Playercard/Modern Warfare 2 Titles

Many titles and emblems are unlocked through challenges, although a selection of titles are rank unlocks (titles 1-8). Players cannot unlock these for their callsign until the relevant challenges are completed in the barracks.

(level ##)=The level at which the challenge is unlocked

(lvl??)=The level the challenge is unlocked is still unconfirmed

Weapon Specific Titles
Some titles are unlocked by completing challenges with specific weapons. It is possible to unlock five separate titles for a weapon, but not every weapon will have all five.

Below are examples of the five types of weapon specific titles along with the weapons that are eligible for each type. (Note: Headshots with Launchers are not counted, so Multikills are required instead). Italics show which challenge is needed. You must prestige to unlock the latter four challenges (Veteran and Master).

Prestige Specific Titles
Some titles are only awarded after a player has committed to prestige. Below are the non-weapon specific titles awarded for completing certain challenges or attaining certain levels after starting Prestige mode.

For the Killstreak Challenges, 250 kills are needed for the Silver title using that killstreak, and 1000 are needed for the Gold title using that killstreak.

Film and television

 * "Get to the Choppa!" is a line spoken by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the film Predator. In addition, both "True Liar" and "Fired!" are references to another Schwarzenegger film, True Lies. The prestige challenge "You're fired!" is a line spoken by Arnold Schwarzenegger in that film. The title "The Exterminator" is a reference to the Terminator movies, both starring Arnold - the Austrian flag in the background is a reference to his Austrian nationality.
 * The title "Pineapple Express" is a reference to the 2008 movie of the same name, which itself is a reference to an astronomical phenomenon.
 * The title "Transformer" is a reference to the Transformer "Blackout," who transforms into a Pave Low in the 2007 film.
 * The title "Not in the face!" is probably a reference to the 1976 movie Blazing Saddles.
 * The title "Big Bada Boom" is a reference to the movie The Fifth Element, when a simple character describes an explosion.
 * The title "End of Line" is a reference to the movie Tron, where the Master Control Program says it to end each piece of dialogue.
 * Both the cut gamemode and the title "Global Thermonuclear War" are reference to the movie WarGames in which one of the computer's simulations was nuclear war.
 * The title "Spy Game" is a reference to the movie Spy Game starring Robert Redford and Brad Pitt.
 * The title "Live Long..." is a nod to the long-running TV series Star Trek and the saying "live long and prosper."
 * The title "NBK" is a reference to the 1994 motion picture Natural Born Killers.
 * The title "1bullet2kills" is a reference to the 1993 movie Sniper starring Tom Berenger, in which the character signals his partner to get "One shot, two kills." The way in which is typed is a reference to the shock video "2girls1cup."

Literature

 * The title "The Stand" is a reference to Stephen King's book of the same name.
 * The title "Big Brother" is a reference to the character "Big Brother" in George Orwell's book, 1984.

Music

 * The title "It's Sabotage!" is a reference to the Beastie Boys song "Sabotage."
 * The title "Intergalactic" is also a reference to the Beastie Boys album "Intergalactic."
 * The title "Click Click Boom" is a reference to the song "Click Click Boom" by Saliva.
 * The title "Droppin' Crates" is a reference to the song "Droppin' Plates" by Disturbed.
 * The title "Last Resort" may be a reference to the song "Last Resort" by Papa Roach.
 * The title "Five Sided Fistagon" is a reference to the Rage Against the Machine song "Bulls on Parade."
 * The title "Completely Numb" is a reference to the Pink Floyd song "Comfortably Numb".
 * The title "Heatbreaker" could be a reference to the Led Zeppelin song "Heartbreaker"

Video games

 * The title "Companion Crate" is a reference to the Companion Cube from the Valve game Portal.
 * The title "All Your Base" is a reference to the game Zero Wing and the internet meme created from its poor English translation.
 * The title "Boom! Headshot" is a reference to "Pure Pwnage's" FPS Doug. His catch phrase is yelling "BOOM! HEADSHOT," both when getting headshots in Counter-Strike and in everyday life.
 * The title "Bandolier" is a reference to the 1st tier perk from Call of Duty 4.

Real life

 * The title "<3" is made for the son from the project leader of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 who died of cancer. The symbol itself represents a heart.
 * The title "Starfish Prime" is a reference to the high-altitude nuclear test conducted by the United States of America on July 9, 1962.
 * The title "Broken Arrow" is a reference to military code words. Broken Arrow is used to tell command that nuclear weapons have gone missing or are unaccounted for. It could also be reference to the movie "Broken Arrow" starring John Travolta.
 * The title "My Li'l Pwny" is a reference to the American figurine franchise My Little Pony.
 * The title "Rolling Thunder" is a reference to Operation Rolling Thunder, a bombing campaign by the United States during the Vietnam War, which would later appear in Black Ops as killstreak.
 * The title "Godhand" may be a reference to Mas Oyama, who earned the nickname "The Godhand" after killing a bull with a single punch.
 * The title "6 Fears 7" is a reference to the children's joke "why is 6 afraid of 7? Because 7 ate 9."
 * The title "BAM!" is a reference to famous chef Emeril Lagasse's catch phrase.
 * The "Continental" title may be a reference to a slang term used to describe Australians.
 * The title "Neutral" with the Switzerland flag background is a reference to the fact Switzerland did not participate in either World War.
 * The title "Army of 1" is a reference to the US Army's catchphrase "An Army of one."

Trivia

 * The title "Global Thermonuclear War" has the most characters (letters) of any title.
 * The "1 Bullet 2 Kills" title says Infinity Ward on the left side. The sign is also on the other titles with bullets such as the "K Factor" title
 * The "4 The Record" title is referencing to the title of the campaign "For The Record".

Cut titles

 * The unused The Four Horsemen titles can be found in Modern Warfare 2 game files.