Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

PC, PS3, Xbox 360 (£39.99-£54.99, 18)

Anticipation for this first-person shooter has been running at fever pitch for months, but the refusal of the developer Infinity Ward to show the full game to anyone until a week before the release has been irritating.

Many have wondered whether this might be a damage limitation exercise, whether the game might not live up to the promise of its all-conquering predecessor two years ago.

As one of the few journalists to have had proper hands-on time with the full game, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Modern Warfare 2 sets a standard that will have its competition gasping for air.

Modern Warfare 2: complete news, reviews and comment roundup

First day sales of new video game set to be 40% above previous record, but controversy persists over its use of violence

BACKGROUND

• Violent video games won’t corrupt

• Modern Warfare 2: Brutal and brilliant

• Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 premiere report

• Modern Warfare 2: war is not a game

Times Archive, 1985: Video nasties blamed for violence

Video machines 'leading children to re-enact scenes of violence'

• Four out of ten children 'have seen video nasties'

• Video nasties leave MPs reeling with horror

Set five years in the future, the game has players trying to track down a Russian terrorist called Makarov. He is a ruthless psychopath who, during the course of the game, implicates America in a monstrous criminal act.

The setting of this crime is shocking enough to warrant the on-screen 'disturbing content' warning, giving you the option to skip this astonishingly brutal part of the early game.

Modern Warfare 2 introduces levels in which you climb with ice picks in Arctic conditions, take an oilrig by stealth and fire-fight through wartorn suburban streets in America. Not only has the single-player gameplay been raised up a notch from the original Modern Warfare, the story is also well thought out and not just a simple link from one level to the next. For fans of the series, John 'Soap' McTavish also returns as your superior officer.

Unfortunately, there isn't the option to play through the story mode as a co-op adventure with a friend, but rather there are now 24 co-op missions that range from clearing slums in Rio De Janeiro of insurgents while not hurting civilians, to racing snowmobiles.

It would have been nice to be able to play the full single-player game with a friend, but the co-op missions work well enough. A nice touch is the ability to set the difficulty level individually for each player, so experienced players and noobs (inexperienced players) can complete missions together.

The multiplayer levels are everything you would expect from the Modern Warfare series, but now with some neat additions and 'perks'. Fans of the original online play are going to find themselves right at home.

Overall, Modern Warfare 2 looks gorgeous with rich colours and crisp graphics, with the single player game boasting near cinematic cut scenes.

The game play surpasses all of the other first person shooters I've played and Modern Warfare 2 will be an instant classic. As long as you are aware that the 18 certificate is not there just for show, Modern Warfare 2 is a double-barrelled blast.