History YMMV / CallOfDutyModernWarfareII

* EstrogenBrigade: While the reboot has gained a lot of positive reactions from female audiences on the likes of Alex, Gaz, and a younger Captain Price, this game takes it up a notch by introducing more cool, badass, and easy on the eyes soldiers. The two standout examples are the badass macho latino {{Hunk}}, Alejandro Vargas and Ghost, who despite the mask, is a bigger and deadlier unit compared to his original counterpart, which makes him ''more'' appealing to the female demographic.
* EvilIsSexy: Valeria, Las Almas Cartel's top sicaria [[spoiler: and El Sin Nombre herself]]. She has no qualms about beating up her subordinates if they screw up, as well as torturing and killing those she [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness no longer needs on the cartel's payroll]]. She's introduced in a tank top that gives emphasis to her figure while the player is sitting on a chair, making her imposing and easy on the eyes of the fans.
* FoeYayShipping: Between Alejandro and Valeria. Alejandro already said that he and Valeria served together in the military. However, there's a great amount of intensity in their interactions that made them seem more than just 'fellow soldiers'. This got some fans assumed that both could be ex-lovers at one point, despite it not stated anywhere in the game.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: The new perk system, which provides two base perks at the start of each game, and adds on a bonus perk and an ultimate perk at approximately four and eight minutes into the game respectively. Beta testers have argued that it takes too long to unlock the whole set, and if a player joined a game halfway they might not be able to acquire all four perks. While Infinity Ward did not respond at first, by the second week of the beta they had adjusted the unlock times so that the bonus and ultimate perks were unlocked, respectively, at two and four minutes into the game.

* ThatOneLevel: "Alone", where you play as Soap [[spoiler:after Shadow Company betrays Task Force 141.]] While it does emphasize the dire situation that Soap is in, the mission starts with Soap's movement drastically slowed down and without access to any weapons (though both of which would be resolved half-way through the level). Until then, Soap is forced to scavenge the dark interiors of apartments to find essential material to craft items required to progress through the level or take down the enemies. Finally, after a certain point, Soap is then forced to fight/evade HeavilyArmoredMook with nothing but the weapons he scavenged and the items he crafted to reach Ghost. This mission also has ThatOneAchivement, "Gunless", which requires the player to finish this mission ''without firing a single shot from a gun''.

** With the launch of Warzone 2.0, there's a special surprise awaiting those who somehow manage to get 5 straight victories in a row. The player(s) who are currently on a win streak will be given a special "Champion's Quest" at the start of the next match. This special mission? '''Create and arm a Tactical Nuke'''. That's right, after over 3 years of being teased with the prospect, ''players can now earn a Nuke and end the game in Warzone''. The champion team must collect 3 elements: one which distorts their vision, one which harms them and those around them periodically, and one which scrambles their radar, then wait until the match is almost over for the bomb site to be revealed. Once it's revealed, they need to then deposit the elements within the site and then arm the Nuke themselves a la Search and Destroy, then simply wait while defending it from thoe who attempt to defuse it. A successful defense equates to the entire map being reduced to a crimson mushroom cloud.

* SpecialEffectFailure: The multiplayer beta has shown that inspect animations change to account for whether your gun still has bullets in it or not, but they aren't perfectly implemented yet and often cause weird issues, such as all of the mag-fed Lachmann family weapons [[https://youtu.be/pNgPg_PQ7CI?t=157 showing a bullet start phasing through the front of the magwell]] if you inspect them with an empty magazine, or [[https://youtu.be/pNgPg_PQ7CI?t=258 managing to eject a shell]] from an already-empty Expedite 12, which hovers several inches in front of the user's hand, by pulling the charging handle through the body of the weapon.
* ThatOneLevel: "Alone", where you play as Soap [[spoiler:after Shadow Company betrays Task Force 141.]] While it does emphasize the dire situation that Soap is in, the mission starts with Soap's movement drastically slowed down and without access to any weapons (though both of which would be resolved half-way through the level). Until then, Soap is forced to scavenge the dark interiors of apartments to find essential material to craft items required to progress through the level or take down the enemies. Finally, after a certain point, Soap is then forced to fight/evade HeavilyArmoredMook with nothing but the weapons he scavenged and the items he crafted to reach Ghost.

* EstogenBrigade: While the reboot has gained a lot of positive reactions from female audiences on the likes of Alex, Gaz, and a younger Captain Price, this game takes it up a notch by introducing more cool, badass, and easy on the eyes soldiers. The two standout examples are the badass macho latino {{Hunk}}, Alejandro Vargas and Ghost, who despite the mask, is a bigger and deadlier unit compared to his original counterpart, which makes him ''more'' appealing to the female demographic.

* LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt: Price and Gaz getting sniped at the beginning of "Recon By Fire"? Yeah, it’s way too early in the game and too anticlimactic to kill off the main characters (especially given their credentials). And we find out seconds later that the guys in Ghillie suits that got shot weren’t the captain and the sergeant.

* SugarWiki/FunnyMoments: One of the achievements involves killing a poor unsuspecting schmuck of a [[CampingACrapper soldier while he's in the crapper]]. The level it takes place in just so happens to be called "Dark Water". But the name of the achievement itself? [[ToiletHumour "A Crappy Way to Die"]].

** 2009 is back [[labelnote:Explanation]]The year 2022 featured a new ''Call of Duty'' subtitled ''Modern Warfare 2'' (albeit with Roman numerals instead of Arabic ones), a re-release of the film ''Film/{{Avatar}}'' in theaters, and a global recession. [[/labelnote]]

* MemeticMutation: 2009 is back [[labelnote:Explanation]]The year 2022 featured a new ''Call of Duty'' subtitled ''Modern Warfare 2'' (albeit with Roman numerals instead of Arabic ones), a re-release of the film ''Film/{{Avatar}}'' in theaters, and a global recession. [[/labelnote]]
* {{Narm}}: Ghost may be Ghost, but graduating from the skull-print balaclava to a hard skull mask and his commitment to wearing the balaclava in plainclothes takes his edginess over the top.

* CaptainObviousReveal: Anyone who has ever heard of the original ''Modern Warfare 2'' knows that Shepherd [[spoilers:betrays TF 141 and he is no different in this one]].

* {{Foe Yay}}: Between Alejandro and Valeria. Alejandro already said that he and Valeria served together in the military. However, there's a great amount of intensity in their interactions that made them seem more than just 'fellow soldiers'. This got some fans assumed that both could be ex-lovers at one point, despite it not stated anywhere in the game.

* {{FoeYay}}: Between Alejandro and Valeria. Alejandro already said that he and Valeria served together in the military. However, there's a great amount of intensity in their interactions that made them seem more than just 'fellow soldiers'. This got some fans assumed that both could be ex-lovers at one point, despite it not stated anywhere in the game.

* FoeYay: While Alejandro already states that he and Valeria served together in the military, there's a great amount of intensity in their interactions that made them seem more than just 'fellow soldiers', especially in Valeria's end.

* ItsTheSameNowItSucks: Reviewers noted that the campaign reuses a lot of iconic ''Modern Warfare'' setpieces, such as a gunship sequence, a raid on an oil rig and a cargo ship, a prison break, and a ghillie-suited sniper mission, making it feel derivative rather than breaking new ground.

** While there are complaints that it is derivative of the original Modern Warfare's ''All Ghillied Up'', the mission ''Recon By Fire'' is one of the most open-box mission available in the game, allowing characters access across a large map with many choices on how to approach their target locations. The mission also takes elements from ''All Ghillied Up'', namely the coordinated targeting with Price, long-distance shooting, and ghille suit sneaking, and jacks them up to eleven.
** The next mission ''Violence and Timing'' is also an exciting mission following Gaz and Price as they catch up with an Al-Qatala convoy [[spoiler:to rescue Laswell]]. The mission sees the main characters return to Urzikstan and reunites with the supporting cast of the first game, Farah and Nikolai, as they chase the convoy. It starts with a conventional helicopter gunner supporting role until [[spoiler:Gaz falls out of the damaged helicopter and is forced to perform HighSpeedHijack across different Al-Qatala vehicles, avoiding various hazards such as rocket launchers, landmines, drone bombs and an ''APC'' before reaching the vehicle Laswell is on.]]

* SugarWiki/FunnyMoments: One of the achievements involves killing a poor unsuspecting schmuck of a [[CampingACrapper soldier while he's in the crapper]]. The level it takes place in just so happens to be called ''Dark Water''. But the name of the achievement itself? [[ToiletHumour "A Crappy Way to Die"]].

* LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt: Price and Gaz getting sniped at the beginning of ''Recon By Fire''? Yeah, it’s way too early in the game and too anticlimactic to kill off the main characters (especially given their credentials). And we find out seconds later that the guys in Ghillie suits that got shot weren’t the captain and the sergeant.

* ThatOneLevel: ''Alone'', where you play as Soap [[spoiler:after Shadow Company betrays Task Force 141.]] While it does emphasize the dire situation that Soap is in, the mission starts with Soap's movement drastically slowed down and without access to any weapons (though both of which would be resolved half-way through the level). Until then, Soap is forced to scavenge the dark interiors of apartments to find essential material to craft items required to progress through the level or take down the enemies. Finally, after a certain point, Soap is then forced to fight/evade HeavilyArmoredMook with nothing but the weapons he scavenged and the items he crafted to reach Ghost.

** While there are complaints that it is derivative of the original Modern Warfare's "All Ghillied Up", the mission ''Recon By Fire'' is one of the most open-box mission available in the game, allowing characters access across a large map with many choices on how to approach their target locations. The mission also takes elements from ''All Ghillied Up'', namely the coordinated targeting with Price, long-distance shooting, and ghille suit sneaking, and jacks them up to eleven.
** The next mission ''Violence and Timing'' is also an exciting mission following Gaz and Price as they catch up with an Al-Qatala convoy [[spoiler:to rescue Laswell]]. The mission sees the main characters return to Urzikstan and reunites with the supporting cast of the first game, Farah and Nikolai, as they chase the convoy. It starts with a conventional helicopter gunner supporting role until [[spoiler:Gaz falls out of the damaged helicopter and is forced to perform HighSpeedHijack across different Al-Qatala vehicles, avoiding various hazards such as rocket launchers, landmines, and an armored vehicle before reaching the vehicle Laswell is on.]]

** While there are complaints that it is derivative of the original Modern Warfare's "All Ghillied Up", the mission "Recon By Fire" is one of the most open-box mission available in the game, allowing characters access across a large map with many choices on how to approach their target locations. The mission also takes elements from "All Ghillied Up", namely the coordinated targeting with Price, long-distance shooting, and ghille suit sneaking, and jacks them up to eleven.
** The next mission "Violence and Timing" is also an exciting mission following Gaz and Price as they catch up with an Al-Qatala convoy [[spoiler:to rescue Laswell]]. The mission sees the main characters return to Urzikstan and reunites with the supporting cast of the first game, Farah and Nikolai, as they chase the convoy. It starts with a conventional helicopter gunner supporting role until [[spoiler:Gaz falls out of the damaged helicopter and is forced to perform HighSpeedHijack across different Al-Qatala vehicles, avoiding various hazards such as rocket launchers, landmines, and an armored vehicle before reaching the vehicle Laswell is on.]]

* SugarWiki/FunnyMoments: One of the achievements involves killing a poor unsuspecting schmuck of a [[CampingACrapper soldier while he's in the crapper]]. The level it takes place in just so happens to be called "Dark Water". But the name of the achievement itself? [[ToiletHumour "A Crappy Way to Die"]].

* LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt: Price and Gaz getting sniped at the beginning of “Recon By Fire”? Yeah, it’s way too early in the game and too anticlimactic to kill off the main characters (especially given their credentials). And we find out seconds later that the guys in Ghillie suits that got shot weren’t the captain and the sergeant.

** [[spoiler: Shadow Company's purge of Las Almas during 'Alone', where they go about killing hundreds of people-members of the cartel, local cops, and innocent civilians. And given that you spend most of the mission unarmed, you can do nothing but watch them as they do so. Soap declares his intent to commit some war crimes as payback.]][[note]][[spoiler:Which he gets his wish two (chronological) missions later]][[/note]]

* ThatOneLevel: "Alone", where you play as Soap [[spoiler:after Shadow Company betrays Task Force 141.]] While it does emphasize the dire situation that Soap is in, the mission starts with Soap's movement drastically slowed down and without access to any weapons (though both of which would be resolved half-way through the level). Until then, Soap is forced to scavenge the dark interiors of apartments to find essential material to craft items required to progress through the level or take down the enemies. Finally, after a certain point, Soap is then forced to fight/evade HeavilyArmoredMook with nothing but the weapons he scavenged and the items he crafted to reach Ghost.

** The next mission "Violence and Timing" is also an exciting mission following Gaz and Price as they catch up with an Al-Qatala convoy [[spoiler:to rescue Laswell]]. The mission sees the main characters return to Urzikstan and reunites with the supporting cast of the first game, Farah and Nikolai, as they chase the convoy. It starts with a conventional helicopter gunner supporting role until [[spoiler:Gaz falls out of the damaged helicopter and is forced to perform HighSpeedHijack across different Al-Qatala vehicles, avoiding various hazards such as rocket launchers, landmines, and an armored vehicle before reaching Laswell's vehicle.]]

* NeverLiveItDown: Let's say that fans from the original Modern Warfare trilogy were not surprised that [[spoiler:General Shepherd and Shadow Company betrays Task Force 141 and their allies during the campaign.]]

** The dreaded Tactical Nuke makes a return in Multiplayer, only this time it's far, ''far'' worse. Now it's called the MGB (Mass Guided Bomb), and this time you get to watch as a ''huge'' AC-130 gunship ominously appears from out of nowhere and looms over the battlefield. Suddenly, you see what appear to be flares sprouting out from it in the shape of wings. Those aren't flares, though. Cue the timer as '''FIVE NEUTRON BOMBS''' slowly make their way towards you and blow the entire map to kingdom come when the countdown hits 0. Game Over.

** The dreaded Tactical Nuke makes a return in Multiplayer, only this time it's far, ''far'' worse. Now it's called the MGB (Mass Guided Bomb), and this time, instead of a single Nuke dropping in from the sky, you get to watch as a ''huge'' gunship ominously appears from out of nowhere and looms over the battlefield. Suddenly, you see what appear to be flares sprouting out from it in the shape of wings. Those aren't flares, though. Cue the timer as '''FIVE NEUTRON BOMBS''' slowly make their way towards you and blow the entire map to kingdom come when the clock hits0 0. Game Over.

* NightmareFuel: [[spoiler: Shadow Company's purge of Las Almas during 'Alone', where they go about killing hundreds of people-members of the cartel, local cops, and innocent civilians. And given that you spend most of the mission unarmed, you can do nothing but watch them as they do so. Soap declares his intent to commit some war crimes as payback.]][[note]][[spoiler:Which he gets his wish two (chronological) missions later]][[/note]]

* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
** General Shepherd's [[spoiler:motivation for conducting illegal arms dealing in the Middle East. Was he truly doing it for patriotic causes by arming American allies to fight back against the Russians? Or was it all a side job to earn cash on the side for his and Shadow Company's pocket book?]]

** While there are complaints that it is derivative of the original Modern Warfare's "All Ghillied Up", the mission "Recon By Fire" is one of the most open-box mission available in the game, allowing characters access across a large map with many choices on how to approach their target locations. The mission also takes elements from "All Ghillied Up", namely the coordinated targeting with Price, long-distance shooting, and ghille suit sneaking, and jacks them UpToEleven.