Those canny fellows behind Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 have left us with a dilemma. Another map pack has emerged on Xbox Live - and will soon come to the PS3 - to prolong our addiction to the much-lauded FPS... but once again, it's priced at a stupendously high 1200 points. Most gamers out there only have finite funds with which to fuel their unhealthy dependence on video games and cannot afford both this and the previously released content. So, unless you want to sell a kidney, which one should you choose - the Stimulus package or shiny new Resurgence DLC?

Having completed the game several times, grabbed all the achievement points and played the online multiplayer maps to death, Modern Warfare 2 has sat untouched on my shelf since January. But the news of the add-on packs have given me the impetus to once again pick up my trusty Carbine and TAR-21 and get fragging.

If I'm going to part with most of my Microsoft points in one foul swoop, I want to make the right choice. So what are the differences?

Well, after a quick gander on various websites and forums, Resurgence appears to be a much more inviting prospect and has initially received some very positive feedback. Hell, one of the levels features a giant open-mouthed clown and bumper cars. How could you not love that?

Something that held many people back from buying the Stimulus package when it came out in March was the fact that Activision had recycled some of the maps from Call of Duty 4. Although COD veterans loved the first game and spent many hours roaming around "Overgrown" and "Crash", no one really wants to have to pay for them again - even if they are "graphically enhanced" and tweaked for the new game engine.

Frankly, it all caused a bit of a furore and although the DLC has gone on to sell by the bucketload, many gamers are left feeling a little cheated. Remember, the game itself was priced at a premium when released anyway… to pay half as much again for a few maps – some of which are recycled – smarts a little, doesn’t it?

Not only that but the general consensus seems to suggest that the Stimulus Package levels were all fairly uninspiring; the new maps offered environments not too dissimilar from those that were included with the game itself. There's the shell-shocked apartment complex of "Bailout", the industrial wasteland of "Storm" and the snow strewn junkyard in "Salvage"; none of which particularly stand out or offer anything different.

It’s of little surprise that the new DLC plays the same dirty old trick and only a couple of the levels are actually new. “Vacant” and “Strike” make a comeback on this occasion! Still, it just so happens that these two were among my favourites in their previous incarnation so that’s no bad thing at all.

Perhaps though, the powers that be have sat up and taken a little notice of the feedback they’ve received as the Resurgence pack seems to offer a great deal more variety and imagination.

"Carnival" particularly catches the eye, with the deserted funfair split into various zones, the rides providing a nice blend of choke points and vantage spots. Aesthetically, it is more than a little reminiscent of its namesake level in Left 4 Dead 2. "Fuel" is a vast map set at an oil refinery with its plume-spewing chimneys. This really does seem suited for people of all skill levels and tactical preferences. The final new addition is "Trailer Park", which is a complete contrast to the others; small, tight and restrictive, requiring quick reactions and good close quarter combat skills.

As we’ve come to expect from Infinity Ward, visually the maps all look fantastic – but most people seem to have a particular penchant for Carnival, which is a refreshing change from the tried and tested warehouse/wartorn town themes.

I may not have been "stimulated" by the notion of the first pack, but the new DLC has certainly resulted in a "resurgence" of interest in a game I'd otherwise sidelined. For that reason, Carnival and the new maps get the Megabits vote. I'm off to rid myself of some points... see you on the battlefield!