As a newcomer to the Call of Duty series, I can honestly say that this game has made me regret ignoring the others.
Anyway, as you have probably gathered from that big ol' number 9.0 on Gamespot, it's a DAMN good game. I personally, have never even smelled a C.O.D game before, so this is all a *new* experience for me. I have to be honest, I was expecting everything from this game, after all the hype I had heard about it and the others, and guess what? IT DELIVERED! (As if you didn't see that coming.)
Firstly the campaign. Short, Action-Packed and Inventive, What more can you ask for? It seemed a little too short in my opinion, but really, we didn't expect much from the campaign. Some parts of it are very gripping, and made me feel emotionally drained when a character died or whatever. Better story than i imagined, albeit a little far-fetched. Also, it was a little easy, even on veteran i struggled to find a real challenge.
NOW onto the Multiplayer, C.O.D's main attraction. As a newcomer, I suffered lots because people are godly at FPS's now and i'm still a growing n00b. However, once you get into the swing of things, you will find that the multiplayer is very satisfying, rewarding and extremely expansive. Loads of games modes, loads of variety with weapons and perks, and LOADS of people playing makes for basically endless, brilliant online experience.
And now... Special ops? Yes, a mode I left until after completing the campaign and experimenting with multiplayer, and was not really anticipating it. However i did enjoy it alot, and still am. It definately added challenge, Half of the missions are far harder than that of the campaign. It, like online, is also very rewarding, making you try for the best results on each mission. It is also fun to get a friend to join you on LIVE or splitscreen, adding more variety to missions, as well as making them less impossible!
All in all, a brilliant game, with A good campaign, and side missions and amazing online. Heavily recommended if you are not one of the 100000000000000% (Actual Stats) of people who own it!