In this article, we are going to explain the Modern Warfare 2 campaign ending, so you can understand every aspect of the newest Call of Duty title.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II immerses players in a never-before-seen global battle, along with the return of the famous Operators of Task Force 141. Players will deploy with pals in a totally immersive experience, from small-scale, high-stakes infiltration tactical ops to highly secret missions. Infinity Ward provides players with cutting-edge gameplay, including all-new gun handling, an enhanced AI system, a new Gunsmith, and a slew of additional gameplay and graphics enhancements that take the franchise to new heights. If you want to check out the game for yourself, make sure you visit the Steam Store page.
MW2, like the last Modern Warfare reboot, ends on a cliffhanger, hinting at a Modern Warfare 3 reboot featuring tale elements from the original series. But, aside from the obvious spoilers, there are a few narrative lines that aren’t adequately explored with Hassan, Shepherd, and the 141 crew. So join us as we revisit and discuss the Modern Warfare 2 conclusion and post-credits sequence, and speculate on what this all means for the series’ future. And, just to be clear, there will be huge storyline spoilers ahead.
Modern Warfare 2 campaign ending explained
Of course, the best place to begin is with a brief overview of the primary plot. Modern Warfare 2 2022 picks up three years after the events of the previous reboot, following Task Force 141 on a globe-trotting adventure to track down and recapture a set of US missiles that have fallen into the hands of terrorist group Al Qatala. From the first game, the squad is led by CIA supervisor Kate Laswell, but this time she is working with General Shepherd.
After following a lead on the missiles to Amsterdam, the 141 discovers that Al Qatala is collaborating with the Las Almas drug gang, leading them south of the US border, where they get a new team member from the Mexican Special Forces, Colonel Alejandro Vargas.
Shepherd also recruits a PMC named Shadow Company to aid in the recovery of the missile; however, it becomes evident midway through the game that Shepherd’s purpose is to cover up the entire affair, and he’s really known about how the missiles went AWOL for a couple of months. To assist him in accomplishing this as swiftly as possible, Shepherd places Shadow Company, commanded by Philip Graves, in command, dismisses 141 from the mission, imprisons a number of Vargas’ troops, and captures his base.
This sparks a fight, and Graves attempts to murder Ghost, Vargas, and Soap, who flee to the streets of Las Almas. Soap and Ghost see Shadow Company storming through Las Almas, killing innocent citizens in order to find the two 141 operatives while attempting to reconnect.
Captain John Price eventually learns this and queries Shepherd about the incident, and Shepherd basically affirms that he feels it is more necessary for the US to cover this up than it is to evaluate the legality of Shadow Company’s conduct or any devotion to 141. Price swears to track Shepherd down, but we never see him again in MW2. Following that, the crew recaptures Vargas’ base and kills Graves in a somewhat dull tank combat. In retaking the base, Task Force 141 learns that the last missile has been smuggled to Chicago, where it will be fired at Washington, D.C., making it the campaign’s last stop.
The missile is launched as Task Force 141 is infiltrating the skyscraper it was being housed in, and in order to prevent it from reaching its goal, they must now seize the launch controls from Hassan and remotely explode it before it arrives. Soap succeeds, and Hassan is slain by Ghost in yet another underwhelming battle.
The plot then jumps ahead to Laswell and 141 meeting at a dingy pub. Laswell confirms that Shepherd has left without a trace, so we can expect to see him in Modern Warfare 3, but she also adds she’s been looking into Russian participation in the missile heist. She shows Price a photo of her major protagonist, and he immediately recognizes him as Makarov.
The titles begin to roll at this point, but it’s just a brief period before we’re treated to a closing cutscene set aboard a plane. A guy is methodically assembling a weapon while messaging others to check whether they are ready. The camera pulls back as three armed men get out of their seats and go up the plane after they confirm by text. “No Russian,” reads the final text message.
So, what exactly does it all mean? Makarov is the main adversary of the original Modern Warfare 2, and we first see him during a mission (named No Russian) in which the player conducts a terrorist assault on a Russian airport. In the mission, you play an undercover CIA agent attempting to infiltrate Makarov’s gang. You flee after carrying out the attack, only for Makarov to execute you and leave your body there.
The mission is named ‘No Russian’ because Makarov intends to fool the Russian authorities into thinking the attack was carried out by Americans, hence leaving an American body behind and not speaking any Russian. As a result, Russia declares war on the United States, kicking off World War Three. With Shepherd – a crucial nemesis in the original MW2 – also absent, this game is definitely preparing players for a repeat of that scenario, although with some changes to keep things interesting.
We hope that you enjoyed this article on Modern Warfare 2 campaign ending explained. If you did, we are sure that you will also enjoy reading some of our other articles, such as AMD FidelityFX CAS MW2: How does it work, or Recon by Fire MW2 bug: How to fix the MW2 campaign error.
