Modern Warfare 2 Noob Tips: How to Level Up Fast
By Jared Newman
If skills are the currency of online shooters, experience points are the crack cocaine. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is the perfect example, in that it constantly strings you along with with new weapons, tools and special abilities, provided you’re willing to put in the hours and level up. Fortunately, there are some tips and tricks you can rely on to level up faster in Modern Warfare 2, even if you’re not a pro gamer. We won’t help you cheat — that’s immoral, and it’ll get you banned — but we will give you pointers on getting to level 70 in the latest Call of Duty (or at least approaching it, depending on your resolve) without being the best shooter in town.
Hint 1: Try Every Weapon and Attachment
At least initially, you’ll get big experience point bonuses for getting a certain number of kills with each weapon in the game. So instead of lingering on one weapon for too long, switch to another weapon when you hit the milestones of 25 kills, 75 kills and so on. As you progress, you’ll also unlock attachments; start cycling through them as soon as they’re available. While you’re doing all this, pay attention to which weapons and fighting styles best suit you.
Hint 2: Always Check the Barracks
An extension of the first hint, immediately check the Barracks from the multiplayer menu while your next round is loading. Glance at the weapon and attachment you’re using to see if there’s other gear you could be using to get faster bonus points, then head to Create a Class to switch your loadout. The faster you level up, the more weapons and perks you’ll unlock, which in turn will let you collect early bonus points on the new gear faster.
Hint 3: The Right Perks at the Right Times
Starting out, you’ll definitely want to use “Stopping Power” for all of your weapons. This gives you a damage boost that should help you get more kills. Later, especially after you’ve unlocked “Stopping Power Pro,” switch to “Hardline,” which requires one less kill to initiate killstreak rewards (doing so gives you even more experience points, plus bonuses). As with weapons and attachments, keep tabs on your other perks, too. You can pick up easy experience points from Scavenger, which lets you resupply off dead foes, and Sleight of Hand, which improves your reload speed. Also, at level 21, you’ll get “Bling,” allowing you to equip two attachments at once. See Hint 1.
Hint 4: Cherry Pick the Easy Challenges
Look up “Basic Training” in the Barracks. The easy ones are Vandalism (for destroying a car), Goodbye (fall 30 feet to your death) and Base Jump (fall 15 feet and survive). Look for opportunities as you play. Forget about the remaining Basic Training bonuses; you’ll pick them up naturally over time, and they don’t provide a ton of points anyway.
Hint 5: Forget About Operations
Compared to weapons and equipment-based challenges, the bonuses for winning a certain number of each game type are stingy. Your time is better spent focusing on specific game types that reap the best rewards, which we’ll cover in the next point.
Hint 6: Headquarters Pro for the Noob and Beyond
Headquarters Pro, which requires opposing teams to fight for one periodically moving control point, is the most consistent gametype for picking up experience points. Even if your team loses, and you have a terrible match, you’re still looking at about 2,500 points per game, not counting any bonuses you collect. Win the match and you’ll get 3,500 points or more. What makes Headquarters Pro better than other territory-based game types is that all the players are moving towards one central location. That means less skulking around in crouch mode and more killing, creating a perfect opportunity to work on experience bonuses for different weapons. It’s also pretty fun.
Hint 7: Free-For-All For the Experienced Player
Once you find some favorite weapons, perks and attachments, try playing Free-For-All. You’ll only get 50 points per kill (the same as Headquarters Pro and other objective games, but half the rate of Team Deathmatch), but the tempo is quick, so you’ll have more chances to score. The real kicker, however, is the bonus for winning: Take first place, and you’ll get roughly 7,500 points. No other game type comes close, but if you’re obsessed with stats, beware: If you don’t place first, the match will count as a loss.
Hint 8: Search and Destroy for the Pro
Search and Destroy can be frustrating for newbies, because once you die, you sit out until the next round begins. However, skilled players can milk this game type for 500 XP per kill and 200 XP per assist. Because of the elimination setting, it’s also among the fastest game types to play through, so if you can get six kills per game, you’ll level up faster than you would with Headquarters Pro.
Hint 9: Periodically, Forget All These Hints
Just as money can’t buy you love, a high ranking can’t secure your happiness. Play all the game types, mess around with silly weapons and party up with friends even if they’re dragging you down. Because no one wants to deal with a crazed experience point addict.
Friday, January 15, 2010 12:23PM
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Friday, January 15, 2010 7:24PM
Great article. I started using a new weapon today and gained a level my first game! Thanks for the tips.
Saturday, January 23, 2010 10:29PM
sweet good article nice pointers
Friday, January 29, 2010 2:12AM
good advice for ppl who have enough dignity to not boost
Tuesday, February 2, 2010 3:52PM
i agree… these glitchers are ruining the game on xbox live. EVERYTIME i play someone is doing the care package glitch, it is getting ridiculous. i report EVERY person who does these glitches and i encourage my entire team to do the same. if these people are banned it will send a message to the rest of them. XBL GT flboyinpa
Monday, February 8, 2010 6:42AM
You know you shouldn't punish someone, just because the game company screwed up and there are glitches in the game. All games have glitches, thats just a fact of life
Thursday, February 11, 2010 11:17AM
Yes, all games have glitches in them, but that doesn’t mean people should take advantage of them, just because theyre douchebags and don’t know how to play the game w/o cheating. So, they MORE than deserve to be punished. Anyone who does the glitch, infinity ward should just reset theyre entire stats, travel to each person’s home, break their game disc, and kick them in the fuckin teeth.
Sunday, February 21, 2010 11:23AM
You're weird man…
Saturday, February 27, 2010 6:49PM
no brett has a point ppl who cheat dont deserve the "FAME" that they get for being 10th pres. u know that they boosted, if u do the calculations to get to 10th pres u have to go up by 700! ranks, its hard enuff for me to get to rank 40.
Sunday, February 28, 2010 5:57PM
i just got bored so i tryed new things it gets fun after win a game with 84 kills and 12 deaths using hardline! good article…do you have a youtube acc
Friday, March 5, 2010 3:45AM
If you read the Xbox ToS, exploiting a glitch = ban.
Sunday, March 7, 2010 7:20PM
I cant understand anyone that wants too progress by cheating… BAN them completley from any future releases!!!!
At first i used too get frustrated as i was on standard weapons etc etc! now im smashing it!
level 69 and not far off the big 70!!!!
change ur weapons level up faster!!!!!
Monday, March 8, 2010 1:21AM
Nice hints
Friday, March 12, 2010 1:13AM
wtf is wrong with use nice tips
Wednesday, March 24, 2010 5:07PM
Dude, i totally agree with you! I was on Hardcore SnD and some moron glitch killed me … P'ssed me off so much >:(
Kick them in the fuckin teeth … what an idea =)
Monday, April 19, 2010 7:11PM
Figured out all these myself but definitly the right way to go, i can breeze to level 70 with about 3 days of playing following those exact rules up there. its all about getting all the attachments to your weapons and up to fmj or a little less with each weapon then switching to a new one.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010 2:23PM
use m16A1 with fmj, easy kills
Saturday, April 24, 2010 6:48PM
cheating should be alowed so lvl 1 can lvl up
Saturday, May 15, 2010 4:02PM
Or, what about those people with the modded controllers? My best friend just got one and he uses the fal like its a damn machine gun! I reported him and banned him, fortunatley he just got reset. He cheated his way through the game and deserved it. He went from 6th pres. to 10 pres. in one minute becuase he found a thing on the internet that allows him to do so! We cant just blame the people for cheating, i mean the internet, its so big that its tantillizing to not find gltches or cheat. But i digress.
Saturday, May 15, 2010 4:03PM
No it shouldnt be allowed. Leveling up is the funnest thing to do in the game! You get excited to see what new weapons you get.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010 6:11AM
Good article,
Friday, May 21, 2010 8:54PM
i found one. it is that you go to headquarters. make it 1 life and hardcore. get 2 controllers to sign on and put the map on rust. The one kill with a headshot gives that player 1100 EXP. Have fun!
Monday, May 24, 2010 8:33AM
i do this always
Wednesday, May 26, 2010 2:55AM
That doesn't work online.
Saturday, May 29, 2010 3:59PM
nice, u put some effort in it i can see.
Monday, June 7, 2010 6:50AM
boosting is fun cause people cry about it
Monday, June 7, 2010 5:05AM
i hate boosters cheats glitchers and hackers me and my clan dont tolerate it and if we vote to file complaint and submit review MR CANT PLAY PROPERLEY never enters our game again.. also annoys me when hackers threaten to steal gamertags as this doesnt seem possible but i have heard of it alot..
Monday, June 7, 2010 8:07AM
lol. yea….never heard of GT being taken, but have heard gay little boys say they're going to. honestly the boosters and glitches in this game put me off of it. i mostly play BC BC2 now. its better anyway
Saturday, June 19, 2010 11:22PM
ya i start using a new weapon every time i get the mastery challenge for the previous one and i rank up really fast
Sunday, July 4, 2010 7:55AM
Anyone stupid enough to steal a gamertag probably gets the full force of the microsoft team after them and then their sadcase selves will be banned. They'll say they aren't scared, but all the best hackers end up working for SOMEONE when they get caught….
Wednesday, July 7, 2010 5:38PM
what about those who can actually tap the trigger that fast? do you report them as well if they take you down with a single fired weapon?
Wednesday, August 18, 2010 1:49PM
Which scope is good for the second shotgun? At lvl 18…
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 7:54PM
fire from the hip or red dot
Wednesday, September 1, 2010 11:43PM
Good hints but they lack a certain degree help. Demolition is the best and foremost XP getter. The higher your rank the higher your match bonus, many people don't know this. In Demolition, when your at least a 55 and win the round, you will most likely get 3500 XP PER ROUND. Winning ALL rounds will just about equal up to 7000. This number also excludes the kills and the challenges you get in that game. So, when you think about it, you can get roughly 10000 PER GAME. That. Is. A. Lot.
Hope this helped ; )
Thursday, September 2, 2010 2:40AM
good advice, cheaters should not be banned straight away, iw should send them a warning message, and if they do it again ban them. But right now iw has patched most glitches so yey!
Tuesday, September 7, 2010 9:31AM
good help. went from rank 5 to lvl 69 in 2 days
Thursday, November 25, 2010 5:52AM
thats probably cuz u were 200xp away from ranking up anyways LOL!
Thursday, November 25, 2010 5:53AM
i agree – at least he didnt mention camping! I bet Treyarch and IW devs are a bunch of bloody campers themselves, cuz the levels are MADE for camping!
Thursday, November 25, 2010 5:53AM
u shld totally exploit the glitches, that'll teach them to make a game properly!
Tuesday, January 18, 2011 4:38PM
Hey, Im wondering if i need a hard drive to just play modern warfare 2 becuz imma get me a xbox 360 that dosent come with the system do i or do i not???
Wednesday, January 19, 2011 8:22AM
I was thinking the same thing as John. I suck at that game, and I leveled up to level 4 in a matter of a couple hours.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011 2:30PM
This game sucks…it is aimed at ppl with no life…you have to put 30+ hours in this game before you become remotely decent. Here's the best tip to get good…be unemployed!
Saturday, January 22, 2011 10:46AM
Well i dont k now what just happened but i was playing modern warfare 2 on xbox 360evel afghan mjltiplayer, l when i fell off a cliff by accident and then the screen went weird and promoted me and poof i was level 70. I cant find a duplicate incident online so did i bump into a new glitch? Should i try and reproduce it again?
Thursday, January 27, 2011 5:10PM
Yeah I was playing Team Deathmatch today and some kids kept telling me to kill myself by jumping off a cliff and I’d be Level 70. I am trying to rank up fast but I’m not going to exploit a glitch to do it.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011 8:28PM
good advise bro but i wouldnt do all that
i kno a cheat but i THINK it only works offline. dont realy kno but ya could try online. it needs to be split screen
MAP: RUST
GAME MODE: DEMOLITION
GAME RULES: (TIME LIMIT: 10min) (ROUND SWITCH: NEVER) (PLANT TIMER: 1sec)
(DEFUSE TIMER: 1sec) (EXTRA TIME: NONE) (NUMBER OF LIVES: 1LIFE)
Remember you need two controllers,Both players go to either Target A or Target B and Take turns planting and defusing as much times as you can. it should give u +1000 points. the smaller ur level the quicker it levels up, which made me level up 25 levels in 1 match starting at level 1!!! So please try it if your stuggling
Sunday, February 20, 2011 5:29AM
How’s life ?
Will there be a bluetooth for the iPhone besides the apple iphone wireless bluetooth plus the JAW BONE bluetooth?
Now i am searching for some thing somewhat less within value. The jawbone pair of headphones it is my opinion can be $100 or simply a little more and the Apple company Bluetooth is actually $130. May anybody know if you have a Bluetooth that can work with my own new iphone 4, I see everybody getting a large amount making use of their headphones with regard to such as 75, 60 even $80 dollars…
Please help! Many thanks!
Wednesday, March 2, 2011 6:21PM
Exactly what is the change concerning the actual iphone 4 and i phone 5 which are coming out for United states?
i’d like to figure out should it be really worth it to get the actual apple iphone 4 or if i must wait for an apple iphone 5.
Sunday, March 13, 2011 5:01PM
How do you do that clitch becuz I kno I hate hackers to but I’m goin to a friends house and ima b on level 1 so I want to get to level 70 fast so I can wreck wit daa AK haha
Saturday, March 19, 2011 9:51PM
just hit my first 70 so what do i do now how do i unlock the othe 630 lvls
Friday, March 25, 2011 9:29PM
were it says barracks click on it at the bottom it says prestige mode click and follow the instructions
Saturday, March 26, 2011 12:56AM
Awesome tips,
bump