seconds short during the premiere airing during the NBA Conference Finals. Fourzerotwo posted the following on his Twitter when that happened:

“Holy Epic Fail! TNT cut the trailer short at 30 seconds! I can’t believe this… slipping into anger fueld coma….. fading… fading… gone”

And following up later with:

“TNT has heard our collective cries and replayed the full trailer at the end of the game. Promising a make good next week. Victory!”

Good thing the trailer has been available from other sources aswell!

The trailer can also be downloaded from the Xbox Live marketplace here. Thanks to MajorNelson for the direct link.

Modern Warfare 2 – getting closer!

09-10-11 … that’s when it’s released. Thinking about taking a few days off!

24th of May, the official trailer for Call of Duty – Modern Warfare 2 is out. This is the teaser …

Can’t wait … want it now …