For the past few years, Activision has had a golden egg by the name of the Call of Duty series. However, unlike the disappointing Call of Duty 3 of two years ago, this new Treyarch developed title seems much closer in quality to last year's superlative Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.

While some may groan at the fact that this new Call of Duty returns to the quickly drying World War II well, World at War presents its World War II action in the rarely used Japanese Theatre. While Medal of Honor: Rising Sun technically presented this point of view first, that mediocre game has been mercifully forgotten by now, making this new Call of Duty seem all the more fresh. Players will play as both Russian and American soldiers, and take orders from Jack Bau- I mean Kiefer Sutherland.

The first thing apparent in the new trailers shown at the Activision Press Event is that this new Call of Duty game is as intense as any yet produced. Dozens of tanks and soldiers are consistently clashing in a graphically impressive showcase. Using the Call of Duty 4 engine, World at War seems to pick up right where number four left off, with adrenaline pumping action unmatched by any other war franchise.

World at War features some exciting fire effects that significantly affect gameplay. Players will have access to flame throwers which will effectively burn any flammable foliage, which will essentially function as mobile cover for both enemies and yourself. The flames behave very realistically and look fantastic too.

The most exciting addition to the series is the new co-op mode, with support for four players online and two player splitscreen. Activision is promising a competitive edge to the co-op modes, including leaderboards and stats.

It seems that Treyarch is in line for some redemption after producing the blase Call of Duty 3. World at War is looking like a lean, mean, and brutal trip to one of the most terrifying chapters of the second world war. Get ready for battle this holiday season.