NUMBER 9:
Escape from Kowloon: Blops
On the very top floor of a towering skyscraper overlooking a decrepit, decadent city drenched in torrent, the Spetsnaz are moving. They are fleet of foot; silent; swift. Each motion each man in the team takes is deliberate and with purpose. A flash of lightning leaves but brief silhouettes of the operatives as they traverse the urban jungle that is Kowloon.
Suddenly, they stop. Naught but the rain moves. The men wait. Not a soul breathes. The silence has become thick and heavy. The nervous jitter of one greenfoot screams in the resonating eardrums of all. In the distance, a jet airplane lands. When at last the drone of its dual turbines subsides over the sheet metal cavalcade, the men have disappeared into the city.
This film noir- esque description may sound straight out of a radio program or soapy television show, but it is actually from one of the middle levels of Call of Duty: Blops. From the one can almost feel the rain splash off the player's feet and arms as they navigate the jungle gym of Kowloon.
More of an experience than it is a level, the esoteric beauty of the city is sublime: the small details that the game's rendering engine pick up really make this level a work of art. Jumping, climbing, freerunning and sliding to its epic conclusion, the entire level is one rollercoaster ride of combat and cinematic, visceral platforming. And to top it all off: at it's end, the operatives disappear without a trace, lost in the slimy masses of the undercity. Not to mention you can get the fucking thundergun.
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