If you ask what the hot topic in video games is right now, you will most likely receive the response “Modern Warfare 2.” On the first day of its release, 4.7 million copies were sold said BBC News. Guys and girls all around the world have found themselves infatuated with the latest installment in the “Call of Duty” series.

The game is produced by Infinity Ward and was released on Nov. 10 at midnight. Some people even stayed up to go to the release. Even students were caught out in the wee hours of the morning trying to pick up their reserved copies. But reserved or not, there were plenty of copies to go around.

I went on to GameStop on Saturday, Nov. 14 and was able to pick one up with no problem. The store had a wall stocked full of copies.

Upon starting the game, you are required to go through a training course, also known as “The Pit.” Based on how fast and well you complete the course, the game will recommend what difficulty you should play on. The recommendation I received was “Hardened,” but I had to switch to a lower difficulty later in the game, due to its difficult levels. Some may see this as a pain, but I love when a game is challenging.

The game is just beautiful, with very detailed scenes and an overall amazing game play. There are a few mishaps, though; I did recognize that at one part, I was actually walking through bodies lying on the ground. This took place during a level in an airport. This level has a story behind it.

At the beginning of the game, it has a warning about the graphic details contained within it. The warning gives you the option to skip the level in the airport due to its graphic and disturbing nature.

During this level, you play as an American spy infiltrating a group of Russians who are participating in a terrorist attack. Some may find the scene/idea of shooting up an airport full of innocent civilians (called civvies in the game) very disturbing. I found this part of the game to be not as bad as it was worked up to be. At least the goal was not to hijack a plane, because that would just be too far. But it is a war game, what did you expect? Bunnies?

The game is full of very diverse types of game play. From ground support and snipers to piloting large vehicles, the game lets you do it all.

I did find it kind of disheartening that of the three characters you play in the game, two die, and you do not find out what happens to the other one (due to the open ending).

I really loved all the twists and turns in the plot throughout the game, especially when delivering the intel to Shepperd, and he shoots you and Ghost.

The ending was surprising, but everything was left wide open for another game. While stumbling away after killing Shepperd, I thought, “Oh, wow, that was very exciting, I can’t wait to see that happens next!” But oh, no. The end.

However, the campaign did have a wonderful plot, and I feel that games like this are the new standard. It no longer feels like a game, but instead, a movie. I love that feeling: connecting with the characters and seeing what plays out, but still being in control through all the action.

And still, there is more to the game than just that! Just as with the other “Call of Duty” games, it has a very extensive online play. Although, I was disappointed that I could not create my own class until reaching level 4.

All parts taken into consideration, this game is amazing. Every single part was nailed down to the wire, from the story to the online play. There is nothing that I can see to be improved on. This game is by all means, as close to perfect as it gets. The folks at Infinity Ward sure know what they are doing. I really do not have anything significant to complain about. Even the parts I mentioned are very minute. When I bought the game, the man working the counter said, “Enjoy playing the best game of the year.” I now can agree. This is the best game of the year.