First, let’s start off with the story. The boys of Bravo Company are back and bad to the bone, although at the start of the game you’re not sure since the game goes back to WWII to setup the plot. As the boys of B you’re off to stop the Scalar Weapon, which threatens national security. Along the way you fight through jungles, deserts and snowy mountains before you can get home and enjoy a little R&R (at least that’s what you think). The story is much better than the first game though it seems to have some pacing issues due to cutscenes constantly pulling you out of the action every few minutes. The story also lacks that epic feel even though the dust and the Indiana Jones type music tries hard to give you that experience; but in the end, it just winds up coming short. The story however is not without merit. It is greatly enhanced by the game designers decision to channel your progression in a more linear fashion while still maintaining that open world scale of allowing freedom of movement.

As far as the single player game itself, there is an abundance to appreciate though the campaign itself is over within 6 to 8 hours depending on your style of play. Bad Company 2 certainly demonstrates how destructible objects can not only change your tactical approach to a mission, but also increase your level of fun as well. Vehicles are also a huge part of the game and are extremely entertaining in every aspect of the single player campaign. The other improvement to this sequel is that missions don’t feel as repetitive. Nevertheless, mission-types did not give me enough incentive to change my two weapons of choice.

The characters in the single player game are well acted and feature humor that doesn’t get on your nerves like the last game did at times.  Your characters will also make cracks that are clearly aimed at Modern Warfare 2 – things like snowmobiles are for sissies and heartbeat sensors on weapons. However, while your in-game squad mates are full of personality, your in-game enemies severely lack it (even the main antagonist). They also lack variation in that they all pretty much look the same throughout the game. Your squad mates aren’t without fault though. In fact, they seem to have some A.I. issues in that, unless they are moving to the next staging area, they will wait on you and you alone to engage the enemy and to trip trigger points, which at times seem too artificial. My squad also appeared like they were occasionally firing rubber bullets at the enemy since their barrage of shots didn’t seem to match my one or two shots that finally brought an enemy down. Speaking of the enemies, as the game progressed, it was like the enemy soldiers were only firing at me. My squad could literally be in front of me and out in the open and I could be behind cover; and yet the enemy’s rounds were only directed at me. It’s like the enemy’s A.I. couldn’t see my team. This doesn’t happen throughout the game just enough to make you feel like you’re being picked on. Another issue I had with enemy A.I. is the fact that they could see you through all the dust and debris but you couldn’t see them. And no, they we’re not using thermal scopes or goggles.

David Copperfield Eat Your Heart Out!

Technically, Bad Company 2 is overall pretty impressive though not perfect. For example, while outdoor environments look amazingly detailed with realistic lighting, indoor environments are bland and boring for the most part. Weapons handle well and appear more responsive than the demo; and also include better hit-detection and feedback. Having said that, I experienced moments where my rounds did not hit my intended targets, but instead bounced off some apparent invisible barrier. The game also suffers from a few other technical issues like bodies floating in midair and parts of characters going through objects in the game like walls. Also, from a technical standpoint, I am not sure why certain objects in the game can’t be destroyed like wooden crates. One last technical thing – frame rate and network connectivity all seem good.

Why Won't You Die?

The best part of Bad Company 2 (BC2) however, has to be the online multiplayer game. Unlike Modern Warfare 2, BC2 not only offers a wide range of driving and flying vehicles, but it’s also a much more tactically shooter requiring strategy and teamwork. The game also offers enough multiplayer modes to fit whatever fancies you have. In addition, maps are well layout as they are large – maybe a little too large at times, especially for deathmatch. But if you love playing sniper, then you’ll love the multiplayer maps of Bad Company 2. Sniper is just one class a player can choose from, ranging from your typical soldier, to combat engineer, to field medic and to scout (sniper). Other than points and rewards, players can also customize their multiplayer character’s load out (field kit) offering over 15,000 possible kit combinations between the various weapons and gadgets.

All in all, Bad Company 2 is a huge success over its predecessor. Though its single player campaign is much better than before, it is still not as epic as Modern Warfare 2. Having said that, BC2’s multiplayer can stand on its own, giving players an incredibly experience only a Battlefield game can offer.  I for one am glad for the changes and additions DICE has made to the game. I am also thankful to have a new multiplayer game to play online, especially since I am getting a little tired of the same old maps in you know what. Now if I can only learn to fly that darn helicopter.

Battlefield 1943

In many ways, I think that was EA’s point in releasing the downloadable Battlefield 1943 prior to Modern Warfare 2’s release in November of 2009. Because it showed the world that Battlefield’s multiplayer experience is not only good and accessible, but it is also extremely fun to play. In fact, I am still hoping DICE will put out some new maps for Battlefield 1943. I’ll be the first in line to pay for that downloadable content on Xbox Live. So, I believe Battlefield 1943 was EA’s sign that better things are yet to come with Bad Company 2.

However, that has not been my experience so far. Having played both the multiplayer beta on the PS3 and now the multiplayer demo on the Xbox 360, I am seriously worried that Bad Company 2 will not even get close to the amazing multiplayer experience of Modern Warfare 2. Why, because the multiplayer demo totally sucked? No, not really. It’s just that the demo highlighted so many technical and gameplay issues that must be fixed before its March 2nd release. Personally, knowing EA’s track record, I don’t think they will address all of these issues and just rushed the game out like they did with Mercenaries 2. EA is famous for hyping a game with cutscenes and screenshots of polished graphics and then failing to deliver the goods when the game is finally released. Okay, I need to move on. It’s obvious I have a huge beef with EA and it’s starting to show – more on EA in a latter post (maybe).

So what are my concerns with Bad Company 2? Well, let me start with my first gripe – lag. Though I never experience lag playing the beta on Sony’s PSN, I constantly experienced it with the Xbox Live demo. I can’t tell how frustrating it is to be running only to be moved back and forth in the game like some Devo song – “You got me jerking back and forth…”

Along with the lagging is the apparent frame rate issue in the game. Unlike Infinity Ward’s standard of 60 frames per second (FPS) in Modern Warfare 2, DICE’s standard with Bad Company 2 seems more like an inconsistent 30 FPS. This has all sorts of affects on Bad Company 2’s gameplay, as you would imagine, especially in targeting your opponents.

Speaking of targeting, Bad Company 2 also lacks any real feedback to let you know you’re hitting your opponents. I know, I know, you get that little “X” thing that appears over your targeting reticule, but this is not enough in my opinion. I much prefer how Modern Warfare 2 utilizes the controller’s force feedback system in producing small vibrations in combination with a sound effect to let you know when you’re hitting your enemies. Add this lack of feedback to the already frame rate and lagging issues, and you never really feel like you’re accurately shooting your targets.

On top of this feedback issue, the controls feel sluggish and not as responsive as Modern Warfare 2 or Battlefield 1943 for that matter. Turning left and right and looking up and down just doesn’t feel right. And game developers by now should know they must strive to make a game’s control feel as a natural part of a person’s hand to where players forget they’re holding a controller. Bad Company 2’s demo failed at doing this.

In terms of gameplay, the tanks in the demo (like Battlefield 1943) seem underpowered in terms of driving. Players trying to drive over simple obstacles or move uphill are met with the sudden realization that their tank doesn’t have enough get-up and go as their real life counterparts. Assault rifles also feel extremely underpowered. In addition, some weapon sights seem too small or too thin.

Bottom-line: Though I am really looking forward to the final version of Bad Company 2, I am extremely worried that the game will not live up to its potential. While there were some fun moments to be had like driving ATVs, I didn’t have half as fun as I did when playing Battlefield 1943. In addition, the game sessions are not only frustrating at times (with the above mentioned issues), but they also seem too long and drawn-out. Maybe this has to do with the fact that the maps are huge! One thing is for sure – teamwork is essential in Bad Company 2. In my experience with the multiplayer demo, the teams that worked together not only won – they dominated. In the end though, I am okay with getting beat by other players in the game, I just hope I don’t get beat by the game itself with its many issues come March 2010.

PS. Why does every Battlefield game featuring flying vehicles have to be so freaking hard to control?

#1 Simplicity

The expression, “Less is More” is too often true. And yet, too many games today are cluttered with complexity, either in their control schemes or other features that bog players down. Don’t get me wrong; I love my in-game characters to have as many real life abilities as possible. Nothing gripes me more than when a game claims to be a simulation and you can’t even jump! Gee, when I was in the Army, I was able to actually jump over obstacles, but for some reason in this military sim-shooter – I can’t. Then you have those games that have too many character abilities assigned to either some weird combination of button presses or to just one button, which then causes the player to make unintentional moves. Case-in-point, Army of Two: The 40^th Day. All aside, simplicity does not necessarily mean the absence of features and abilities. Rather, simplicity can come in other forms. For example, simplicity can be found when players interact with the game in such a way to where the gamer doesn’t have to think about how to do something – they just simply do it. In other words, things like controls are intuitive. Simplicity can also come in the form of menu design, especially with RPG’s and online multiplayer games. I can’t tell you how many times I wanted to scream when I couldn’t easily setup and invite my friends to my multiplayer match. Notice I didn’t mention anything about story or art style. Those two particular items should match a game’s overall design and purpose. But in the end, a game must have some quality of simplicity if developers want players to stay connected with their games.

#2 Creativity

Another thing game developers need in their titles is creativity. While Hollywood has seemed to run out of original ideas for movies, game developers don’t seem to be too far behind in the area of creativity. The dictionary defines creativity as “the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations, etc.” With that said, how many games, either recently released or coming out soon, can you think of that match this criteria? Hmm…I am having a hard time thinking of one. And yet, LittleBigPlanet meets that definition head-on. But what makes LittleBigPlanet an example of creativity, is not just the game itself, but how it inspires the creativity of others through its level editor. Here, gamers can create their own worlds, levels and objects. Basically, the player is only limited by his or her imagination; thus allowing creativity to flourish. This is not to say that game developers need to have level editors in every game they ship out – although that would be pretty cool if done right. Can you imagine creating your own Modern Warfare map? But all fantasies aside, developers need to start taking us beyond character and class customizations.

#3 Entertainment

Other than creativity, LittleBigPlanet is categorically an entertaining game. In other words, the game is fun, in a very charming and engaging way. That can’t be said of many titles today. And I don’t care how cool a game looks or how intriguing its story is, if the game isn’t fun, then what’s the point!? This is what characterized the retro-classic games of old – the games were just plain fun. There were no photorealistic graphics to suck you in or surround sound to ooze ambiance, just gameplay that was so fun – it captured your time and imagination. It is my personal opinion that game developers today rely too heavily on style rather than substance. Of course, the element of entertainment is not always squashed intentionally. Often, game developers miss the mark of trying to balance realism with playability; thus, under powering the player. Or in multiplayer games, developers sometime miss the mark in trying to balance fair play with fun competitiveness (e.g., Halo 3). Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying games today lack an element of fun – there is some fun to be had in most titles. And yet overall, too many titles are limited to just a few fun moments.

#4 Community

The fourth thing game developers must seek to have like LittleBigPlanet, is the element of community. By “community” I speak of various things. One of these things being the ability to play together cooperatively, which naturally gives the game a sense of community. This of course seems to be a hot trend among various developers. Even Infinity Ward added co-op play into their acclaimed Modern Warfare series, but with only allowing two players either in split-screen or online.  Interestingly enough, LittleBigPlanet allows four players to play together either locally, online, or a mixture of both online and local play, which again reinforces the game’s sense of community. But that’s not all. To co-op play, Media Molecule also included the community aspect of sharing levels and objects. Plus, players then have the capability to customize those levels and leave feedback or rewards in the form of hearts. To round things off, Media Molecule has also created an official online community called the LittleBigWorkshop. This community website not only has a forum, but it also features user created content and ideas, a blueprint planning room, tutorials, and challenges for the LittleBigPlanet’s community abroad. In other words, Media Molecule didn’t just leave the element of community to chance. Instead, they took intentional steps to build community into every aspect of the game. If the popularity of social networking sites teaches us anything, it’s that people want to play and live in community.

#5 Downloadable Content

The fifth and final thing, game developers need to glean from LittleBigPlanet, is in the area of downloadable content, also known as DLC. DLC has really been a mixed bag for gamers. Some developers go all-out like Rockstar in giving players a brand new storyline, characters, abilities and missions as in “The Ballad of Gay Tony” in GTA IV. Of course, Microsoft paid them millions to create that exclusively for the Xbox 360, which we then have to purchase if we wanted to experience it, so yeah. And then you have those like Bungie who just continually give players revamped and rehashed maps from previous Halo’s. In between all that, players have been given new challenges, new costumes, new songs, new levels – you name it. But of all the game developers out there, I think Media Molecule has the gamer at heart. Why? Because they have not only given us cute and cool costumes to dress up our little sackboy or sackgirl, but they have also given us complete DLC packages. The first of those was the Metal Gear Solid level pack. Other than the 6 brand new levels inspired by the Metal Gear games, the level pack also included new DLC in the form of: 12 materials, 10 decorations, 18 objects, 3 background music tracks, 1 interactive music track, 1 sound object, and new construction tools/features (plasma ball, laser sight, searchlight, the paintinator, and the paint switch). Other kits like the History Kit and the Monster Kit gave players 1 new level plus tons of new DLC. Then you have Media Molecule’s latest gift to gamers – The Pirates of the Caribbean level kit, which not only adds 6 new levels and lots of DLC; but it also has the long awaited feature of being able to add water to levels. On top of all this, Media Molecule not only provides players with rich DLC with new features and content, they also do it with excellent pricing. No arm or leg required because all their DLC is either free or reasonably priced. All-in-all, downloadable content not only extends the life of a game while avoiding the huge expenses that come with developing new titles or sequels; but it also allows players the joys of re-experiencing their games in a fresh and new way. Something that LittleBigPlanet does, like nobody else.

Bottom-line: There are many wonderful things game developers can and should learn from LittleBigPlanet. But if all they see is a game with great graphics and great physics – they’re only peering into just one plane of what makes it a gem. It is by far the game’s simplicity, creativity, entertainment, community, and downloadable content that make LittleBigPlanet an amazing experience to be had – one that will last for many years to come. So here’s hoping others will strive to make games of equal caliber.

Bayonetta (PS3/Xbox 360 – ships 1/5/2010)

You play as a gun-wielding witch with super powers in this high-power, over-the-top, fast-paced, acrobatic action game from the creative mind of Hideki Kamiya. This game is already receiving rave reviews.

Army of Two: The 40^th Day (PS3/Xbox 360 – ships 1/12/2010)

This sequel to what could have been a great game has now been refined for action with a new mission for Rios and Salem. Featuring new co-op moves, weapons and customization. Here’s hoping EA gets it right this time, instead of all the cutbacks and compromises we saw in the first game.

Dark Void (PC/PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 1/19/2010)

A sci-fi action game where players get to take to the skies with their very own jetpack! Hopefully, Capcom will give us an excellent third-person game. I am still trying to get over what could have been with Bionic Commando.

Mass Effect 2 (PC/Xbox 360 – Ships 1/26/2010)

Hop aboard for a new space adventure with the return of Commander Shepard. This mature and already highly controversial game will feature incredible RPG-Action that will truly be out of this world.

No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle (Wii – Ships 1/26/2010)

The sequel to one of the goriest games on the Wii returns in “No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle.” Get ready to fight and slash as Travis Touchdown in this action-adventure.

MAG (PS3 – Ships 1/26/2010)

The first first-person shooter to feature 256 players in a multiplayer game made up of 8-man squads. This massive war game will be a game of huge MAGnitude.

Star Trek Online (PC – Ships 2/2/2010)

Calling all Trekkies and Trekkers, choose to battle online either as a Federation Captain or a Klingon Warrior in this MMORPG that will feature epic space battles and confrontations on the surface of planets within the Star Trek universe.

Gran Turismo 5 (PS3 – Ships April 2010?)

After many delays and partial installments, Gran Turismo 5 is finally coming to the PS3. Get ready to drive in one of the most complete racing experiences ever. Update: Another Delay.

Bioshock 2 (PC/PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 2/9/2010)

You play as the first Big Daddy – a prototype for the Big Daddies of the first award winning game in this epic underwater action, horror-shooter, which is set 10 years after the events in Rapture city.

Blur (PC/PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 2/15/2010)

From the creators of Project Gotham Racing comes “Blur,” an over-the-top racing game featuring co-op and competitive races where you battle it out with your opponents using power-ups that you can collect and combine.

Singularity (PC/PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 2/15/2010)

This first-person shooter is set in an alternate 2010 blending Cold War history and sci-fi. Players will use both conventional and unconventional weapons to complete missions.

Aliens vs. Predator (PC/PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 2/16/2010)

Sega will possibly grant many sci-fi gamers’ their dreams of playing as an alien, a predator, or colonial marine in the first-person shooter “Aliens vs. Predator.” Let the action begin.

Heavy Rain (PS3 – Ships 2/16/2010)

In what could be a revolutionary game, “Heavy Rain” is set to shower us with a psychological thriller that pits players against a serial killer using four characters. If the game plays as good as it looks, we’re in for a real treat.

Endless Ocean: Blue World (Wii – Ships 2/22/2010)

This sequel game is set to expand the ocean experience with a goal of more intense action versus just taking a relaxing dive. With improved graphics and online multiplayer, this game is set to take this franchise to a new level.

Splinter Cell: Conviction (PC/Xbox 360 – Ships April 2010)

Sam Fisher is back and out to seek vengeance on those responsible for his daughter’s death. Featuring stealth-action to allow players to powerfully meet threats with intense force, this game will also include Co-op and other multiplayer matches in this highly anticipated sequel. Update: Delayed from its 2/23 release, oh well, we’ve only been waiting since 2007 for this game, so what’s another few months.

LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (PC/PS3/Xbox 360/Wii/PSP/DS – Ships 3/1/2010)

Prepare yourself for another LEGO game starring Harry, Ron, Hermione and over 100 playable characters with Drop-in and Drop-out cop-op play.

Battlefield Bad Company 2 (PC/PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 3/2/2010)

If you’re tired of playing Modern Warfare 2, pickup this game for spectacular multiplayer action with huge maps, destructible environments, and vehicles ranging from ATVs to Helicopters.

Final Fantasy XIII (PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 3/9/2010)

Final Fantasy XIII takes you on a RPG adventure in Cocoon and the outer world of Pulse. With this sequel to the acclaimed franchise, players will now be able to switch between party members’ roles during combat. Come March 2010, fans in North America will finally get their hands on this game, which has already been released in Japan last year.

Just Cause 2 (PC/PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 3/23/2010)

Rico Rodriguez is back for an open world, over-the-top, action-adventure on the island of Panau. With his grappling hook and parachute always ready, players can expect some insane over-the-top gameplay as you fight, shoot, fly, drive, and basically cause massive amounts of destruction. Since this time the game is not being developed for older platforms (i.e., PlayStation 2 and Xbox) as in the original title, the game engine should be optimized to take full advantage of the PS3 and Xbox 360, as well as newer PCs.

Red Steel 2 (Wii – Ships 3/23/2010)

The original Red Steel may have been one of the biggest selling 3^rd party titles for the Wii, based solely on what looked like a cool idea to use the motion controller as a sword, but in the end – it was more of a gimmick than a viable gaming feature. Developer UbiSoft is seeking to remedy this and many other issues with this sequel and its use of the Wii MotionPlus. Though I am impressed from what I’ve seen so far, I remain skeptical. Let’s not forget that it was UbiSoft who pumped out one pathetic title after another (when the console was first released) to capitalize on the Wii phenomena at the expense of the consumer. So let’s just see if Red Steel 2 will deliver the goods.

Crysis 2 (PC/PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 3/30/2010)

When Crytek first demoed its game engine, it floored the gaming world. However, the only way to experience all of its glory (in the first Crysis game) was to have a super high-end PC. That’s no longer the case with Crysis 2. Crytek through some programming magic has developed the CryEngine 3, which will apparently give us the full Crysis experience on the Xbox 360 and PS3, as well the PC. If the early teaser videos shown so far are real, console gamers are in for a real treat.

God of War III (PS3 – Ships 3/16/2010)

What does it mean when you can re-release two prequels on the PS3 and they not only score well, but they sell well too? It means you’ve got a winner on your hands. Thus, in comes the long awaiting God of War III to give eager a fans what they want. Expect this action game to not only sell many copies, but also sell many systems. Kratos rocks!

Yakuza 3 (PS3 – Ships 4/1/2010)

When I first saw the cutscenes to Yakuza 3, I was immediately wowed. But having seen the game in action, I am worried that the fighting will get boring and repetitive. Yet this is not the first time SEGA has had to put together a good fighter. Let’s just hope they can blend all these other gaming elements together to give us a smash hit.

Alan Wake (Xbox 360 – Ships 4/12/2010)

Delay, delay, go away, come again, not another day. Okay, sorry for cheap rhyme. But that has to be the song many gamers have been singing for years in anticipation of this long awaiting title from Microsoft. If the end product equals the amount of time this exclusive title has been in development, Alan Wake should be one of the greatest action-adventure games of all-time

Dead to Rights: Retribution (PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 4/13/2010)

Ever since “Shadow Dancer” was released in the arcade and then on the Genesis in the late 80’s, the idea of having a canine ally to fight by your side has been most intriguing. So when the first Dead to Rights came out in 2002 for the Xbox and PS2, many like myself were left with mixed feelings about the game. It was good, just not great. So with eight years of tinkering and rumors, Namco will release what will conceivably be, a better than average game. Let’s just cross our fingers that we don’t windup with a sequel that substitutes substance for just another run of the mill 3^rd person shooter with added darkness and violence.

Red Dead Redemption (PS3/Xbox 360 – Ships 4/27/2010)

As a fan of Westerns, I am surprised this setting and genre is just now starting to pickup steam. And with Rockstar at the reins, this open-world Western should be more than just a desert of a sandbox game. Expect a ten-gallon story and root’n toot’n action when John Marston comes to town.

ModNation Racers (PS3 – Ships Q1 2010)

What do you get when you take the customization, online sharing and graphic quality of LittleBigPlanet and combine it with the fun of Mario Kart? You get ModNation Racers, an exclusive upcoming game by Sony Computer Entertainment coming out sometime March or April of 2010. While the track editor looks like it took some cues from Far Cry’s level editor, Sony seems to have made it incredibly simple to make your own tracks, characters and cars. Expect this one to be a fun romp for both serious and average players of all ages.

Map Rotation

"Estate" Multiplayer Map

First, let’s talk about Map Rotation. I realize that the amount of time spent in a particular lobby, whether or not the lobby resets and so on – will all affect which map is selected. However, there seems to be (at least for team deathmatch) a few maps that always appear. The one that comes to mind the most is Estate. I don’t know how many times I’ve defended and assaulted this mountain home, but in my opinion, it’s been too many times.

Team Balancing

Second gripe deals with Team Balancing. There have been an excessive amount of times where one team not only had more players, but they also had players who were of higher rank. For example, you’d have one team with 5 players (three sergeants, 1 captain, and 1 lieutenant colonel) against a team of 7 players (3 generals, 1 captain, 1 sergeant, 1 major, and 1 prestige).  And if the game does give you an even amount of players on both sides, it still has the teams unfairly stacked with more high-ranking players on one team. Now, I realize that coming in with a friend or playing with a clan tag, does force the game to keep them on the same team, but the game nevertheless has team balancing issues.

Weapon’s Range

Third thing that needs tweaking relates to the weapon’s range. My major gripe is with the Winchester 1887. While this famous level-action shotgun designed by John Browning in the late 19^th century and early part of the 20^th century, was and is a great weapon; my contention is with its effectiveness to take a person out with one shot firing over 40 yards away akimbo style. In other words, I have no doubts this weapon can mortally wound a person, but at what range? In verifying my facts with a local gunsmith friend whose great grandfather owned a Winchester 1887, he confirmed that on “soft” targets, a 10 gauge with lead buckshot or slugs would be effective at 25 plus meters and devastating within 15 meters; and with a buckshot from size 4 up (or a slug), a person within 40 yards without body armor would be seriously to mortally wounded.  However, the aim required wouldn’t be casual (i.e., as in the akimbo firing position used in the game), rather it would have to be centered on the upper torso. Bottom-line, I am okay being killed 15-25 meters away in the game by this weapon, but not 40 plus yards away as players are easily able to do in multiplayer. Of course, by the time you’re reading this, both the Xbox 360 and PC will have been patched. Funny how the PS3 got this fix first.  Another minor gripe is with Frag grenades. The effective kill range of a Frag grenade is 30 meters. However, in Modern Warfare 2 – the range seems to be more like 15 meters. Case-in-point, you know an enemy is in the room next to you, which is about 10 meters wide; you lob a Frag grenade through the door and it lands near the wall opposite of the corner your enemy is camping in; but, instead of dying, you walk in to be immediately shot.

Care Packages

Fourth gripe is with Care Packages. I realize care package crates need to have some real physics behind them to allow them to bounce, roll and even kill someone if they’re standing below them when they fall from the sky. But do they have to have such realistic physics to where I lose them all together? I mean, can’t they roll off the top of the plane, if they happen to land up there? And why doesn’t the physics behind them, not allow me to use the concussion from a grenade to make them drop? However, my biggest lies in the decision to make it where they never go out of bounds. I am sure some of you can relate to my frustration. You’re playing a big match and you get a cool care package like an air raid or stealth bomber, to only see it sitting on the other side of some fence. Hey, if Infinity Ward can prevent me from walking through certain bushes and not being able to break certain glass to serve as boundaries I can’t cross, then why couldn’t they have made a rule to keep my care packages from going outside those invisible boundaries as well?

Server Errors and Lag

Fifth and final gripe that needs addressing is with serving errors and lag. I know there has to be a billion people playing this game, but using their genius minds, it seems Infinity Ward could have optimized the network code to prevent issues like this. The last time I had issues like this was with Call of Duty 2. I can understand this happening every once and a while, but in my experience, this is happening way too often.

I know the game has already been patched, but the update doesn’t seem to address any of these specific issues, other than dealing with the Javelin exploit. In fact, the 1.06 update seem to have created some new issues. According to IGN, these new issues include allowing players to join private matches they’re not supposed to be joining. Here’s hoping that Infinity Way does some more tweaking and fixing on their part with their 1.07 patch. Especially since Modern Warfare 2 is one of the best first-person shooters of all time.

Update 1-29-10:

New Patch coming (now available for PS3/360 undergoing certification with the following fixes:

- Care Package, Emergency Airdrop, and Sentry Gun marker grenades sprint speed normalized.

- Fix for “infinite care package” exploit.

- Sentry Guns: Improved placement detection, preventing cases of Sentry Guns inside geometry.

- Model 1887: Bling using Akimbo and FMJ combination now has same range and damage as non-Bling Model 1887s.

- Improved player collision removing cases of getting into geometry and ‘elevators’.

- Fixes to prevent various XP hacks.

Update 2-12-10:

Xbox 360 patch now available fixing the following issues:

- Infinite Care Package Exploit

- Care Package, Emergency Airdrops, and Sentry Gun marker grenades sprint speed normalized

- Sentry Guns now have improved placement detection preventing inside geometry

- Model 1887: Bling using Akimbo and FMJ combination now has same range and damage as non-Bling

- Prevention of various XP hacks (including negative XP)