Call of Duty: World at War on the DS is one of those weird little handheld shooters that somehow works. You're dropped right into the Pacific theater, storming beaches with your squad, and the controls actually hold up—no awkward stylus aiming here, just straightforward dual-stick action (well, as dual-stick as a DS gets).

The missions are bite-sized but surprisingly intense—one minute you're clearing bunkers with a flamethrower, the next you're sniping from a sinking ship. The AI isn’t brilliant, but they’ll flank you if you camp too long. And yeah, it’s still got that classic CoD feel where you’re mostly following scripted sequences, but for a DS game? Way more satisfying than it has any right to be.

Just don’t expect the full console experience. Textures are muddy, and some levels feel cramped, but it’s a solid pick if you need a portable WWII fix. I kept coming back to the multiplayer bots when I was stuck somewhere boring.