Treyarch has
been on the short side of the development cycle for a while. Turnaround times
for its release of off-year Call of Duty titles really prevented the company
from putting its own stamp on the series. So what happens when it gets a full
development cycle, and doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel in terms of a game
engine. Call of Duty World at War is what happens.
Built on the
CoD4 engine, Treyarch has had the opportunity to focus on the gameplay. CoD 4
was a journey into the modern world. For WaW, Treyarch went back to World War II
but instead of focusing on the European Theater, the dev team expanded that to
play the game – through scenarios – on two fronts. Players will be immersed in
the Pacific Theater in the war against the Japanese Imperial Army, and will be
part of the Russian push toward Berlin.
For the most
part, you will play the game as a Marine private, or a Russian sniper. Once the
game departs from those predominate scenarios to allow you to play the gunner on
an aircraft, but as much as hopping from gun to gun and blasting boats is fun,
this almost seems like an afterthought rather than a mission that integrates the
other elements well.
There are 16
missions in all, starting at Japanese fortifications on Makin Island and ending
with the Russian destruction of the Reichstag in Berlin. The unfortunate part of
the game lays in that when you move through a scenario, if you fail, you can
count on – more or less – the same enemy actions. Too often the character
controlled took up a semi-screened position and then sniped away. The enemy, as
if they either couldn’t see the bodies stacking up or were just too stupid to
think much of it, would often take up positions of their fallen comrades. For
example, a Japanese soldier pops his head up between a truck and a broken bit of
wall. Waiting for him was easy. One shot, one less enemy soldier. Wait about
five-eight seconds, and then another does the same thing.
While the
action was fast paced, at times the AI made some poor choices.
One of the
center points of the game, though, was the inclusion of the Japanese way of
fighting. This does not often give you the opportunity to thoughtfully progress
through an environment. They were not adverse to banzai charges, or even hiding
in the brush, camouflaged, and then jump up at you when you were near enough for
bayonet work. That element alone highlighted a small flaw in the default key
mapping. To counter a melee attack, you were to hit V, which is not all that
intuitive a key stroke if you have your fingers on the W,A,S,D keys for
movement. And with the reaction time being so short, it can be an awkward
movement.
Generally,
though, the control set-up is intuitive.
The game plays
out on the PC in a very visceral way, with incredible texturing, dynamic
lighting and animation that is exceptional. Crank up the graphics settings, and
enjoy the ride. The sound is also solid, with very good voice work. Some of the
game’s story scripting is a bit obvious, and feels forced at times.
When it comes
to multiplayer, though, CoD:WaW is a thrill ride. There is a couple of ways to
play it – either in the deathmatch scenarios that many fans of the game have
come to know and enjoy or in a cooperative setting. The latter will take up to
four players, plop them into one of the scenarios and let them take on a
ramped-up enemy. The game is very nicely realized, with players able to revive
fallen comrades. This is sort of a competitive setting, with players vying for
not only completing the scenario but also for scoring points in a variety of
ways – from revives to headshots.
Multiplayer also
has a cooperative element in which a team defends a house against Nazi zombies.
There are several entry points and all sorts of weapons involved, including a
ray-guy thing. The zombies come in waves and the idea is to see how many waves,
or levels, you can survive. It ramps up fast and the pacing can be rather insane
at times.
In many ways
CoD:WaW is a guided experience that feels relatively short. Players should
complete the main mission modes in about 8 hours. The replay value stems from
the cooperative and multiplayer action.
World at War
offers some nice elements, from the Japanese combat elements to the new weapon
(flamethrower), but the game is more of the same in terms of the way it all
plays out. That is not a bad thing, but for players coming off CoD 4, this is
not a big step forward for the franchise. CoD fans will enjoy it, though, as the
game will not only challenge but entertain.
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Gameplay: 8.5
Some load times and
the default controls can be a little awkward at times. The game is also a
structured experience and feels a little short.
Graphics: 9.0
The game’s
animation, the dynamic lighting, shading and textures are truly impressive.
Sound: 8.8
The voice acting,
battle sounds and musical score do a solid job of supporting the graphical
elements.
Difficulty: Medium
Concept: 8.4
The AI is a little
suspect in places, but the inclusion of the Pacific Theater of war is a solid
addition to the franchise.
Multiplayer: 8.8
The competitive
cooperative element is a very nice addition to the multiplayer settings.
Overall: 8.5
Not a huge departure
in terms of how the game plays out. There is a rhythm to the levels, each with a
hump that must be crested to begin the downhill run to the next level in the
story arc. Overall the game feels a bit short but is not only a very tasty bit
of eye candy, and a treat for the ears as well, but a briskly paced
action-adventure that should please fans of WWII first-person shooters.
