Perks, perks, perks. Call of Duty 4 players were hooked (and some still are) with the multiplayer's RPG-lite element that had you leveling up for better weapons and in-game advantages. The series is Infinity Ward's baby, which they've handed off to Treyarch -- famous for porting the Tony Hawk games -- this year to create Call of Duty: World at War due on November 11 for Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, PS2, PC and DS.

Change of Developer

The last Call of Duty Treyarch had their hands in creating was CoD3, which garnered a less-than-stellar reception from fans and critics alike. From what we've played, though, it looks like they'll be redeeming themselves with their latest game. CoD: World at War, previously known as CoD5, is set in WWII once again, but it plays and feels very much like CoD4 with a few exceptions.

Treyarch has taken a different approach with their campaign mode in making it more about the atmosphere. This time around, players are thrusted at the end of the war with more dangerous enemies as they make their last stand. In Japan, for example, enemies hide to ambush the player giving you a sense of dread and suspense at every corner -- generally unfelt in most other shooters.

Play Out WWII with a Friend

For online, Treyarch improves on CoD4 by adding a co-op mode that is fully playable over the internet with a friend. It's a series first and a step we're glad to see the series taking. Here's a peek at how it works:

And for those of you itching for some Left 4 Dead action early, GameTrailers TV recently revealed the 4-player online mode that unlocks after you beat the game: Zombie Mode. In it, you take on the undead (represented as "Nazi Zombies") with a few comrades and even includes a money system for buying weapons, barracades, and moving obstacles in the way.

The Perks Are Back!

Not content with simply recycling the excellent multiplayer mode in Infinity Ward's last game, Treyarch went ahead and tweaked the multiplayer a bit. Now, gamers have extra perks which pertain to vehicles, such as speedier turret movement or quicker reloading. Also, some perks have been renamed but serve the same function (i.e. UAV Jammer is now Camouflage) which help to keep that "Modern" feel of CoD4.

We tried out the beta and came out impressed. While it feels mostly interchangeable with the previous game, it touches it up here and there to make it feel fresh again. The levels are, for the most part, aesthetically different (especially one set in Japan) and the sound has definitely improved making bomb drops even scarier. Make sure you look out for those attack dogs!

CoD: World at War hits stores on November 11 to pretty much every console imaginable and if you're looking for a leg up on launch day, make sure to check out the demo available on Xbox Live now.

Carlos Macias is a featured writer for Xomba.com. Read the rest of his work here .