Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 's single-player-campaign called "For the Record" begins five years after the events in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare . The world is once again at the brink of destruction. The Russians, originally defeated by the Americans, make Zhakaev a hero and threaten once again the peace on earth. Worse: they get help by a known terrorist who tries everything to let escalate the tension into a full-scale-war. In the middle: the player. During his missions he will slip into the shoes of PFC. Joseph Allen, Sgt. Gary "Roach" Sanderson who is a member of Task-Force 141 and the hero of the first game, Captain "Soap" McTavish – leader of said task-force.
The gameplay in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 follows a fairly linear but heavily scripted experience. The player must complete objectives by shooting, sneaking, and driving through enemy lines. They have access to modern-world-weaponry, but can only carry two weapons plus grenades at a time.
The multiplayer mode features an extensive ranking system, where players gain experience points for killing enemies, winning rounds, or completing objectives. As they collect experience points, they advance in rank and unlock new game modes, dog-tags, and weapons. The "Spec Ops" co-op mode allows two players to complete missions in three different difficulty settings with various objectives.