Call of Duty: WWII - Xbox One

After jaunts to every-when from the 1970s to the far-flung future, the Call of Duty series is returning to its roots with Call of Duty: WWII. Once again players will take to the battlegrounds of Europe in a bid to oust the evil of National Socialism from the world, but this time out they'll be doing it on the hardware of 2017 and with the benefit of lessons learned from multiple series installments.

Activision and Sledgehammer Games are aiming squarely at the goal of delivering a gritty, cinematic World War II experience. You'll storm the beaches on D-Day, march across France to liberate Paris and ultimately push on for the invasion of Germany. There's even, in multiplayer, a map that offers players a chance to fight in Blitz-torn London.

While the series is clearly going back to its roots in one sense, Sledgehammer has clearly learned from the games between the last CoD set in WWII and now. Most obvious is the inclusion of all the usual killstreaks, but CoD aficionados will also note the likes of turret gunning from Modern Warfare 2; maps with a hint of Black Ops 3 and Infinite Warfare's momentum-driven layouts to them and paratroopers who call back to World at War's attack dogs.

There are certainly new additions too, however. War mode is a new narrative-driven multiplayer mode that has Allied and Axis forces clash in team-driven assault and defend missions. Headquarters, meanwhile, is a new social and competitive experience for players, with activities like 1v1 fights, anti-aircraft gunnery and eSports viewing available.

Call of Duty: WWII also introduces Nazi Zombies, an all-new co-op experience with its own storyline set against the backdrop of World War II. more