The “Break it Down” Blog

We discussed the new Call of Duty 5: World at War trailer already, it looked pretty sharp but given the history of how lame Call of Duty 3 was (it wasn’t horrible, just very “meh”) we weren’t excited… until today.

First off was the announcement by Activision that Call of Duty 5 is going to include 4-player Co-op (announcement at the end) and then the insightful post on Kotaku by the Treyarch team basically saying:

Hey, cut us some slack with Call of Duty 3, we had 8 months to do it in. This time around we’ve had a bit over 2 years and are going to rock some socks off.

I gotta admit, I’m pretty pumped now… just the 4-player co-op does it for me, even though I might be pissed off at the lack of physical environments… co-op is still awesome.

Here’s the new media shots for you to gobble up:

Full announcement after the jump…

Full Announcement:

Sydney, Australia – June 23, 2008 – Leave your packs and bring extra ammo, Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) and Treyarch, announced today that they will be taking Call of Duty players deep into the South Pacific and European theatres this spring for Call of Duty: World at War™, a gritty fight that will pit players against enemies that know no surrender and show no mercy. Utilizing the Call of Duty 4®: Modern Warfare engine, Call of Duty: World at War throws out the rulebook of war to transform WWII combat through a new enemy, new tactics and an uncensored experience of the climatic battles that gripped a generation. As U.S. Marines and Russian soldiers, players will employ new features like cooperative gameplay, and weapons such as the flamethrower in the most chaotic and cinematically intense experience to date.

“With Call of Duty: World at War, we’re re-defining what it means to play a WWII game,” said Mark Lamia, Studio Head for Treyarch. “We’re excited to give players a host of new enemies that employ entirely new tactics, as well as new, groundbreaking tools – like co-op and the flamethrower – to succeed in the epic fight.”

Call of Duty: World at War introduces co-operative play, bringing fresh meaning to the “No One Fights Alone” mantra with up to four-players online for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC, or two-player local split-screen on consoles. Nintendo Wii will also support a unique co-op mode for two players. For the first time ever players will experience harrowing single-player missions together for greater camaraderie and tactical execution. The co-op campaign allows players to rank up and unlock perks in competitive multiplayer by completing challenges and earning experience points, adding continuous re-playability and team-based gameplay. Whether playing competitively or cooperatively – if players are online with Call of Duty: World at War – they will always gain experience points. Based on a player’s experience rank and rank of the player’s friends, Call of Duty: World at War will scale dynamically to provide a deeper level of challenge.

Call of Duty: World at War is in development for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Nintendo® Wii™ and Games for Windows® PC. The title is scheduled for release this spring and has not yet been rated by the OFLC.

For more information and exclusive updates about Call of Duty: World at War, visit www.callofduty.com.