CALL OF DUTY : WORLD AT WAR REVIEW

Since this is the first post of this site, I'll start with the game that has been most recently anticipated. Thats right, love it or hate it this cherry is being popped with a review of the newest version of what is probably the most popular FPS franchise of all time.

Now I'll cut to the chase, Treyarch made a much better game than what fans of the series might have expected from them. Personally, this game is right on line with my expectations.

I had a strong feeling that not a whole lot would be changed from Infinity Ward's Game Of The Year in Call of Duty 4 as it makes use of the same engine. And that is for the good as I feel if it ain't broke don't fix it.

Sure there's nothing revolutionary going on here but fans of COD 4 should enjoy this game. I'll admit that going back to WWII wouldn't have been my choice or most other people's but it does allow for a large scale and a sense of history that is hard to rival.

What people seem to miss most is the advanced weaponry of Modern Warfare. What will we ever do without our red dot sights? Well dont fret people There is a sight called an aperture sight which is basically the WWII equivalent with a black dot where the red one use to be. Although if you want to take advantage of the other weapon upgrades, the regular gun sghts seem to be a little easier to get used to than in Modern Warfare.

Everyone seems to have different opinions about their favorite weapons but I have been using the mp40 alot and with great success. It seems like the sub-machine gun class is the way to go in the multiplayer, but being the compulsive person that I am I'll have to get all achievements and upgrades with all weapons.

Other aspects of the multiplayer are mostly the same but with slight changes to suit the time period. For instance your UAV is now a recon plane but is essentially the exact same thing. Air strikes are now aerial shells launched from either off-shore or somewhere else outside the map but work in exactly the same way and they sound really cool. Everyone knows the attack heli has been replaced with attack dogs, which like the chopper sometimes do well and sometimes not. The only difference is the dogs are easier to shoot at without getting shot by someone else seeing as how they are at ground level plus you get 2 points for each dog you kill including the ones you get with mines.

The maps are large and look pretty good, however there are some parts where the linear nature of the single player game hurt the multiplayer because there are places you cannot cross or plants you cannot hide behind. With that being said there are plenty of places for those who like to camp but better not stay there too long or I might get you with a sticky grenade to the back, which is a perfect way to piss people off. I advise everyone to try that because its always funny as they try to run from it followed by the usual cursing. Also you cannot play the largest maps in free for all which is what I usually play. I would have rather seen more players on those maps than having to play only the small and medium maps.

I've heard people say that they can't find people as easily as Modern Warfare but I find that to be the opposite and tend to find more victims with the run and gun game and there is more cover so you can keep moving from place to place.

It does seem like there are too many people using the bouncing betty mines, which can be very hard to see even though I use them too if i want to keep people off my tail, howvever many will choose multiple primary grenades when they get to that perk( I believe thats at rank 44). Hopefully the game doesn't start to turn into backdraft when everyone levels up and gets the flamethrower,but in case that happens there is a fire proof perk.

There are tanks on some of the larger team based maps but I haven't played on those enough yet to give much of an opinion but the tanks do seem to be able to take a large amount of damage like they should so destroying one alone is all but impossible so youll need to enlist in the help of a team mate or two.

One thing they they need to address is the spawning with someone aiming at you already, which did happen in Modern Warfare but not quite as much. It doesn't take a genius to figure out where the spawn points are and just wait there so maybe a few more spawn points would help with that issue. And for all you a holes that like to do that stop camping and grow some balls, nobody cares about your kill to death ratio and if anyone does its obvious you camp if your ratio is way above 1.

Ok its time to stop ranting ang get to the single player game. Since that is what most care about least i saved that for last. While it doesn't seem as grand as the first or second Call of Duty, it is still challenging and fun. The game jumps from fighting as an American soldier against the Japanese in the Pacific to fighting as a Russian soldier againts the Germans in Europe. They could have put a little more personality behind the cast of characters that surrounds you as you fight but you do feel a part of the team at least in the American parts.

The fight in the Pacific adds an element to WWII that hasn't been touched on much like the jungles and more foliage. The Japanese make great use of these environments and surprise you with ambushes and banzai melee attacks as well as hiding in the trees and practically begging you to torch them with the flame thrower. However I did not enjoy the European battles as much despite them being tougher because it was more of the same old thing and the grenades got a little frustrating. Just about every death I had came at the hands of a grenade expertly hurled in my vicinity with Joe Monta like precision.

I've heard people complain about the length of the game as it is short just like all the other COD games but it is fast paced and furious fighting for the duration. It could be longer but I can't really complain on that front because you know going into it the single player is going to be 5-6 hours max like every other version before. Besides we all know that COD is really about the multiplayer.

One thing that I really like about both parts of the game is the gore. You might not notice it at first but this game can be very destructive to the human anatomy, but war isn't pretty and I for one appreciate the added realism. Go ahead you know you want to, just pick up that 12 guage shotty and show the enemy what its like to loose a leg or torso for that matter.

So if you haven't played this game yet because your sick of WWII or whatever your reason is at least go give it a rent. If your a fan of the smooth multiplayer that is know as Call Of duty Modern Warfare you should be able to enjoy World at War for the same reasons. Besides those COD4 maps have been getting a little old.

I almost forgot to mention the co-op campaign mode and the nazi zombie mode in solo and multiplayer to add even more replay value. So after beating the campaign which unlocks the nazi zombie mini game be sure to hole up in that abandoned house and blast some zombie heads.