inauspicious middles...

So I'm slowly and steadily creeping up to 70 (I think I'm at 62 now) and I think I'm starting to finally catch a groove. COD: MW2 is probably the first FPS I've owned since Perfect Dark on N64 and I barely even played that. So it shouldn't be a surprise that the learning curve for this game would be steep. I've put in just over 3 days worth of playing time and I'm at a level WAAAAY lower than other players who A) have regularly played FPS on consoles and especially B) ones who owned and played the first installment of Modern Warfare.

At first, I was kind of conscious about it. Although my rank said so, I didn't want to be the noob. I never wanted to use the noob tube attachment because it just screamed out well, noob. (I've since realized the sheer fun of blowing things up with Danger Close) I remember hiding out in the second floor of the corner building in Skid Row, peeking through that hole in the wall to look down the alley or through the windows down to the open area in hopes of picking off some enemies going through the transitional area. I was the guy that I now hunt when I die in that area.

I suppose them's the growing pains - the safe shallow end of the pool. Imagine me in my water wings just watching all the fun of the big boys at the deep end violently splishing and splashing about.

So now 3 days in and on the brink of my frist prestige (which I won't do, by the way), I think it's finally coming together. Sure, there are good days and bad days, but I now feel comfortable with my play style and the classes and joystick sensitivity I've set. I do tend to play on the more defensive side - more eager to flank than run into the thick of it all. I'd rather end up with a lowly 9-3 game instead of a 18-17 because I just don't like to die a lot. And since I primarily play Team Deathmatch, the less I die, the better it helps out my team.

But my fear of the deep end is waning these days. I don't mind diving in every now and again and seeing how I fare with the big boys. It's freeing in many ways to not always worry about how many times you die. Besides, how can you get better with aiming at multiple targets if you're running along the edges of the map?

Strangely enough, my kills have been rising and somehow I'm not dying as much as I think I am. I suppose my cautious play to start out definitely has a hand in that. And without getting too caught up in K/D ratios and shit, I'm seeing that number increase incrementally. And no, it's not good. But there is progress.