Screenshots & trailers
What players say
Why the number is what it is: aspect mentions counted across 299 sampled Steam reviews (283 positive / 16 negative), recent and most-helpful. Plain keyword counting, fully reproducible; nothing here is written by a machine.
What positive reviews talk about
- Story & writing11% mention it
- Multiplayer & servers10% mention it
What negative reviews complain about
- Multiplayer & servers63% mention it
Satisfaction by hours played
Same score, different games: see how sentiment holds up the longer people play.
Under 5h
92%
78 reviews
5-15h
99%
128 reviews
15-40h
92%
62 reviews
40-100h
87%
23 reviews
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (Metacritic) | – | 94 | 6 |
| Creator reviews (1 tracked) | – | 95 | 0 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 93% | 88 | 1000 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | 85 | 19 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 97% | 92 | 75 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 215 reviews sampled · 184 total reviews in window · weighted 149.1 up / 4.6 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (97)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 97
“I was impressed by its presentation, visuals and the wealth of gameplay it offers. I even enjoyed its story, though it’s admittedly fluffy, convoluted and campy in spots, it’s like a interactive war movie on TV that takes liberties with realism for the sake of being entertaining to watch (such as having an amazingly large number of helicopters crash to the ground over the course of the game).”
read full review ↗ - 83
“In spite of its good looks, Modern Warfare 2 has the slightest whiff of insecurity. It feels like the developers, under pressure to top the original Modern Warfare, engaged in a bit of hand-wringing this time around.”
read full review ↗ - 95
“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is a must have game and one that should stay in your collection...period.”
read full review ↗ - 95
“The addition of the masterful Spec-Ops modes goes a long way to making up for the uneven campaign though, and the competitive multiplayer is as addictive as expected.”
read full review ↗ - 92
“MW2 is spectacular in all the right areas; building and refining on the most solid of bases. And although its political heart might not be in the ‘right’ place, at the very least it might make a few people think rather than skim through on muscle memory and twitch reactions. That’s a rarity in itself, and something to be respected in an age of apathy.”
read full review ↗ - 92
“It looks better, it plays better, the story is more intense and the multiplayer is more inviting. And with the inclusion of SpecOps, the longevity of this game is sure to have increased as well.”
read full review ↗ - 95
- 100
“Modern Warfare 2 has stepped up its game and it has been well worth the wait.”
read full review ↗ - 91
“Modern Warfare has no need to fear the comparison with a Hollywood blockbuster. You wouldn't find a game that keeps so in touch and never let’s you go. You just have to go on like you were pulled by a rope.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“The moments when Modern Warfare 2 isn’t good are few and far between. That’s about all you can ask from a hero.”
read full review ↗ - 92
“Given the care and attention lavished upon the competitive and cooperative multiplayer in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, it's clear that Infinity Ward sees the future of the Modern Warfare series in that particular component. What that means is you'll end up with a game that doesn't show much in the single-player experience, but once you take it online, it's going to be difficult to put down.”
read full review ↗ - 95
“Modern Warfare 2 is easily one of the year’s best games. Because it’s more iterative than innovative, though, it’s not quite as perfect as we’d expected, but it is a terrifically fun, nerve-wrackingly intense spectacle that you’d be crazy to miss.”
read full review ↗
The A.V. Club
GameWatcher
ZTGD
Worth Playing…and 85 more tracked reviews.
Patch history
No patch announcements found on Steam yet.