 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Call of Duty: World at War
- Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, Windows
- Price: $30-60
- Genre: First Person Shooter
Common Sense Media says
Intense first-person shooter captures brutality of WWII.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this is a grisly shooter based on World War II. Players can kill enemy forces with guns, grenades, rocket launchers, and flamethrowers. Besides seeing lots of blood, players will witness enemies writhing as they are burned alive or losing limbs in explosions. Players will also see bodies strewn across the various battlefields and experience realistic sounds of agony. Profanity is also heard. The game is playable online, a feature Common Sense Media does not recommend for children under the age of 12, and colorful language will most likely be heard there as well. An unlockable zombie mode features hordes of Nazi zombies that need to be killed.
What's it about?
The Call of Duty franchise returns to familiar territory with the release of CALL OF DUTY: WORLD AT WAR, an intense first-person shooter that captures the brutality of warfare. The campaign takes place through the eyes of an American soldier fighting the Japanese and a Russian battling German forces. As U.S. Private Miller, you navigate the jungles of the Pacific led by Sgt. Roebuck, voiced by 24 actor Kiefer Sutherland. When playing the role of Private Petrenko of the Soviet Army, you'll push into the German capital Berlin to finish off the Nazis.
Players can tackle the campaign either solo or with a friend through the cooperative mode. There's also a deep multiplayer mode where players can rank-up based on skill level and acquire new weapons. When you conquer the campaign, you can unlock a Nazi zombie mode where up to four players fight wave after wave of zombies.
Is it any good?
While the last release in the franchise, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, set the bar for first-person shooters on consoles, World at War delivers a very similar experience. The campaign is chaotic and intense. The Russian missions tend to feel like typical WWII games, but action in the Pacific is more intriguing. Japanese enemies employ ambush tactics like charging with bayonettes. Because most prefer hiding in grass, your character will often use a flamethrower to flush out enemies.
World at War is also dark and brutal. Smoke and gunfire blanket the skies of Berlin as you break through Nazi defenses. You'll see enemies burned alive or missing limbs following explosions. On the default difficulty, opponents are relentless. However, they do exhibit some odd behaviors. There were a few moments where opponents were inches away and opted to sit and aim as opposed to aggressively attacking. Weapons are diverse, ranging from mountable assault rifles to grenades and sniper rifles. Multiplayer is equally impressive, with a deep ranking system and rewards for bolstering your skills. With a wealth of World War II games available, World at War stands out as one of the best.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about video games based on historical events. Is this a good way to learn the perils of war? Are there other ways video games can teach historical events like World War II?
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AGE
Fun and very educational.
I'd say that this game is okay for mature kids who are 13 years old and up. There is a graphic content filter that will remove most of the blood and gore. I allow my kids to leave it on though- the game was meant to capture the brutality of World War II, and I feel that the blood and gore helps that although it is more violent. The game is actually quite accurate. The violence is of a realistic amount- if you've seen any footage from the War, you know what it's like. My son studied WWII in school and this game really helped him a lot. If you're one of those parents who thinks that everything's inappropriate for your kids, rent it first.
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AGE
good for teens with filter
its a great game the filter makes it a great game for teens and online is less gory violent and you can mute the language(other people with mic's) so i recommend it for 13+
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AGE
Turn off the blood!
Although the blood is pretty bad it isn't too horrible as long as you turn off the blood and cuss words in the options its alot of fun. if you want a new zombie level get DER REISE..... SO AWESOME
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AGE
14+
violence is a mild concern since you can see some gore but not alot.
nothing yuo wouldnt see in tv14 movie edits.
it is set in the heat of battle in WWII
so it is pretty educational.
and dont say there isnt any positive role models in this! these are the heroes that fought for our country!
very good game for 14+
If you want a less violent game, I'd consider call of duty 4 modern warfare
it is less violent yet more intense and fun.
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AGE
A surprise once played.
My 12 year old suggested this and its older brother modern warfare. At the begining i would have none of it because it was a Mature rated game. Just to det him of my back i rented this for the wii and the ps3 and was surprised. The wii version is different in some ways, the gore is toned down a ton and the language isnt as bad. But displays the horrors of war, but i like to teach him things that are true . he is very mature about these things and understands completly that some things are real and some are not. i let him watch the WWII movies and they are the equivalent to this game. There are filters that are great to take out the language and gore. there is a purticularly bloody sceen where your fellow marine gets his kneck cut in exicution but nothing extremly terrible. OVER ALL A GREAT GAME THAT A MATURE CHILD THAT YOU HAVE TALKED TO ABOUT NOT TAKING IT TO BAD CAN PLAY THIS GAME.
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AGE
Great for Teens. Not for younger kids
Call of Duty World at War. This game is really fun and has educational value of world war two. The game has a lot of bad language and very gory violence. Grenades and heavy machineguns blow limbs off of bodies, blow heads off, and cause blood sprays. Despite this, the game is very fun and offers a lot of gamemodes to play
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AGE
I think it is a pretty good game, and yes it is violent, but if you watch war movies like Saving Private Ryan, it is no worse.
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AGE
NO KIDS
Who are we kidding? All kids play COD. I started playing this when I was like 13. But, according to this website, it would definitely earn the NO KIDS rating because of the Violence and Language.
LANGUAGE: Tons of F-words and S-words. In the campaign, online, and in Zombies (new maps.) There's no getting around the swearing (although I think there is a graphic content filter option, but I've never tried it.)
VIOLENCE: Gratuitous amounts of gore. In the campaign you can shoot off limbs or heads. Grenades blow soldiers apart and rip stomachs out of bodies. On XBOX Live, heads can't come off, but explosives slow blow soldiers up and limbs fly (You even get awards for taking limbs off using the tank). In Zombies mode, heads blow up, stumps spurt blood, bottomless torsos crawl towards you, leaving bloody trails behind them. It's not any MORE violent than the story mode, but it's just that you're fighting SO MANY zombies that it seems gorier. Plus, it's more horror/fear - themed, so all around it just seems very intense.
The game overall really IS NOT for kids ... but hey, they're gonna be playing it anyway. Just be aware that it is incredibly graphic and there's tons of profanity.
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AGE
Call of Duty increases the violence
This game is a fun game, not as good as Call of Duty 4 might I add. Limbs fly everywhere and swear words will be heard. I haven't played the campaign at all, but I've watched Youtube a bit and have seen that it's quite violent. I recommend turning on the graphic content filter in the menu to take it down a notch, but it won't touch the multiplayer. As I said before, limbs are blown off w/ shotguns, artillary strikes, and sniper rifles quite often. It's not all too graphic, but you see bloody stumps of heads, arms, etc. It can get pretty gruesome. And Nazi zombie mode is worse, but very fun. I recommend this game to older teens, but you have to know your kid to know what they can take or should be exposed to.
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| Platforms: | Nintendo Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, Windows |
| Available online? | Not available online |
| Genre: | First Person Shooter |
| Developer: | Activision |
| Release date: | November 11, 2008 |
| Price: | $30-60 |
| ESRB rating: | M for Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language |
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