Review: Modern Combat 2: Black Pegasus - Shots Heard Around The World
by Felix Xiao
October 7, 2010
Overview
Over a year ago, Gameloft released Modern Combat: Sandstorm, a war-themed first person shooter that was somewhat fun even though it fell short in many fields. Modern Combat 2: Black Pegasus lets you finish what you started in a series of action-packed missions in the Middle East, Europe, and South America with many improvements to gameplay and graphics.
Features
The campaign consists of 12 missions located in different places around the world and can be played on 4 difficulty modes. At any point in time, you're allowed to equip any 2 of 15 weapons such as the AK47, Desert Eagle, MP5, and Sniper, as well as both lethal and flash grenades. There are 4 basic control modes, including one that utilizes the gyroscope on the iPhone 4 and iPod Touch 4. The 10-player online multiplayer takes you through 72 levels of ranks, fully loaded with unlockable weapons, perks, and kill messages. You can also play with a friend who owns the game via bluetooth and local wifi as well.
The Good
The hearty campaign is structured much better than it was in the first Modern Combat and isn't nearly as repetitive. While your goal almost always involves putting bullets into your enemies, elements of speed and stealth have been incorporated into some missions. The AI is now much smarter and you'll die easily if you're not careful. Aiming down your ironsight and red dot sight is much smoother than before, and a small hit marker appears in the form of a cross when you hit a target. Each level takes about 15-20 minutes on normal mode, but auto-save checkpoints allow you to resume a mission without starting over.
Gameloft successfully harnesses the power of the iPhone in the addicting multiplayer mode. There are 4 game modes (Battle, Team Battle, Defuse the Bomb, Capture the Flag) playable with up to 10 people in any of the main campaign maps. Every time you kill an enemy or win a game, you are awarded experience to level up through the 72 ranks. When you start out as a private, you are only allowed to use an AK47 and an M9 pistol, but reaching higher ranks allows you to choose from more weapons and even equip a perk. You can also choose a kill message to display to an enemy when you kill them, and more of these are unlocked with different challenges.
To join a multiplayer game, you can either find a quick match, search and join an existing match, or start a private match with friends on Gameloft Live. On a decent internet connection, the games are generally free of lag and won't disconnect very often. When a game host leaves, another person is automatically selected as the host, letting you continue playing smoothly.
While Sandstorm had a plethora of effective control options to choose from, Black Pegasus contains control options that feel smoother than ever. The graphics are also an enormous improvement, and on a Retina Display, the different maps and slow motion killstreak effects should look fantastic. Each mission starts out with a female voiceover of your objectives and an introduction cutscene that actually isn't bad.
The game feels complete in almost every way and is a great deal of fun to play. Even on its release day, there is already an abundance of multiplayer lobbies, each with feature customization. The campaign will take a while to get through, and replay value is fueled by the 4 difficulty settings, one of which is unlocked after completion in normal or hard mode. From top to bottom, Modern Combat 2: Black Pegasus is stunning and provides a level of enjoyment that tops that of any other iDevice first person shooter.
The Bad
There really isn't much to complain about, as Gameloft has made the game devoid of glitches and crashes except for in rare instances. If you do encounter frequent crashes, a quick reboot of your device should do the trick. It doesn't happen much, but sometimes the controls in the game will feel rough for a few seconds. In the campaign, you are often accompanied by friendly characters who don't do much except for block vital doorways and paths. You'd probably be better off downloading the app on iTunes and then syncing your device, as it'll allow you to enjoy all 481 megabytes (710 uncompressed) of iPhone gaming at its best much faster.
The Verdict
From its genuinely beautiful environments to its addicting online experience, Modern Combat 2 delivers in every aspect and sets a new standard of quality for iPhone shooters. Black Pegasus is one of Gameloft's best-designed games to date and will surely build a community of competitive players in the coming weeks. If you're a fan of Activision's Call of Duty series, then you'll fall in love with the game the second you enter your first multiplayer match.
Modern Combat 2: Black Pegasus is a must buy for $6.99 and is no doubt the most competent first person shooter available.