You've been at this fight for what feels like an eternity, and you've long forgotten the numbers of those you've left dead to get here. Ok, hang on, scoreboard says 34 minutes, 125 kills. *Ahem anyway* You and XSnipez360X are the only 2 members of your squad left and this is the last point you need to defend. There were 5 of you a minute ago, but after the mortars rained down and a lucky molotov, here we are. The time ticks down slowly, but it looks like you might finally win as it hits the 20 second mark. But in an instant the words on the screen change quickly from 'defend' to 'blocking' to 'stalemate' and finally 'losing' and you and Snipez know you've got company as the circle slowly turns red.

He slowly creeps around the corner and you hear shouting as a door is kicked in, then a burst of gunfire and silence. Now the music changes as you call out to your dead comrades. "Hello?" You can almost hear their ghosts saying things. Encouraging things like, 'You got this', 'Clutch or kick!' and 'Don't be such a p*ssy!' You hide out in the toilet, like the hero you are, and listen for footsteps as the clock hits zero. But you know the game's not over yet. You try and intimidate the bad guys by telling them to give up and you're met with a burst of laughter and "We're coming for you!". So this is how it's going to be, huh? Time to be a hero. A slow-moving, cautious hero. You inch out of the bathroom and check round the corner. 2 hostiles swing their guns towards you. Bang, bang, they're down. No change on the text as it reminds you, that you are the only thing standing between victory and defeat. You creep forward some more, and spot a leg sticking out. Bang, bang, bang. He's down. Finally, 'Stalemate'. One left. Sounds like he's downstairs. You move down and suddenly from the corner the last guy pops up. You bring up your gun, and *click*... oh you have got to b*bang* . DEFEAT and various sounds of laughter and empathy from the ghosts as you join them. And that's why you always check your magazine before being a hero.

Seriously though, if you've played the first game or Day of Infamy, you know what to expect. These games have some of the best gunplay around and whether you're playing co-op against bots or against real people, the action is always intense and it feels like a more grown up experience than all the most popular shooters. This time round there is a levelling up system but the unlocks are only cosmetic. This is good because you can only earn XP and unlocks on official servers, which is probably my biggest criticism of the game thus far. The 'official' co-op mode can actually feel a bit easy when there are player hosted servers that have more bots in play, which makes the experience feel a lot more intense. It would be great if they could work out a way of letting custom servers also participate. But I guess that's not really a major issue, as the game play is just as fun without the XP.

So yeah, this is exactly what I wanted from a sequel to one of my favourite online shooters. I usually don't play online anymore, because it can be frustrating when the game is flooded with kids who cry when you're beating them and gloat when they're winning. But I've had a lot of good experiences playing the New World games, and I've enjoyed my time here so far.