UPDATE: This Editor’s Modern Warfare 2 Pet Peeve
My Pet Peeve About CoD: MW2
The problem I had was in the stage where you unavoidably have to play the role of an undercover CIA Agent, placed right beside the big, bad Makarov (the guy you really want to catch) and you are forced to take on the role of a terrorist!!
This involves being a part of a terrorist group that walks up a flight of stairs in a Moscow airport, armed to the teeth, and start massacring innocent civilians. I was like “WTF?!”
This is something I really didn’t expect from this game and as such, I was happy that this portion was short-lived. At least in the end, I got what I deserved.
For the longest while, there has been an ongoing discussion among the regulatory bodies about violence in games. Ratings are one thing but that doesn’t really stop a 12 or 13 year-old from gaining access to “Mature” (17+) game content but this is really beside my point.
My point is that usually the way we can “justify” such gory scenes and depictions in a video game is by pitting the proverbial “Good versus Evil”. If you take on the role of a secret operative and go to kill the bad guy, everyone can see and understand the rationale behind that. However, flipping that script like Modern Warfare 2 has (even ever so briefly), has in my opinion tarnished the finished product by exonerating that which the activists have tried to keep at bay.
Don’t get me wrong though, Modern Warfare 2 is still a cut above the rest and will still stand as one of the best games I have ever played. For a “mature” and sanely thinking person it is not that bad. I for one would not let a game influence my real life behaviour but then again, not everyone is the same.
We live in a trying time where crime and violence and specifically terrorism is at the forefront of everyone’s mind. Game developers should at least play their part in keeping things civil. I believe that Activision was trying to portray these actions as the wicked and brutal acts that they really are and they succeeded in doing that but they (and other developers) need to be careful.
Just my two cents you guys. Sign up on our forums to join the discussion here.
Update follows on the next page.
“The problem I had was in the stage where you unavoidably have to play the role of an undercover CIA Agent, placed right beside the big, bad Makarov (the guy you really want to catch) and you are forced to take on the role of a terrorist!!”
You don’t have to play that mission. You have the option before you start the game to skip it AND before you play that mission, you also have the option to skip it.
That is true. However, I speak in terms of the flow of gameplay.
I’m sure no one wants to really pay $60 (more than normal for a PC game) and skip, or miss out on, a level for any reason.