I haven't touch the series since Modern Warfare 2

Before Modern Warfare 2, I played World at War, and then the original Modern Warfare. I've avoided the series since then because its never since appealed to me - although FUTURE CODZ came close.

I'm tempted by this game however mainly because I just want a decent shooter to play through. The go-to criticism here is the failure to innovate, but then that won't bother a person like me who hasn't touched the series in so long. I think the dog gameplay looks boring, the space combat looks fun (and telling of a franchise desperate to top itself), and I'm a sucker for good customization.

How bad is the linearity in the campaign compared to the original Modern Warfare or World at War? (which I oddly enough remember better than MW2). How much better are the graphics and effects? Is there a Spec-Ops mode or a level replay menu, or a solid alternative? What advice (seriously) would you give somebody in my position, and what would you say is worth noting about the game that my questions don't cover?

Thanks.

Advice I can give is the same advice I give my brother. Look at the COD series as a fun arcade game, meant for pure enjoyment even when frustrating things happen because arcades games are not the most polished games in the world and things are bound to annoy you. If taken in that light it really is enjoyable to play. BlOps2 was probably my favorite since COD4 just because I decided to have fun and not care how bad the story may or may not be or how the graphics looked b/c, gameplay wise, COD is a solid MP experience.

I'm the same, I haven't played CoD since Modern Warfare 2 and I was wondering if CoD: Ghosts is worth getting or not.

Is it better than the previous CoD games or worse?

Yeah i'm in a similar situation i haven't really played many fps's since modern warfare but after playing black ops 2 at a friends place and having a lot of fun with it I'm considering buying ghost. The lack of innovation doesn't bother me since i haven't owned a COD game in years and I'm only interested in the multiplayer portion. I was considering battlefield 4 but i've never played a battlefield game and I'm worried about it's steeper learning curve. Most reviews seem to be okay with COD ghost but the user reviews worry me. Does the game have any major issues from previous games or are the user reviews exaggerating things and it's more or less the same as previous titles?