Graphics and Audio

Graphics

Call of Duty World at War utilizes the same graphics engine as Modern Warfare, only enhanced to support updated effects physics, like the fire from the flamethrower. The engine boasts self-sustaining fire, so anything you set ablaze should remain so and propagate to nearby tinder, until all fuel is extinguished. Although the fire effects look pretty decent, they do pale in comparison to other recent games like Far Cry 2.

Other graphical effects look as good as they did in Call of Duty 4, with dynamic lighting and depth of field adding a great sense of realism, especially when you are aiming down the sights of your rifle. Meanwhile, a combination of canned animations and ragdoll physics help add to a nice mix of realism and movie magic to each death throe. World at War does feature some gorier death animations, as limbs and body parts can be blown off. Overall, World at War is rendered just as well as Call of Duty 4, only it has the added benefit of already being tested on a variety of hardware. World at War seems to run pretty good on any modern system, although anyone running anything older than Radeon 3850 is probably going to have turn some of the goodies down, especially during some of the more explosive-laden sections.

Audio

Audio production in World at War is pretty good, as it features voice acting from the likes of Gary Oldman and the previously mentioned Kiefer Sutherland. It sure seems to us that poor Gary Oldman only gets to play either Russians or Bad Guys, so it’s probably somewhat of a win to play a Russian Good Guy. The rest of the voice acting is decent, although hardly memorable. Kiefer and Gary also help you out during the multiplayer sessions, calling out the game type and the when the HQ is available. Weapon sounds are accurate, although some do lack a little bit punch, especially the Thompson and BAR. Surround sound is well executed and adds a nice immersive atmosphere to the ensuing carnage.