When you consider that they all seem to follow a formula -- one modeled aesthetically after "Saving Private Ryan" -- it's not surprising that some people have grown tired of World War II first-person shooters. But Call of Duty: World at War is not your father's WWII FPS (assuming your father worked on the first three Call of Duty games, most of the Medal of Honor series and all of the Brothers in Arms games).

Don't let the palm trees fool you; this game isn't set in sunny Los Angeles.

As with all games in this series, World at War casts you as different Allied soldiers on various fronts from this historical conflict. But because it uses the same engine as Modern Warfare, World at War keeps that game's decidedly action-movie bent. Granted, it never gets silly or over-the-top like a Schwarzenegger flick from the '80s, but it also doesn't have the somber tone of "Saving Private Ryan," "Band of Brothers" or any of the other touchstones of the genre. Instead, the battles are messy and harried, and often set up or turned on their heads with the dramatic situations or (sometimes literally) explosive moments you only find in film. Heck, they even got Jack Bauer and Commissioner Gordon to be your commanding officers.


This has led to one unfortunate choice on the developers' part, however. Rather than only use a cinematic, classical score like every other game in the genre, the soundtrack adds some classic rock guitar riffs, which just don't work with the game's late-'40s setting. (The level introductions are also inappropriately modern -- not that they ruin the game or anything, but they're weirdly out of place.) But you can turn the music off, thank god, without killing the audio in the cut scenes. Nothing makes me hate everyone and everything more than when I turn off a game's terrible music and then get the silent treatment in the cut scenes.

Besides fighting the Japanese in the jungle, you'll also battle them on the beaches.

Sorry, where was I? Oh, right, World at War. You're not just fighting the Germans this time out; you're also fighting the Japanese, and the Japanese don't fight like the Germans. They launch sneak attacks, hide in trees, and will often run at you like maniacs. Because of this, you'll find yourself playing more cautiously, and with your thumb just itching to hit the knifing button. This also leads the fight through some island jungles, a welcome respite from the bombed-out European cities of most WWII FPS games (though you'll see some good examples of those, too, when you're a Russian soldier beating the Germans back to Berlin).

Otherwise, World at War feels a lot like Modern Warfare, and that's a good thing. It has the same great controls (and same great control scheme), as well as the same great visuals. Oddly, the latter game's penchant for snapping you onto a target when you hit the left trigger to use iron sights isn't as pronounced in World at War. But it still works well here, and it's optional if you think you're too good to use it, so consider this more of a notation than a complaint.

Yes, boys and girls, it's still fun to shoot Nazis from the first-person perspective.

Best of all, World at War also has the same great multiplayer as Modern Warfare, complete with the role-playing game-like leveling system and perks (including some cool new ones). Some things have been changed for historical reasons. For example, a really good killing streak doesn't bring in attack helicopters; it brings in attack dogs. And no, sticking out your hand and letting them sniff it won't work. They've also added the occasional vehicle (and new vehicle-related perks), though some of the maps don't really have enough room for tanks to maneuver.

There is something about multiplayer that might irritate Modern Warfare vets ? for a week. While World at War has all the great modes from the last game, not all are available when you start. In fact, you're limited to Free for All (a.k.a. Deathmatch), Team Deathmatch and Boot Camp (low-level Team Deathmatch) until you get to level 14. Only then can you play Capture the Flag, Domination and Search & Destroy, among others. And even then, you have to wait four more levels to play the Hardcore versions of Team Deathmatch, Free for All, Search & Destroy and War -- which, not to put too fine a point on it, is kind of a dick move.

Here we see George Carlin's favorite weapon, the flamethrower.

Somewhat making up for this is the addition of cooperative modes -- in one, you and friends work together to beat the story mode; in another, you do the same, but competitively -- with two-player split-screen, four-player online, and combos thereof. In split-screen, the game presents two television-shaped boxes, like something they might do on the show "24," which means both players get the same great view of the battlefield.

The game also adds a series of playing cards you can find (good luck with that), which can later be used to modify a co-op game like a cheat code. These modifiers run the gamut from making the game more challenging (the Jack of Spades forces you to make headshots to kill anyone) to making it more, uh, weekend dad-ly (the Six of Clubs changes this into a game of paintball; cold beer not included).

"Nazi zombie, Run!"

Another addition is a mode in which you and some friends have to fight waves upon waves of Nazi zombies -- Yes, you read that correctly, Nazi zombies -- kind of like a cross between Left 4 Dead and the Horde mode in Gears of War 2 (though not as deep or as fun as either of those). But while it's entertaining in a goofy way, it doesn't really fit thematically. (Maybe, if this were Return to Castle Wolfenstein, but not here, even with this game's action-movie feel.)


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Even with these minor setbacks and inconsistencies, World at War is still a really great shooter. It may not trump Modern Warfare, but it does add some good new things to the genre (co-op) and is easily the best World War II FPS since 2005's Call of Duty 2. While your dad won't appreciate its lack of historical reverence or its resemblance to action movies, they might just be what this genre needs right now.

This review is based on a retail copy of the game provided by the publisher.