We really enjoyed the "Mile High Club" mission unlocked upon the completion of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare -- despite the fact it was completely out-of-continuity, it was one of the most thrilling segments in the entire game. Fortunately, it seems Infinity Ward has taken a cue from this airplane-combat scenario -- the developer recently explained that it's using it as inspiration for Modern Warfare 2's "Special Ops" missions, which were briefly demoed at GamesCom 2009.

Billed as the game's co-op mode, Special Ops allows players to perform standalone missions either on their lonesome or with a friend via online or split-screen co-op. Different difficulty tiers are offered for each Special Ops mission -- those bold enough to tackle the harder echelons will receive greater in-game unlockables.

We got a chance to see someone play through "The Gulag" at GamesCom -- a seeming recreation of the shower room from The Rock. The player armed himself at a Left 4 Dead-esque ammo dump, then run-and-gunned his way through a series of enemy-infested rooms. While lacking in the airborne panache that made "Mile High Club" so memorable, it was a neat little slice of gameplay -- we can't wait to see what other precarious scenarios Infinity Ward drops us into when Modern Warfare 2 hits store shelves this November.