Treyarch have been great supporters of the Wii, bringing three Call of Duty games to the platform. Each title has built upon the last and provided Wii owners with an online experience that has often been lacking on the system. This year Treyarch promised to 'blow us away' with Call of Duty: Black Ops, have they managed to achieve this ambitious feat?

The answer is an almost resounding 'Yes'. Last year Wii owners missed out on Modern Warfare 2 – instead receiving a port of the two-year-old Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. This time we're not being left out of the phenomenon, we have our own version and most importantly it manages to stand up next to its siblings on the HD systems.

Treyarch have squeezed an immense amount onto the disk, it's literally bursting with content. The Wii version includes the full campaign, the online multiplayer (including all the modes), the combat training and the 4 player Zombie mode. Black Ops is probably one of the best value games you could invest in and provides such a wealth of different experiences you may well be still playing this a year from now.

The developers have pushed the Wii to the limit – and it shows. Black Ops looks great and runs smoothly – save the odd hiccup in larger areas when you're being totally overwhelmed by enemies. Whereas most development teams 'optimise' their games for the Wii, which basically means downsizing environments and reducing the number of enemies on screen, Black Ops throws you into huge open areas where you will be shocked at the number of different characters on screen.

Not only are the theatres of conflict filled with enemies but you will also see numerous particle effects, fantastic explosions, smoke rising, snow falling and all manner of small touches which please the eye. Of particular note are the fantastic gun models, all of which look great.

The visuals are shown off to great effect in the stellar single player campaign. Treyarch have crafted a great campaign which seems far more focused on the central story and characters than previous entries in the series. The plot is told in a gritty and interesting way from the perspective of Mason, a member of an elite Special Forces unit who is being interrogated, and the gameplay takes the form of flashbacks as he explains previous events to his captors.

The campaign sees you take part in prison breaks, infiltrating facilities, piloting a helicopter gunship as well as taking to the battlefield in large scale conflicts. It's a cinematic experience and really does show off what the Wii can do – proving that we don't simply have to put up with rail shooters.

The game also sounds fantastic, from atmospheric music right through to fantastic sound effects from the huge variety of different weapons available throughout the game. The effects really bring you closer to the experience and suck you into the campaign. Soldiers will shout and scream as grenades go off and gunfire explodes from all around you sucking you deeper into the experience.

As you play through the game you will also notice the attention Treyarch have paid to the controls. The amount of customisation is staggering. Not only can you change all the bounding boxes, turn speeds, camera speeds and cursor sensitivities as you can in many other titles, you can also change the size, shape and colour of your reticule. What's more for those who enjoyed World at War and Modern Warfare Reflex on the Wii the developer has added a simple option to select the play style from either of those titles. To add the cherry on the cake they've also included Classic Controller support for all those who still love their dual analogue sticks.

Whilst Black Ops' single player shines and provides an unrivalled experience on the Wii in terms of the sheer size and scope of the campaign, what most people buy a Call of Duty game for is the multiplayer. Treyarch have ensured that the multiplayer in Black Ops is really a cut above the rest. Quite categorically, Black Ops provides the best online system available on the Wii to date. For years Wii owners have felt hard done to when comparing the Wii's online service to those found on other consoles. Black Ops intends to put that right and does a fantastic job; it offers a system comparable to XBOX Live on the Wii. Gone are Friend Codes, you can now add players from recent matches, send text messages to friends, view the stats of opposing players and most crucially you can chat to anyone on your team or in the lobby using the new PDP Headbanger Headset.

What's more Treyarch have included all the maps and modes available on the other systems. Some people may complain about a couple of missing kill streaks but when you consider the overall package that would be nitpicking at its worst. The online supports a ten player experience in classic modes like Team Death Match as well as introducing the new wager matches where you can bet your hard earned COD points which you now use to unlock new weapons, attachments, perks, camouflage and streaks.

This new system works very well and allows you to set up your custom classes as you wish. You buy the attachments you want, rather than having to complete challenges to make them available. You want the silencer? You buy it!

Treyarch weren't simply content bringing all of this to the Wii, they've also significantly altered the net code too. Gone is the lag shooting that was found in World at War, and to a lesser extent in Modern Warfare Reflex. The developers have worked hard to provide a much more fluid experience which relies far more on precision shooting.

Online matches are as fast and frantic as ever, but if you find yourself being hammered by the opposition don't despair - you can now duck out of the player matches and enter Combat Training. This is a new mode where you face off against up to 9 computer controlled bots. This is a fantastic way to try out new weapons and get a feel for the maps. What's more you don't have to do it alone, you can invite a friend or four into matches and take on a team of bots with your mates. The bots also perform very well and cluster together as a team moving through the map just like human opponents.

Finally we come to the four player cooperative Zombie mode. This was totally missing on World at War and now Wii owners can get to see what all the fuss is about. This is great way to pass a few hours and is a very engaging experience – and again it's a first on the Wii, no other shooter has provided an online co-op mode. What's more the experience is set to grow – Treyarch have already stated that the Wii version will support DLC and patches, another first for a Wii shooter.

With everything packed onto this disk, from the stellar single player campaign right through to the many online modes, Black Ops is going to last you a while. It's a great value and highly polished package which pushes the Wii both in terms of graphics and game play. Black Ops brings an unrivalled multiplayer experience to the system which is actually on a par with similar experiences on other consoles. Black Ops isn't just a huge credit to Treyarch, but also a lesson to other developers that quality core experiences can exist on the Wii.

Zechs
- N-Europe Guest Writer