Although many had a gut feeling this year’s Call of Duty would be Modern Warfare 2, it was nice to see Activision and Infinity Ward confirm it just a few weeks ago. Very little outside the new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 logo, seen above, has been revealed, but many fans are expecting more information in the coming weeks.

But, there may be a big elephant in the room whenever Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s official reveal drops. Many are accustomed to yearly Call of Duties, but if anything, that puts more stress on everyone. Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision-Blizzard would do well to alleviate that, but it stands to reason that Modern Warfare 2 may be one of the most stressed Call of Duty titles in recent years.

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Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 – High Expectations Meet High Expectations

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It’s the expectation of any sequel that it takes the best parts of the “first game,” innovates and builds upon them, and releases as a fresh title with new ideas. This is understandably much harder on annualized titles like in sports games or Call of Duty games, but fans will still look and compare Modern Warfare 2 to the first 2019 game. This sets a high bar for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, as the 2019 is arguably the best CoD game in recent years.

Not only does it have the pressure to live up to and surpass that, it has to live down the other titles as well. Call of Duty: Warzone has a lot of issues, but for the most part, its separate enough from the mainline titles that the relationship between them is symbiotic mostly. But both Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War and Call of Duty: Vanguard failed to live up to the standard Modern Warfare set.

Both have their redeeming qualities, and there’s little doubt some fans genuinely enjoy these two entries in the franchise. But they are not Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and that puts more of that onus for greatness on the next title. It doesn’t help that one Call of Duty pro has reportedly not heard much good about MW2, but until the reveal, until players see gameplay, and far more—it’s just a lot of expectations for one game.

It has to live up to the first game, it has to live down the past two games, it has to carve out its own identity, and it’s got to prove itself worthy as its own Call of Duty game and as an inheritor of the Modern Warfare 2 title—the 2009 game that many fans still love to this day.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is in development.

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