I played COD2 on the 360 kiosk at a Gamestop in my local mall.
Graphics:
Visually, the game looks great, it really does. Imagine running the game at a smooth framerate (not sure whats the exact rate), there is no hiccups or slowdowns at all. You will notice the textures on the weapons are photorealistic. Just picture yourself holding a MP40 and looking down the barrel and you will know. Your squad and the enemy's look great. The environments look ok. I wasn't to impressed with the buildings and background effects. They look just like COD 1 with everything pumped up.
The game looks as if you were running it on the top of the line pc with the latest and greatest video card. The game ran smooth. The game has exciting fire fights in which you interact with you AI controlled squad. They will direct your fire if the enemy is trying to flank your position. The enemy is supposed to be smarter than the last version; i think it depends on what setting you have it on. In the demo, they shoot back, but its not difficult to evade their fire.
Sound:
The sound effects from the first COD are used in COD2. The weapons sound exactly the same. That's not a bad thing at all. The BAR has a pounding effect when it fires. You can feel the power of that weapon being fired. The grenade explosions feel dumbed down. I thought they should have been louder, especially when they explode on you. The smoke grenades sounded great. You will notice that the voice acting is superb. You can understand everything your squad is screaming at you during battles and if you listen close enough you can make our what the germans are yelling !
Gameplay
What can I say about the Gameplay other than its freaking GREAT ! I loved the first COD, in this latest installment of the francise only made it better. You will play with your squad more than before. Its a cinematic experience, all the action feels like it belongs in a movie. You have so many things going on around you. You will notice in the second mission for the Russians in 1941 campaign that there are people shooting you from 1000 yards off as well as 2 feet in front of you. That helps to bring the grand scope of this war to your living room.
After playing the first two missions you will be hooked. The game grabs you in and doesn't let you go.
Multiplayer:
Well, the demo didn't have any multiplayer enabled, but i downloaded the PC version and loved the online play. Assuming the new LIVE and matchmaking ranking system works out, I will be playing this one online for a while.
This game is a must have. It's going to be the game I pick up on Nov 22nd. Maybe I'll see you online
- Magic Hat 9
