Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2: A Guide To Playing Multiplayer Online - Kill Streak, Death Streaks, Weapons and Equipment
Challenge Yourself
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s online multiplayer mode is proving to be much more challenging than any of the previous CoD games. Modern Warfare 2 currently has the largest number of players online; and a lot of players means a lot of good players. Since Modern Warfare 2 it seems that everyone has upped their game and staying alive long enough to achieve a good kill streak is a challenge.
Death Streaks
For those of you who are finding multiplayer really difficult then I’m sure you’ve welcome the death streak system with open arms. You can customize your death streak by selecting ‘create a class’ and choosing ‘death streak’. Certain death streaks are only unlocked when you reach a specific level.
The death streak system comes in to play when you die a certain number of times in a row without getting a kill.
The death streak option you start with is ‘Copy Cat’ which starts once you die 4 times without a kill. Copy Cat allows you to copy the class of the player who killed you; if you are only struggling up the ranks then you can use this to get yourself a loadout of higher-level weapons but if you’ve unlocked most of the weapons already this perk become almost useless.
Painkiller is the second option which allows you a health boost when you spawn (it’s basically Juggernaught – a health extension perk from the previous Call Of Duty Games- for a limited period). While it’s active Painkiller is very useful, just beware of snipers as the one-shot-one-kill rule still applies if they have good aim.
The ‘Martyrdom’ option will have your character drop a live grenade after you die; it also sets into action once you’ve died 4 times. If you’re playing a Hardcore match it’s only polite to tell your team mates you have this perk on, otherwise you may find yourself surrounded by angry team mates, or even dead if you’re playing hard-core ricochet.
The final option is ‘Final Stand’ which allows you a limited bleed out time once you’ve been killed. You will have your pistol equipped to ward off nearby enemies and if you survive long enough you will stand back up. Final stand can be a good perk depending on how far away your enemy shot you from - if you’ve been shot point-blank ready yourself for a very limited Final Stand as your enemy finished you off. If you’ve been shot by a distant sniper on the other hand you have a better chance of surviving as you could possibly crawl to safety before they have time for a second shot. Final Stand is only worth while if you have a good reaction time - you must be ready to shoot the second you fall into Final Stand.
Kill Streaks
Unlike the death streak option which is customizable for each class, the kill streak option is an overall choice that effects all the classes. The ‘Call sign and Kill Streak’ option is available at the Multiplayer Menu.
When you first start playing you will only have 3 kill streaks unlocked. Only three can be in use at one time so choose carefully.
Kill Streak rewards only come into effect once you have killed a certain number of enemies in a row without dying.
Unless you are confident that you can easily achieve a high kill streak it is advisable to choose the lower rewards.
For players finding it hard online the best reward to choose is ‘Care Package’ which you will obtain after 4 kills. When you activate the reward a package will be dropped to the location of your choice. The package will contain ammo or another kill streak reward. This can be a great opportunity to score some more kills – Predator Missiles are a Care Package favourite. Just remember if you do kill any enemies using a reward dropped in a care package it won’t be added to your current kill streak.
Weapons
The pre-set classes are filled with average level weapons that’ll take you a while to unlock for yourself but the starting weapons in each category aren’t bad. There’s also a new class – ‘Riot Shield’ which literally does what it says on the tin – it’s a riot shield. The shields aren’t indestructible but they can withstand a hell of a lot of fire, but they will crumple under an RPG or a grenade so watch out!
The Secondary Weapons categories have all been changed from the previous games. Shotguns have now become a secondary weapon, and this time there’s a lot of them to unlock.
There’s also a lot of new Equipment - stick grenades (Semtex) and throwing knives seem to be the most popular new additions. Throwing knives have the added advantage of being reusable – you can pull them back out of your newest victims fresh corpse and continue hunting.
The Special Grenades section hasn’t been changed though. Stun grenades are always the best choice because they slow your enemy down and stun them temporarily.
Modern Warfare 2 has a large range of unlockable attachments for all the primary and secondary weapons, but unlike the previous CoD games your won’t lose them if you decide to Prestige.
Perks
In Modern Warfare 2 we see the introduction of Pro Perks. Pro Perks can be unlocked by completing perk-related challenged. There are also different levels of each Pro Perk with each more helpful than the last. You can view the Pro Perk challenges in the Barracks under the Perks section.
The ‘best’ perks really depends on how you play the game. If you’re a sniper then certain perks will work much better for you than for a player who prefers using assault rifles. The majority of online CoD players have the ‘Stopping Power’ perk on most weapons. Stopping Powers gives your weapon an added damage boost.
Playing Online
Playing Call Of Duty online for the first time has always been a challenge, but playing Modern Warfare 2 online can seem impossible. All the maps are brand new so you can’t possibly know where to go, you’re getting killed left, right and centre and really losing your patience, but with a few tips you can really improve your skills.
When you first begin a game look at your radar in the top left of the screen or check your map by pressing start. Take note of where you have spawned. No matter what map you are playing on the opposite team will have spawned at the direct diagonal opposite from you e.g. if your team have just spawned in the bottom right of the map the other team are starting in the top left.
Even though you’ve just figured out where the other team is, don’t run directly towards them – there’s a lot more of them than you. Anyway they will all have moved by the time you get to their spawn point, instead make your way to their side of the map staying slightly off centre.
Avoid large open spaces and don’t sprint unless you have to. When you’re sprinting you can’t use your weapon which leaves you at a huge disadvantage if you run into an enemy because you have to stop and then raise your weapon. Never sprint around corners unless you want to be met with a hail of gunfire.
Avoid running across large open spaces – you might as well be asking a sniper to take you out. Stick to walls until you know the map well enough and stay off of rooftops unless you are sniping and have a good, fairly hidden position because people do look upwards.
As you play the game you will notice that there are certain areas of the map (usually buildings) that everyone will orbit towards e.g. the manor in the Estate map. Instead of running to a hot spot like this and heading directly in the front entrance try taking a longer route and entering from behind to surprise any enemies lurking inside. Also keep in mind that snipers will target the entrances of such hotspots so keep a look out.
Grenades can be a great source of kills if you can aim them in the right direction. A good way to score a kill or two on a smallish map is to sprint forward just after you’ve spawned and throw your grenade towards the other teams spawn point. Don’t worry if its a little bit away from where they’ve spawned because they’ll all be running around anyway.
If you’re really getting hammered on a map getting the riot shield out might be a good decision. Just remember that when you have the shield out you can’t use a weapon – you have to swap between them. The riot shield will do an excellent job of shielding you from the brunt of most fire, just sprint if you see an RPG heading in your direction. You can kill an enemy with the riot shield by meleeing them twice – just be warned this could take some practise.
Playing Well Means Dedication
Modern Warfare 2’s online multiplayer mode has proven to be a huge success. The new additions of Death Streaks were a stroke of genius and also shows how difficult it was intended to be in comparison to previous Call of Duty games. Having shotguns as a secondary weapon may seem a bit like overkill to some people but it is a good way to keep everyone on their toes since before now once a player reached for their secondary it never seemed as dangerous as it does now. Overall I think it was designed with the idea of making it a challenging game mode and it has certainly succeeded so far.
Being good at playing online takes a little knowledge of each map and some learned habits like checking the radar and sprinting at the right moments, but the point is it can be learned, it just takes a little dedication.
This post is part of the series: Modern Warfare 2 Online Multiplayer Guide
A series of articles containing everything you need to know about playing Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2 Online.
