Call of Duty: World at War
Full review at the end of the week. This has been three hours of playtime with the beta.
I'll begin with stating that I absolutely like what I see. The basic Call of Duty 4 formula has still held strong, with little to no complications, or muddling of the basic framework. Deciding to use the Call of Duty 4 engine was easily one of the best choices Treyarch could have made.
-Fantastic weapons, well-rendered, all harder-hitting, and better balanced than Call of Duty 4.
-Colorful environments and characters. Though on occasion, the textures may be lacking, the overall polish is far more cinematic than Treyarch's previous installment. Some may not like the "new" style, but I'm enjoying it.
-Weapon add-ons! Red-dot sights have been replaced with glass hairline aperture sights. Suppressors, front grips, bayonets, and extended magazines all make an entry, as well as the return of rifle grenades.
-Perks are still useful, and haven't taken a back-seat by any means.
-Fresh death animation/ragdoll.
-Pistols are actually useful.
-Gore! Fuck yeah! You can blow legs and arms off!
-Rock-solid framerate.
On the downside, I have noticed:
-Less impressive movement animation.
-Less impressive overall audio engineering, despite the vastly improved firearm audio.
-Muddy textures, especially on some rifles..
-A slowdown in movement with SMGs.
Neutral:
-More visually complex maps, providing a more difficult time for campers (though unclear how long the complexity will remain interesting for me).
-The game is very much a Treyarch creation. Though the same engine may be in place, it bears little stylistic resemblance to Infinity Ward, which may be an upsetting sign of the campaign's appearance to some.
If there's anything someone (who didn't get in the beta) wants me to cover in my full writeup, just say the word.
<message edited by Eddie_the_Hated on Oct 16, 2008 01:46>